1 hour ago, Smithy said:I don't see much made about cholla fruit as opposed to prickly pear fruit.
Yeah, it seems it's the cholla's buds that are most important. Maybe because the buds are available in Spring and the fruit ripens later when the other desert fruit are also available. I have the Desert Harvesters book, Eat Mesquite and More and the emphasis is definitely on the buds for culinary purposes. However, they do talk about the fruit for medicinal purposes.
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The fruit pulp's main attribute is its cooling energy. Simple gather the fruit, peel and mash. The mashed pulp can be applied to burns, bites, stings, or heat rash with a thin cloth or directly poulticed onto the skin.
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Diluted in water, it can be sipped to alleviate heat stroke.
So, it's edible, but not sure how often it's used in a culinary manner. I'm sure someone else will know more.
The root is also attributed some medicinal properties.
