Did you know avocado is a fruit??? I never really gave it much thought, but it makes sense. Did you also know avocado is delicious! Do you like how I said that as a statement? No room for drawing your own conclusions here 😉. To me, the avocado is so simple in taste and smooth in texture – but complex in its versatility and use. It mixes so well with so many other flavors, and the health benefits of the avocado are astounding! It is a superfood and I keep them on hand all the time.
Some of what I am going to share here you probably already know, but sometimes in conversations with friends this tasty fruit comes up and I share how I buy and store them and they are often surprised. So, I thought, what a great place for me to share what I know about the wonderful avacado and hopefully you too will gain some great insights!
Buying Avocados
Don’t be fooled when you see them on sale – take a closer look to see if they are over-ripe, in which case they have probably turned brown inside. You can tell this by the outside color and the feel of the avocado. Don’t buy them when they are extra dark green, almost black. Pick up the avocado and gently squeeze it in your hand, and if it has a ton of extra give, then leave it alone. If it feels mushy, just say no.
When purchasing avocado, the ripeness you desire depends on when you intend to use it. It may not even be an option and you sometimes have to get what they have, but often I find varying degrees of ripeness at the grocery. I tend to go for the more firm selection and let them age on my counter.
Ripeness
Usually, in our house, we have avocado for breakfast either sliced or mashed up or cut into a mixture of onions, avocado, tomato, cilantro and lime (this recipe/mixture was a gift from my fabulous mother-in-law – THANK YOU!!!!) which is just so tasty! They are also low carb – well, they have a few carbs but they do have a lot of fiber, so we don’t have to worry about the carb count on them.
Because of our eating habits, as I said earlier, I like to have an avocado option on hand all the time. I usually buy several at a time, and I buy them mostly hard with little give when gently squeezing it. Then I let them sit on our counter in the food basket along with the onions, garlic, tomatoes (NEVER PUT YOUR TOMATOES IN THE FRIDGE! They get mealy that way…) lemons, hard-coated squash, etc.
I keep a close eye on them and usually, in a few days, they start to get darker in color. I feel them for firmness and once they have some give, I either cut them up and eat them, or I put them in the fridge. I can store avocado in the fridge for a few weeks sometimes, but they never last that long in our house! Yes, once they are ripe, put them in your fridge until you are ready to use them. No more rotten avocado on your counters, and no more feeling sad you didn’t get to it in time and had to waste it!
Slicing
Slice the avocado in half – starting at the pit on the end and circle around.
Now, do me a BIG favor… Don’t hold the avocado in your hand and come down on the pit (and your hand!) to get the pit out. Put it on your cutting board and THEN come down on it so you save your hand and don’t accidentally cut yourself! I have a dear friend who ended up in the emergency room because of this exact problem. The doctor said when she was getting her hand tented to that this was a common occurrence and he treated tons of people for slicing their hand while working with avocado.
Don’t be like everyone else! Be smart and cut on the board!
Alternatlively, You can also just use the end of your knife to almost scoop it out of the avocado, but just don’t cut yourself!
Next – cut it up as desired and scoop it out with a spoon. I do it this way, but others I know peel the back of it off, and then cut it on the cutting board. They way I do it, I find it to be a quick and easy way to do it, but certainly do what works for you!
Nutrition Info
As I mentioned earlier, the Avocado is really, really good for you! See the nutrition facts below…
Also, here is a link to more information if you want it!
More to come on the avocado mixture I talked about earlier, next time I make it I will snap a pic and share that recipe too. In the meantime, happy avocado eating out there! 🥑😋
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