Too mushy, too messy, too expensive! Despite their popularity, avocados
can cause quite a headache for consumers. Are you making some of these big mistakes?
The first mistake people make with avocados can occur before you even bring them home in your
shopping bag. If you're like many shoppers, you head over to the avocado stand and start picking
up the fruits, gently squeezing each one to figure out its ripeness. Rock hard? You put it back.
Pillowy soft? You also pass on those, because almost immediately they'll rot before your eyes.
According to Avocados From Mexico, the process of selecting the ideal avocado is quite simple.
There are four factors to consider: color, taste, texture, and firmness. The darker the avocado,
the more ripe and ready for consumption it is. Another visual cue is to look for bumps
all over the skin that indicate ripeness. When you squeeze an avocado to check its firmness,
you want to avoid ones that have obvious dents or mushiness. And if you're bold enough to taste one
at home to check its doneness, it should be buttery and easily melt in your mouth.
According to food-sourcing platform Selina Wamucii, the average wholesale price of
avocados in the United States in 2023 is around $1.19 per pound. This price is the result of an
overabundance of Peruvian avocados which caused a 27% drop in wholesale prices from Mexico,
one of the biggest global producers of avocados in the world, in the summer of 2022 as per CNBC.
Despite the lower prices, avocados are still on the higher end of what you'll pay per serving
among other produce at the supermarket. They are definitely one of those grocery items you need to
plan and budget around, otherwise you may find yourself wasting more money than you realize.
Consider skipping organic avocados to save over time, and only buy what you realistically expect
to eat in an average week. Try following the advice of shopping app Ibotta, which compiled
data showing that avocados tend to be the cheapest on Wednesdays, and most expensive on Sundays.
"I'm sorry. I'm a little stressed out. I found out I got too many ripe avocados."
Even with smart shopping, avocados are still one of the pricier produce items in the grocery store,
tempting many of us to scope out whatever savings we can. If single avocados are not on sale,
you may be able to save a couple of bucks by buying a bunch at once. Typically, avocados
will be sold individually or in bags of four or five. But beware: Buying in bulk might lead
to more food waste than you realize. Avocados that are sold in bulk are usually all at the same level
of ripeness. That means that the entire bag will likely be ready to consume at the same time. That
can take anywhere from a day to upwards of a week, depending on the ripeness at the time of purchase,
per Does It Go Bad. If you are only eating one of those avocados per day, you might pass peak
ripeness and some of the ones in your bag will rot before you are able to eat them.
Did you know that there are over 500 varieties of avocado,
as reported by University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences?
The crop is grown in tropical areas all around the world,
and each different environment yields unique results. While you may only find
your traditional Hass avocado in your local grocery store here in the U.S.,
you can check with your local farmers markets to see if there are other varieties available.
As it turns out, not all avocados are created equal, so pay close attention
next time you bite into one and figure out which ones work best for you. The
University of Florida suggests that Hass avocados are ideal for preparing guacamole,
but you can also experiment with Brogdon and Fuerte avocados.
When you bring your avocados home from the grocery store, you may have a designated
place in your pantry to keep them. But the way that you store these fruits before use
can have a drastic impact on the quality of your avocados. According to Real Simple,
if you want your whole avocados to last as long as possible, you should store them on
your counter away from other produce. They should be good for up to five days that way.
There's also a legitimate health reason for why you want to make sure you store your
whole avocados correctly. The FDA conducted a study in 2014 that revealed that nearly
1% of the avocados collected and sampled had traces of salmonella on their skin,
and nearly 18% of avocados collected had traces of Listeria monocytogenes on their skin. So be sure
to rinse them with water before consumption. These findings also resulted in the FDA warning against
the storing of whole avocados in water, which became a viral trend in early 2022. The FDA says
storing avocados in water only encourages the potentially present bacteria to multiply. Instead,
rinsing your avocados and storing them on the counter will ensure you are eating them safely.
While you might be excited to eat your avocados, there are many who dread the
task of actually preparing them. It can be a messier ordeal than you might realize. There
are easier ways of removing the pit than the methods you may have tried in the past.
Did you know that there's a way of removing the pit from
an avocado without the use of a knife, or any utensil at all for that matter?
The viral TikTok trend involves placing your index and middle
finger on the exposed flesh side of the avocado, framing the pit. Then,
gently push the pit out by applying pressure on the skin side with your thumb. There may
be some cleanup required—depending on how mushy the avocado is, there will likely
be some remnants on your fingers. But not having to wor ry about slicing your fingers
off by whacking a sharp knife into the pit makes for a much less stressful experience.
Once the inside of an avocado is exposed to air, the ripening process will occur much more quickly.
