Cactus tempura Japanese tuck into prickly pear superfood

Farmers in Japan are cooking up new menus for health-conscious Japanese, with dishes like quiche, pizza toast, skewers, tempura and cold Chinese noodles. They share a common but somewhat unusual ingredient: prickly pear cactus.

As one of the few farmers who grow edible cactus in Japan, Miki Deguchi is convinced that the nutrient-packed plant is well on its way to becoming a staple here.

The Opuntia genus, known as prickly pear cactus, is gaining national appeal in Japan for being rich in minerals, dietary fibre and other nutrients. It has a mild, refreshing taste and can even be enjoyed uncooked.

There’s some evidence to back its “superfood” label.

Last year, Chubu University established the Research Initiatives Center for Cactus and Succulent Plant Research for the industrial use of cacti. It’s located in the city of Kasugai, Aichi Prefecture, where ornamental cactus cultivation first took off in Japan.

Researchers at the centre confirmed that mice fed a diet mixed with cactus pear powder had elevated levels of mucin, a protein that covers the surface of the intestine and blocks viruses, and enhanced immune function.

“I’m convinced that cactus has great potential as a functional food,” said Mamoru Tanaka, an associate professor of food and nutrition at the university who took part in the research.

Ms Miki, 63, and her husband Motohiko, 63, grow prickly pear on a Kasugai farm set in a “satoyama”,an area between picturesque mountain foothills and arable flat lands. In May, the sounds of birds chirping and frogs croaking resounded near a row of newly sprouted prickly pear. The shoots grow tender and succulent through the fall.

The Deguchis learned to grow the plants in 2015. They now cultivate more than 700 cacti in a paddy acquired from a friend.

Named “Taiyonoha” (Sun Leaves),their plants are sold