Prickly pears – also called cactus fruit, cactus figs, Indian figs, barbary figs, and tuna – are the fruit of the Opuntia cactus plant. They're most commonly found in the Mediterranean, in the Southwest United States, in Mexico, in North Africa and in parts of South Africa.
In Morocco, prickly pears are called el karmouss el hindi (Indian figs). They can be purchased whole as shown in the photo, but you'll also see vendors peeling and selling el karmouss el hindi from carts in the street. Passers-by will stop to purchase the peeled fruit to eat it on the spot.
Prickly pears get their name because of the tiny hair-like prickers – or spines – which cover the fruit. Because of the spines they need to be handled carefully, but other than that they're actually quite easy to peel.
