How to properly store avocados at home

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Although avocado does not grow in our latitudes, it has firmly taken its position as one of our favorite fruits. This popularity is justified by its versatility, light nutty flavor and creamy pulp, which is good both as an independent dish and in combination with other ingredients.

However, many are faced with the difficulty of choosing a fruit. After reading the article, you will learn how to choose an avocado so that it is ripe and what to do if you still come across an unripe fruit.

How to choose an avocado

There are unripe fruits on the shelves of our stores. After all, this fruit does not grow here. To bring it to us, it is picked not yet ripe. But you shouldn't be upset about this. All over the world, stores sell unripe fruits. The avocado is not allowed to ripen on the tree; it is picked unripe.

Unripe fruit has a green color. It's solid. As the avocado ripens, the skin darkens and becomes almost black. If you see such a fruit, do not think that it is a spoiled avocado. This is already ripe fruit. In general, the degree of ripeness of an avocado is determined by the consistency of its pulp.

Look at the picture of an avocado below to know exactly which fruit is ripe and which one needs to ripen.

How to check the ripeness of an avocado? Take the fruit in your palms and squeeze gently without pressing on the peel with your fingers. The ripe fruit is slightly soft to the touch and can be eaten immediately.

Not mature - dense. Pressing with your palms will not affect the shape of the fetus in any way. Overripe – soft to the touch.

If you're buying avocados for the first time, buy a couple of fruits that are slightly soft to the touch. When eating at home, try to feel the difference and determine which fruit is riper and, most importantly, at what degree of ripeness you liked the taste better.

How to choose an avocado in a store and determine its ripeness?

You can find avocados in many large grocery stores and supermarkets, but not every buyer (especially a beginner) knows how to choose a high-quality ripe fruit that is not overripe, so let’s look at what you first need to pay attention to when choosing and buying a fruit avocado (how to determine the ripeness of an avocado):

Avocado fruit color. A ripe avocado has a dark green or brown color; if the avocados are light green, it means they are still unripe.
Avocado stem color. It is better to choose a ripe avocado with a light brown stem, since fruits with a dark brown stem will be overripe. Also, if you press on the base of the cutting and it presses a little, then the fruit is ripe.
The fruit is soft to the touch. A good ripe avocado is firm to the touch, but will leave an indentation when pressed. If the avocado is too hard, the fruit is not yet ripe, and if it is too soft, it is overripe.
Appearance of avocado peel. When purchasing, it is better to give preference to avocado fruits with wrinkled (uneven, not smooth) skin, since the avocado variety with smooth skin is less easy to clean (even when ripe) and has a larger pit in the middle.
Avocado pit. In ripe fruits, the seed “knocks” if the fruit is shaken, so to check the ripeness of an avocado, you need to bring it to your ear and shake it a little; if there is a knock inside, then the fruit is already ripe.
Condition of the avocado peel. You should not choose fruits that have spots and visible damage to the skin, as such fruits could already begin to deteriorate.

Note: if you are not going to eat an avocado immediately after purchasing, then it is better to buy an unripe fruit that can ripen at home in a few days at room temperature. We also pay attention to the color of the fruit: green avocado is well suited for preparing various salads and sushi rolls, and avocado with brownish skin (California variety) is better suited for sandwiches, making smoothies, cocktails or puree soup.

How to ripen an avocado

But what to do if the store only has fruits that are hard to the touch? Buy. You should not refuse to purchase such a useful product. It can be ripened at home within 2-4 days.

What's the best way to do this? Now we will share with you one little trick.

If you buy an unripe avocado, buy bananas. At home, place avocados and bananas in a bag. Preferably in paper. After a couple of days, feel the fruit. If it still doesn’t lend itself well to squeezing when pressed lightly, then let it sit for a while longer.

The fruits ripen at room temperature. There is no need to put it in the refrigerator. Avocados typically take 2 to 5 days to ripen.

If you need to buy an avocado for some occasion, choose firm, unripe fruits. If they start singing in the room faster than you need, then put them in the refrigerator.

Ripe avocados should be eaten within one or two days.

How to make an avocado soft quickly?

If you bought an unripe avocado and are trying to figure out what to do, decide how much time is left until it is consumed or used in a recipe.

Express methods include:

Microwave (a few minutes);
Oven (up to ten minutes);
Boiling water (two minutes).

