Content

• Steps
• Advice

If you love guacamole or like toast with delicious avocado slices, you know what good avocado looks like. It may not be easy to choose a delicious avocado when you are at the store or farmer's market, but once you know what characteristics to look for and how to determine the best maturity for your needs, you will can bring home the desired avocados.

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Checking the ripeness of an avocado

1. 

   Look at the color of the avocado. Color is probably the first feature you notice when choosing store avocados. Ripe avocados are usually almost black in dark color and slightly greenish in color. If you want to eat avocados right after you buy them, choose a dark avocado. If you're going to eat it a few days later, choose greener ones.
   • Some avocado varieties like Fuerte, Ettinger, Reed, and Sharwill still have green rinds when ripe, so it's important to know the name of the avocado variety you're choosing.
   • Remember that color is not the only factor you need to consider when choosing ripe avocados. You should also feel the avocado to check it out.

2. 

   
   
   Squeeze the avocado. When you see an avocado that appears to be ripe, you should still touch it to check its ripeness. Hold the avocado in your palm and gently squeeze it. The ripe avocado will sink slightly when you press lightly, but not too soft or limp.
   • If the avocado feels firm or firm when you press it, it is not ripe. You should only buy this avocado if you plan to leave it for a few days before eating.
   • Avoid buying soft avocados, as this is overripe.
   • The harder the avocado, the longer it will ripen.
   • If you buy a lot of avocado, you should probably choose avocados of different degrees of ripeness. That way, you will have a few fruits to eat right away, a few to eat for 2-3 days and a few for 4-5 days.

3. 

   
   
   Examine the avocado skin. In addition to considering the color of the avocado peel, you should also check its texture. The skin of the avocado may be a bit rough, but make sure there are no large dents, as that could be a sign of a flattened avocado.

4. 

   Observe the stem of the avocado. To make sure the avocado you're choosing is ripe and creamy on the inside, remove the stem on top of the avocado. If the base of the stalk is green, it is a delicious avocado and should be purchased. If the base of the stalk is brown, the avocado is overripe and is best not to buy.
   • When examining the stem of the avocado, look for mold as well. If the portion is black or dark brown, the avocado is probably contaminated with mold.
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Part 2 of 3: Choosing the right butter

1. 

   
   
   Choose butter based on the flavor you like. Although all avocados taste the same, the flavor is slightly different and will likely make you prefer one over the other. Some taste like nuts, others have a milder flavor. Choose an avocado based on the flavor that best suits the recipe or your liking.
   • Avocado varieties Hass, Lamb Hass, Gwen, Reed, or Sharwil are fat and nutty.
   • Avocado varieties Bacon and Zutano have a lighter flavor.

2. 

   Choose an avocado based on the characteristics of the peel. Some avocados are easy to peel, others are a bit more difficult. If you are in a hurry, buy an avocado that is easy to peel to save time. If you don't mind the effort of peeling, you can choose any type of avocado.
   • Pinkerton avocados are the easiest to peel, but varieties Bacon, Fuerte, Hass, and Gwen are not that difficult either.
   • Zutano butter is also relatively easy to peel.
   • Ettinger butter is the hardest to peel.

3. 

   Buy avocados based on the amount of oil in the fruit. Some avocado varieties are more oily than others, i.e. have a higher fat content. If you want to maintain a low-fat diet, choose low-fat avocado varieties.
   • The avocado varieties with the highest oil content are Hass, Pinkerton, Sharwil and Fuerte.
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Part 3 of 3: Preserving and cooking avocado at home

1. 

   Store unripe avocado in a paper bag. When you buy unripe avocados, you can place them on the counter, and the avocados will cook in 4-5 days. To make the avocado ripen faster, put it in a brown paper bag with an apple or banana. These two fruits produce ethyl gas that will help the avocado ripen in 2-3 days.
   • Keep the avocado paper bag out of direct sunlight to make sure it doesn't overcook.
   • When you take the avocados out of the bag, check again by pressing lightly on the peel. The avocado should be soft, but not squishy.

2. 

   Store cooked whole avocados in the refrigerator. If you bought ripe avocados home from the store or cooked them in a paper bag but haven't eaten them right away, you can store the whole avocado in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
   • Since cold will slow ripening, you should never leave unripe avocados in the refrigerator.

3. 

   Squeeze the lemon juice over the cut, ripe avocado before refrigerating. If you've eaten or used half a ripe avocado, you can store the rest in the refrigerator. However, make sure to squeeze the juice of a fresh lemon onto the cut side of the avocado to prevent it from darkening. Wrap avocados in plastic wrap or sealed containers and store in the refrigerator for no more than one day.
   • If you still leave the seeds in the avocado after you cut it, there's a good chance the avocado won't go dark.
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Advice

• Buying a whole bag of avocado can be a great way to save money, but all the avocados in the bag are usually about the same degree of ripeness, and you may not be able to eat them all before the avocados go bad. It is best to purchase each avocado individually. Choose ripe fruits for immediate use, ripe ones to eat for a few days, and unripe ones to eat after 4-5 days.
• Ripe avocados are more fragrant than the over-ripened ones, so you should also smell them when you choose to buy them.