The Martha Stewart "stem trick" will come in handy here—it involves popping the stem off an
avocado to check for ripeness. If your avocados were not quite ready to eat when you do this,
they will be in no time at all. That's because removing the stem exposes the inside flesh to air,
which will result in quicker ripening. This might be ideal if you want to speed up the process and
get snacking sooner, but don't make the mistake of forgetting about your avocados or they will rot.
"I'm just a mushy mess. Helplessly hoping for a cuddle. Nobody'll even give me a squeeze."
Similarly, if you only need one half of an avocado for whatever dish you are preparing,
be ready to eat the other half relatively soon afterwards.
While no one wants to be forced to throw away a rotten avocado half, sometimes you simply
aren't ready to finish the fruit right away. You might be wondering if there is any way at all to
make them last longer. According to Love One Today, which is run by the Hass Avocado Board,
sprinkling a dash of lemon or lime juice on the flesh will help in the preservation
process and will keep the avocado fresher for longer. Make sure you leave the skin
on to help minimize exposure to air. Avocados From Mexico also advises covering the exposed
flesh in olive oil. Regardless of what you use to cover the flesh, make sure you are using an
air-tight covering, like plastic wrap, before placing your avocado half in the refrigerator.
You can probably leave your avocado uncovered in the fridge if you know you
are going to eat it within a day, as a writer for Insider discovered. Any longer than that,
however, and you are going to want to find a way to slow down the oxidation process.
Oxidation is a natural process that occurs in many produce items, from apples to bananas to potatoes,
and avocados are no exception. You will know oxidation has occurred when you see
some browning on the flesh. Those brown spots that appear after you cut open an avocado are
completely safe to eat, according to a food scientist who spoke to Well + Good. But you may
find the texture off-putting, so simply slice the browned sections off and enjoy the rest of your
avocado. If the inside of your avocado is already brown when you first slice into it, that indicates
early oxidation due to improper storage. It may also be the case that the avocado was dropped
and is slightly bruised. These are also safe to eat once you cut around those brown sections.
Avocados are a common ingredient on tacos and sandwiches, or as toppings for rice bowls,
salads, and more. While simply slicing and serving
an avocado in its natural state is a perfectly fine way of eating one,
there are a number of other ways to prepare them that you may want to consider.
"You know they also taste great on salads."
Of course, a super popular preparation method is to mash avocados and make a guacamole dip.
But did you know you can also grill avocados? According to A Couple Cooks, grilling avocado
gives them a nice smokey flavor that will enhance whatever dish you choose to add them
to. Avocados are also a great ingredient to add to your smoothies. According to Martha Stewart,
the creamy texture of avocados lend themselves to blended beverages, and since avocados do not
inherently have any strong natural flavors, you may not even notice them in your drink while
you're enjoying all of the added nutrients. Food consumption aside, avocados can also provide major
benefits to your skin. The Huffington Post suggests spreading mashed avocado
onto your face or body to treat sunburns, prevent wrinkles, and moisturize your skin.
Sliced avocado is a common way of consuming the fruit, but one of the most popular uses
for avocados is mashing them into a dip for your chips or vegetables. The creamy texture of mashed
avocado can also be great to use in sauces, salad dressings, or for avocado toast. However, the way
you mash your avocado can affect the consistency you achieve. Livestrong advises those wanting to
mash avocados for guacamole to use the back of a fork for about one minute—and there's no need to
remove all of the lumps, as they tend to make for a better texture for your chunky dip. If you're
looking for a creamier mash, which is ideal for a sauce, a potato masher is a better bet.
Some people enjoy the light flavor of avocados, and simply slicing and serving as-is can work
wonders in some cases. But due to their subtle taste, avocados can also take well
to being seasoned in a number of ways that enhances whatever dish you are creating,
and we highly recommend that you utilize your spice rack before you eat an avocado. Even
adding a dash of salt and pepper can make a huge difference. Avocados From Mexico also suggests
other spices like paprika or ranch seasoning for some extra flavor. Lemon and lime juices,
like those used in guacamole, can add just the right zing to an avocado. Or
you can drizzle some olive oil or balsamic vinegar—essentially,
whatever dressing you would use on a salad with avocado should work with just an avocado, too.
While avocados are yummy, versatile, and very healthy,
that doesn't mean you can't have too many of them. According to the Cleveland Clinic,
an average-sized avocado comes packed with healthy monounsaturated fats, but it also comes packed
with calories—anywhere from 200 to 300 calories, to be precise. If you are calorie-conscious,
this might be something to keep in mind when you are meal planning. Though because it is true
that avocados are packed with other beneficial nutrients—including nearly two dozen vitamins
and minerals—the added calories may be well worth the trade-off. After all, according to
Women's Health, half of an avocado contains more potassium than one whole medium banana.
Avocados can also help to lower bad cholesterol,
which can lower your risk for heart disease, according to the American Heart Association.
So finding unique ways to incorporate avocados into your breakfast, lunch,
or dinner routine can be a great tool to adding much-needed nutrients to your diet.