However, it should be remembered that quick methods affect the quality of taste and consistency of the product; you will have to mask them with the help of other components of the recipe or spices. Suitable for preparing multi-component sauces.

When buying a hard avocado, don’t be upset when you learn how to make it soft. Take advantage of one of the ways to ripen avocados at home quickly and efficiently? Where to put avocados to ripen? And enjoy the range of beneficial properties and unusual recipes available to lovers of the exotic fruit.

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How to store avocados

Ripe avocados should be stored in the refrigerator in the fruit and vegetable compartment. It is advisable to put it in a paper bag. In the refrigerator, unripe fruits will ripen longer than at room temperature.

You can also store cut avocados. But during storage it will oxidize and the cut will darken. To reduce this process, you can sprinkle the cut with citric acid, lemon or orange juice. You can also use table vinegar. Reduce oxidation of tomato juice and onions.

Store cut avocados in a tightly closed container to prevent exposure to air. You can wrap it in cling film. You can leave the pit in the cut avocado. This will reduce the surface area that will be subject to oxidation.

Other storage methods

There are other methods to preserve the aroma and taste of an exotic fruit. From it you can prepare:

Like other types of fruits, mangoes are dried . To do this, cut it into thin slices and place it in a warm, ventilated room, covered with gauze. To speed up the process, use a dryer or oven. The dried pieces should be elastic, but not brittle. Place the preparation in a dry glass jar, which you store in the refrigerator.

Many people soak mangoes in brine or syrup, depending on the method of further use. In these liquids it is stored in a cold place and added to salads or desserts as needed.

The table shows the shelf life of various types of preparations:

Type of workpiece	Storage conditions	Best before date
Jam, confiture	In a cold place or at room temperature	Up to 1 year
In the refrigerator on the bottom shelf in a deep container	Up to 7 days
Soaking	In a refrigerator	Up to 7 days
Drying	In a refrigerator	Up to 6 months

If you are wondering how to store mangoes at home, remember that they are the same fruit as an apple or a pear, so the storage methods are often identical. Use our tips to enjoy the exotic taste and aroma of the fruit for a long time.

How to peel an avocado

Ripe avocados are easy to peel. You just need to cut the avocado in half or quarters and remove the skin. Then grab the tip of the peel and peel it off. Simply cut off any remaining skin with a knife. If the peel is difficult to peel at first, use a knife.

It is imperative to peel the avocado. It contains substances that can cause poisoning.

You can simply scoop out the pulp with a spoon, like kiwi. But this method is more suitable for overripe fruits.

How to cut an avocado

Before cutting an avocado, you need to wash it.

Place the avocado on a plate or cutting board.

Holding the top with one hand, cut the fruit in half. The avocado is cut lengthwise. Start cutting at the narrow end and work your way inward towards the pit and around the entire fruit.

Hold the avocado with one hand and roll one half against the other with the other.

The pit is easily removed with a spoon. Just pick it up and take it out. You can grow a plant from it at home.

Watch the video on how to peel and cut an avocado.

How to cut fruit correctly?

We have already found out whether avocados ripen at home. And we came to the conclusion that there are many ways to speed up the process. How to cut the fruit correctly so that it is comfortable to peel it?

Using a sharp knife, cut the avocado down to the depth of the pit. A ripe fruit should easily separate into two parts. Next, remove the seed, after which you can begin peeling the fruit. If you have a perfectly ripe fruit, cut it crosswise and then squeeze out the seed; you can do this without the help of a knife.

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How to eat avocado correctly

Avocados are best eaten fresh, without being cooked. Avocado is a good source of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber. Foods high in fiber normalize intestinal motility. Typically, these foods with lower cholesterol levels regulate blood sugar levels.

Eating an avocado every day, especially when eating a meal full of saturated trans fats, will help lower your bad cholesterol levels, which in turn will reduce your risk of heart disease.

The easiest way to eat an avocado is to peel the fruit and remove the pit, pour in balsamic vinegar and olive oil and eat. You can add avocado to a vinaigrette or vegetable salad with tomatoes, garlic, and cheese. In general, avocado can be added to any salad.

Another way is to use fresh avocado with meat, fish and seafood. Guacamole sauce is one of the famous sauces that goes well with many dishes made from these products.

Avocado is used instead of buttercream when baking cookies, cakes, and muffins.

