A Tuna is Not a Fish

Tuna fish is eaten in coastal Ecuador fairly frequently.  It's considered something of a fast food, and you'd be "cheating" and not "really cooking" if you used it in your kitchen at home.  Nevertheless, people do open a can of tuna and dump it on top of stewed vegetables as a last-minute meal, or they mix it in with chilled pasta, hardboiled eggs, herbs, and lots of mayonnaise as a main course salad. 

If you come here and ask for tuna, however, you will not receive what you think you asked for. 

If you come here and ask for tuna, this is what you will get:

The edible fruit of a prickly pear cactus.

(If you come here and ask for atún, then you will receive fish in a can:

Most canned tuna comes in oil as opposed to water, making tuna the decidedly healthier snack option.)

Back to the tuna.

You can find them in supermarkets as well as outdoor markets. I've found that the supermarket versions are more reliably de-prickled, although I've still managed to get some spines stuck in my hand. Careful with these guys; you'll definitely want to make sure you get the skin off before putting the tuna anywhere near your mouth.

Once the skin is off, you can dig right in and eat it like an apple, or you can be civilized like me and Emily Post and cut it up as shown below.

 

 

The heart of the fruit is juicy and full of flavor, making it the perfect snack for a hot, sunny day.

 

You can't leave the table till you eat your cactus,

jordan