You're more likely than ever to discover avocado toast or a grain bowl at your neighborhood café thanks to the fruit’s recent surge in popularity. The avocado is a huge green fruit with a large pit in the center and dark, leathery skin. It is often referred to as butter fruit or alligator pears. This pear-shaped berry, a superfood, is showing up in everything from smoothies to brownies to salads and wraps. Avocado oil, which has a high smoke point but is more expensive than other salad and cooking oils, is typically used for salads or dips.
History
The avocado tree (Persea americana), is an American-born species that probably originated in the highland areas of south-central Mexico and Guatemala. It is regarded as a member of the Lauraceae genus of flowering plants. To ensure consistent fruit quality and quantity, avocado trees—which are largely self-pollinating—are frequently propagated through grafting.
The Spanish word aguacate was rendered as avogato in modern English. The phrase "alligator pear" first appears in writing in 1697 as "avogato pear," which later acquired its current meaning through folk etymology.
Picking That Perfectly Ripe Avocado:
Fresh avocados do not ripen or "soften" while still on the tree; rather, they do so after being plucked. When ripe, fresh avocados can transform from a dark-green color to a deep, nearly black shade, setting them apart from some of the other avocado varieties.
The key indicators of ripeness = COLOR + FEEL
Although the skin color of fresh avocados can aid in first visual selection, it is not necessarily the best freshness indicator. Consistency is what finally determines ripeness. This is because avocado "softening" can happen at varied rates, regardless of the color.
There are some easy ways to pick a perfectly ripe avocado in the grocery store.
- Pressure
Squeeze the avocado slightly while holding it in your palm, being careful not to press your fingernail tips within the fruit. Instead, use your palm to prevent bruises. A ripe avocado will give when lightly squeezed. It will take several days for an avocado to achieve its full maturity if you press it and there is absolutely no give at all.
- Color
Unripe avocados will have paler skins, and as they mature, the color of the skin will change to deep, dark green, occasionally even approaching black.
- Stem
Pull off the small portion of the stem that is still attached at the top if you're unsure. The avocado is overripe if the inside is brown. Your ideal avocado should have a deep green underside.
- Bruises and breaks
Never purchase an avocado that has noticeable bruising, soft patches, or skin breaks.
How to Cut an Avocado
This is an age-old question asked by anyone who is handling an avocado for the first time. You can find several videos with instructions on how to cut an avocado.
Here is a step-by-step tutorial on how to cut an avocado:
- The avocado should be placed lengthwise on a stable surface. To prevent slippage, place a fresh dish towel on your counter or underneath your cutting board.
- With one hand, securely hold the avocado. Slice the avocado slowly through the middle until the knife comes to rest on the pit. Rotate the fruit while holding the knife steadily in the other hand.
- With one hand still holding the avocado in the palm of the other, rotate and twist the two halves apart.
- Put the avocado half with the pit in a cloth. You should carefully tap the back edge of a chef's knife into the pit while holding it firmly in your palm. To remove, twist, and then raise straight up. To release the pit from the knife, tap on the side of a bowl.
How to store an already cut avocado
For those rare occasions, here are some tips to preserve avocado that has already been cut.
- In the fridge, cover the flesh with fresh lemon juice after removing the pit and wrapping it in plastic. It ought to endure for two to three days.
- To make the process even simpler, you can immerse your ripe avocado in water. The second half should be placed in a container flesh-side down, covered, and kept in the refrigerator. This will prevent the avocado from fading for another two days or so.
- Place the entire avocado in the refrigerator if it is already ripe but you aren't ready to consume it just yet. You can enjoy its deliciousness for a few more days with this.
You can refrigerate avocado and store it in commercial refrigerators from CKitchen. Our selection of reach-in refrigerators for commercial kitchens keeps your dips and foods fresh until they are ready to be served.
When it comes to "superfoods," avocados are the best because of their high mineral, vitamin, and antioxidant content.
Nutritional Facts about Avocados:
- Avocados are high in calories. You wouldn't anticipate the recommended serving size to be as small as 1/3 of a medium avocado (50 grams or 1.7 ounces). One ounce of avocado has 50 calories!
- Avocados contain a lot of fat. As long as you consume them in moderation, monounsaturated fat is a "healthy" fat that lowers harmful cholesterol.
In a 100-gram serving of avocado, you get:
- Potassium - 485 milligrams
- Folate - 81 micrograms
- Vitamin B6 - 0.257 milligrams
- Vitamin C - 10 milligrams
- Vitamin - 2.07 milligrams
Avocados have low sugar. They also include fiber, which prolongs your feeling of fullness. According to one study, those who included a fresh avocado half in their lunch had less appetite for food for the next three hours than those who chose not to consume the fruit.
There are many recipes found online that call for avocados. One of the simplest recipes that bring out the best of the humble avocado is a popular dip called guacamole.
Recipe for Guacamole:
Prep time: 10 mins
Total time required: 10 mins
Servings: 4
Ingredients required:
- 3 avocados - peeled, pitted, and mashed
- 1 lime - juiced
- 1 teaspoon - of salt
- ½ cup onion - diced
- 3 tablespoons - freshly chopped cilantro
- 2 tomatoes - diced
- 1 teaspoon - minced garlic
- 1 pinch - of powdered cayenne pepper (optional)
Cooking instructions:
- Mix the avocados, lime juice, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Add tomato, onion, cilantro, and the garlic mixture.
- Add cayenne pepper and stir. Serve right away or chill for the greatest flavor.
Cut, mash, or eat fresh with your preferred side of toast or nachos. Guacamole is a healthy and tasty alternative to other popular dips, be it in any kind of preparation. Enjoy!