Making avocado mousse is another good way to eat fresh avocados. You can add other fruits and berries to the mousse.

Sandwiches and sandwiches with avocado, where it can replace cucumber or tomato, will be both tasty and healthy.

Avocado is one of the frequently used ingredients in smoothies and cocktails. Green smoothies with avocado and other vegetables are the best way to replenish your body with vitamins and minerals and cleanse your body of toxins.

Storing ripe avocados

A ripe whole fruit can be kept for a couple of days just on the table in a vase, it will not spoil. Half of the fruit must be sprinkled with lemon juice to prevent darkening, wrapped in film or put in a bag and placed in the refrigerator (but not in the freezer!). There the fruit will remain unchanged in taste for 3 - 4 days. If dark spots appear on the pulp, just cut them off and the product can be used for food.

If you suddenly need to preserve an avocado for a long time, it is better to peel it, puree it and freeze it. The mass can then be used to prepare a wide variety of sauces and soups or for cosmetic purposes. To prevent the puree from darkening, add lemon or orange juice to it.

To make tasty and healthy dishes with avocado, it is better to buy fresh alligator pear fruits more often and try to prevent them from being stored for a long time. The greatest value lies only in fresh and ripe fruits.

If you don’t have a microwave at home, but have an oven, it’s not at all difficult to quickly and efficiently get ripe fruit. To do this, just wrap the fruit in food foil, place it on a tray and place it in an oven preheated to two hundred degrees for 8 - 10 minutes. During this time, the avocado will become soft. When the fruit has cooled completely, peel it, remove the pit and use it as usual.

Frequently asked questions about preparing and eating avocados

And now the answers to the most frequently asked questions about eating and preparing avocados.

The avocado is overripe. What to do

Ripe avocado is dark in color, almost black. But color is not always an indicator of ripeness. A black avocado may be a sign of spoilage.

The main thing is to try it with your hands. If it feels a little soft in your palms, then it is a ripe fruit.

Overripe avocados have the following characteristics:

There is no clear outline of the shape of the fruit.

It will feel soft to the touch, like a tomato and will not return to its original shape.

When the fruit is cut, the flesh may be dark or brown.

The first signs of mold appeared.

If an avocado exhibits such signs, especially the last three, then this fruit should not be eaten. It needs to be thrown away.

Can you fry an avocado?

Yes, avocados can be fried. Just the temperature should not be very high. It is better to do this on a grill or frying pan with a grooved bottom.

Avocado pulp has a creamy taste. If you lightly fry it, the flesh inside will be soft, and a delicate crispy crust will form on top. And the taste of the pulp becomes even creamier.

What can you replace avocado with?

The taste is similar to avocado, there are no vegetables or fruits that could replace it. But it depends on which dish requires replacement. Sometimes it can be replaced with a fresh cucumber or a green apple.

Is the avocado pit edible?

No, the avocado pit is not edible.

Why is avocado bitter?

Avocados can be bitter if they have been cooked for long periods of time and at high temperatures. The second reason is overripe fruit.

Can children have avocados?

Children can start giving avocados their first complementary feeding after a year in the form of puree. Still, this fruit is not traditional for our area and it is unknown how the child’s body will react. You should not give this fruit to your child if you are allergic to latex.

How many avocados can you eat a day?

Avocado is a high-calorie food. Half an avocado contains approximately 160 calories.

I have osteoporosis, can I eat avocados?

Yes, you can eat avocado if you have osteoporosis. It contains vitamin K, which is involved in the absorption of calcium by the body.

Together with vitamin D, vitamin K increases the absorption of calcium from food and reduces its excretion from the body. Insufficient vitamin K is often cited as a cause of bone fractures. One avocado contains 50 percent of the daily value of this vitamin.

How often can you eat avocados?

Avocado can be eaten every day. The only thing you need to remember is that avocado is a high-calorie product. The recommended serving is about 30 grams. But you can eat half an avocado. This is approximately 70-80 grams.

Can avocados be frozen?

Yes you can. It's better to puree the avocado first and freeze it. But if there is no time, then the avocado is frozen by cutting into halves and removing the pit. Before freezing, the fruit must be washed and dried. Then wrap in cling film and place in a freezer bag or container with a lid.

Can you eat avocados at night?

Yes, you can eat avocado with dinner.

Ripening methods

If you were able to buy only unripe alligator pear fruits, no problem. It is not difficult to ripen an avocado even at home. This does not require special devices or special skills.

In a paper bag

The simplest method to naturally ripen an avocado. To do this you will need:

thick opaque paper bag;
perfectly ripe fruits, such as banana, pear or apple;
in fact, the avocado fruit itself.

Perseus, along with a banana and an apple, is placed in a paper bag and closed tightly so that air does not penetrate inside. The package is left in a warm place. The secret of this method lies in the production of ethylene gas by ripe fruits, which will help the alligator pear ripen in just a couple of days.

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If there are no ripe helpers at hand, the avocado will ripen in a paper bag on its own. It will just take more time; the fruit will become ripe in about a week.

How to bring an already cut avocado to ripeness

If it so happens that the unripeness of the fruit is determined only by cutting it, nothing is lost. Without removing the seeds, pour lemon juice over the cut pulp to prevent the fruit from darkening. Then the halves are joined together, wrapped tightly in cling film or a plastic bag, and placed in the refrigerator in the vegetable compartment.

Important! The temperature on the shelf with the fruit should be no lower than + 5 degrees, otherwise the ripening process will not take place.

The ripeness of the avocado should be checked from time to time by pressing the peel with your finger. If a dent forms, the fruit is ripe.

How to ripen quickly in the microwave

Thanks to this method, you can get a ripe fruit in just a few minutes. Speed is especially important if guests unexpectedly arrive and need to be fed tasty and satisfying food. You just need to know that with such a rapid forced ripening process, the taste of the fruit may change somewhat, but it can be successfully added to salads and sauces. So, this is the order of work.

Using a fork or thin knife, prick the avocado from different sides to the very pit.
Place the fruit on a saucer and cover with a plate or lid to prevent it from exploding in the oven.
Set the oven program for 30 seconds. If, after this time, the fruit remains hard, leave it in the microwave for another half a minute.
Once completely cooled, peel and cut the avocado as usual.

Ripening alligator pear in foil

If you don’t have a microwave at home, but have an oven, it’s not at all difficult to quickly and efficiently get ripe fruit. To do this, just wrap the fruit in food foil, place it on a tray and place it in an oven preheated to two hundred degrees for 8 - 10 minutes. During this time, the avocado will become soft. When the fruit has cooled completely, peel it, remove the pit and use it as usual.

Growing up in the newspaper

An old and well-known method for ripening fruits to all housewives. The fruits are tightly wrapped in newspaper one at a time and placed in a dark and warm place, for example on a kitchen cabinet or in a box under a radiator. There, in the warmth, apples, pears, and, of course, avocados ripen perfectly.

Overly soft with bruised skin

When checking for ripeness, use the palm of your hand to gently squeeze the avocado. Do not press the fruit with your fingers as this may damage the flesh.

If the avocado is very hard and cannot be pressed at all, it means it is unripe. If it gives a little, it's probably ripe and ready to eat.

However, if squeezing leaves small indentations, the fruit may be too ripe to cut and would benefit from being pureed.

The fruit is overripe and probably spoiled, perhaps if pressure leaves large dents and the fruit becomes soft.

Also, if the avocado already has dents before you squeeze it, it's probably already started to go bad (2).

If you gently squeeze an avocado in the palm of your hand and it forms large indentations where you pressed, the fruit is overripe and likely spoiled.

Ways to speed up ripening at home

If you purchased an unripe avocado, few people know what to do with it. Often, having tried such a fruit, the desire to consume it in the future disappears. Juicy, soft, well-ripened fruit will delight you with a pleasant taste and rich aroma. Therefore, you need to figure out what you need to do to enjoy a ripe avocado as quickly as possible.

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Warming up in the oven

If you follow simple recommendations, the ripening process will go faster. Necessary:

Wrap the washed fruits in foil.
Preheat the oven. You will need 200 °C.
Place the preparations on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Hold for 10 minutes.

High-speed in the microwave

This method is suitable when avocado urgently needs to be added to a dish:

Peel the fruit. Cut into cubes.
Place in a heat-resistant container and place in the microwave.
Warm up on maximum mode for half a minute.

Disadvantages of this method:

color is lost;
the aroma becomes less intense;
a lot of juice is released.

In a paper bag

The gas that promotes fruit ripening is ethylene. The package is a simple trap that can hold him. You can use any store bought or McDonald's. Important rules:

Place a tomato, apple or banana in the bag along with the avocado. The latter fits best. Fruits emit ethylene in large quantities. Plenty of gas helps it ripen faster. Close the package.
Store in the room. You cannot put it in the refrigerator. The package should not be exposed to direct sunlight. Ideal temperature is +18…+24 °C.
Check the contents periodically. If there are other fruits in the package, the avocado will reach technical maturity in 3 days. It's better to check by touch. If an avocado is placed in a bag without other fruits, it will ripen no earlier than in 5 days.

Using newspaper

To ripen an avocado faster, you can use the oldest method - newspaper. How to use:

Make alligator pear ripe in foil

If the fruit needs to be used directly on the day of purchase, then a proven method will help - using foil:

Wrap the fruit in two layers of foil.
Place in a hot oven (210°C).
Leave for 10 minutes.

It should be noted that this method slightly changes the taste of the avocado.

Using boiling water

Boiling water will help quickly bring it to readiness:

Peel the skin. Cut out the bone. Cut into strips.
Place in a sieve and lower into boiling water. Leave for 2 minutes.

The method is very simple. After cooling, it is immediately suitable for adding to salads.

Blackened peel

Some avocados undergo distinct changes in skin color as they ripen, especially the Hass variety, which accounts for about 80% of avocados eaten worldwide (3).

When Hass avocados are not fully ripe, they have a bumpy, bright green skin. When ripe, it turns dark green or brown. If the skin looks almost black and the fruit feels soft when touched, it is overripe and probably spoiled.

Other varieties, including Zutano and Fuerte, retain their green skin color no matter how ripe they are. Use other methods, such as feeling for firmness, to determine whether they are ripe or spoiled.

Hass, the most common variety of avocado, has blackened skin when overripe or spoiled. However, other varieties retain their green color when overripe.

Dark, striped flesh

Once you cut an avocado, it's much easier to tell if it's gone bad. Of course, this option is only suitable if you have already bought the fruit.

Avocados that are ready to eat have light green flesh. Rotten pulp has brown or black spots (2).

However, an isolated brown spot may be due to dents rather than widespread deterioration and can be cut off.

Another possible sign of rotting is dark streaks in the flesh.

However, some avocados, especially those picked from young trees, may have dark streaks even if they are not rotten. If the fruit looks good and does not taste bad, it is safe to eat.

Likewise, the texture of an avocado can be uneven when it's spoiled. However, if there are no other signs of rot, this is not necessarily a bad thing. The fibrous texture can also be attributed to growing conditions (2).

Spoiled avocado flesh has dark spots and a streaky texture that tastes bad. However, isolated areas of discoloration may be associated with dents.

how to ripen an avocado at home

How to ripen an avocado at home: tips and advice

If you come across an unripe avocado, then don’t rush to get upset. Today we will talk about how to ripen avocados at home and what methods there are for this.

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If you come across an unripe avocado, then don’t rush to get upset. Today we will talk about how to ripen avocados at home and what methods there are for this.

By taste or smell

Ripe avocados have a pleasant, slightly sweet aroma and a slightly nutty taste. As the fruit spoils, its taste and smell may deteriorate.

If it tastes or smells sour, it may have bacterial spoilage and should be discarded (2).

A chemical smell and taste may mean it is rancid. This can happen when oxygen or microbes damage or break down the unsaturated fat in the fetus (4).

Rancidity can lead to the formation of potentially toxic compounds. Don't eat an avocado if you think it's rancid (5).

The taste of spoiled avocados can vary, but it's usually easy to tell if they've gone bad based on the taste.

You can tell if an avocado has gone bad by smell, taste, touch, and visual inspection.

A sour taste or smell, as well as a rancid aroma and chemical taste mean the avocado is spoiled and you should discard it.

Mold

Mold on avocados is usually white or gray and has a fuzzy appearance. Do not inhale it, as you may inhale mold spores and cause breathing problems if you are allergic to it.

Avoid buying avocados with mold on the outside, as it can penetrate into the flesh and cause the entire fruit to spoil.

If you cut an avocado and see mold, discard the entire fruit. Although you may only see mold in one area, it can easily spread through the pulp. Do not try to save the fetus (6).

Mold is a clear sign that the avocado has gone bad. You should discard the entire fruit as mold may spread through the flesh but may not be completely visible.