Needing an Avocado Education

JustMe2C

I've never before bought or ate an avocado. Someone in one of the threads mentioned a tuna salad avocado boat and that piqued my interest. Then I started seeing mentions of avocado here, there and everywhere. At the store, they all looked and felt the same to me (dark green little hard things). I watched a video where the lady scored around, twisted apart, popped out the seed then scooped out the "meat" with a spoon.

Well, let me tell ya, I had no such easy experience. Took me forever to score the thing with a knife and another eternity to get it twisted apart, only to find there wasn't an actual pit there like I thought there should be. I had what resembled a black shell lining in the indents of both halves with some little pieces of "gunk". I dug all that out then tried to scoop out with a spoon...and nearly broke the spoon. I ended up with some small chunks and slivers, left wondering what in the he!! I was going to do with it.

I ended up tossing into the chopper and whacked my frustration out 'til it was all tiny particles, then mixed in some mayo for a dressing I put on top of a burger.

So can you guys take this dummy to Avocado 101 class and teach me some things? Was it not a ripe avocado? Do they need stored in the fridge or left out? Any other things I should know?

Me and avocados don't seem to be friends at the moment, but I so want us to be.

KnitOrMiss

I don't have much avocado experience myself, but it sounds like your avocado was not ripe. They should be slightly soft, like tomatoes, when ripe. Aside from that, I think there are likely videos online if you want to learn technique, as it sounds like you are a visual person. Color is not always indicative of ripeness, as many fruits are artificially ripened these days.

Sabine_Stroehm

After he rambles on, he gets to it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrUXRPgWrW4

Sabine_Stroehm

If you like eggs: http://thehealthyfoodie.com/eggs-avocado-boat/

JustMe2C

Thank you! Now I have been schooled.

Looks like I need to wait for the couple others I bought to ripen up some then.

deksgrl

Yeah, I did that a few years ago the first time I bought an avocado, so don't feel bad. The ripe ones will be a bit darker and softer feeling. Not squishy, but not hard. I usually put them on a salad, or I use it like a spread on other veggies with cream cheese.

Sugarbeat

Once they're fairly soft I cut in half longways and the continue all the way around. The two halves should pull apart and then you can scoop out the pit, then the peel should come off a little easier. If you only eat half, you can store the other half in the fridge with a little squirt of lemon juice.

GSD_Mama

When they're black, they're ripe. I buy them mixed, with some green so they can ripen as they sit there. I eat avocado a day! I usually top it with salt and pepper and eat it with the spoon. I also love to top it with egg salad and bacon crumbles or put chunks in my omelette. Power food!

KnitOrMiss

JustMe2C wrote: »

Thank you! Now I have been schooled.

Looks like I need to wait for the couple others I bought to ripen up some then.

If you need to speed this process, you can put them in a brown paper sack, but don't go too long without checking, because avocados can go bad quickly.


That being said, can you still use avocados that are past ripe in like masques and such?

Cheesy567

Ohh, that was a bad avocado-- I hope you didn't eat it!! You want to pick out ones that are soft to the touch, and if you peak under what's left of the stem, you want to see a nice green color. (Ones that are brown beneath the stem are past their prime. You might be able to eat them but you'll have to pick out all the yucky brown stuff.)

If all your store has is hard ones, you can put them in a paper bag on your counter for a few days, checking daily to see if they soften. The best is when they're soft enough to spread like butter

I'm a Midwesterner, and it took me awhile to figure them out. I used to think I hated avocados, until I learned that I hate under-ripe rock-hard avocados!

I picked up a little avocado knife that's handy-- it's a black and green plastic thing, has an edge for scoring them, a spot for picking out the seed, and a slicer all built into one.

professionalHobbyist

Slim a cado

Or it is called Florida Avocado

It peels almost like an orange

I eat those. I can't deal with the dark green small Haas type

Not all grocery stores have them.

GSD_Mama

Florida avocado is rare find and is pretty expensive. I used to eat them but it's just too much money, cause I like them. I buy haas from SAMs, they are pretty good size

professionalHobbyist

I see them 2 for $5 sometimes. Now they are $3

Yeah they are a bit more

I don't eat them often. I love chunks of avocado in a big salad. It is a special treat!

Teneko

Yeah, sounds like your avocado wasn't ripe. That stuff is like RUBBER if it's not ripe, and is not really edible. Unfortunately avocado oxidizes quickly so once you cut it, that's it. You can't uncut it and set it to ripen.

After having so much bad luck with fresh avocados, I discovered 2 things:
1) If you press the tip where the stem was, it should push in gently when it's ripe. That helped me a ton. I had previously squeezed the outside which causes horrible bruising on the avocado.
2) I'd almost rather buy "Avocado's Number" guacamole from Trader Joe's than deal with avocados.

-T.

JustMe2C

Thanks for all the tips!

Next question. Do we have a recipe thread? And is it possible to make a thread "sticky" so it's always towards the top? I made some baked cod tonight, using a bag of fried pork skins for "breading". It was so good. I'd love to add it for anyone that might be interested...plus I'd love to see fave recipes from all of you.

minties82

GSD_Mama wrote: »

Florida avocado is rare find and is pretty expensive. I used to eat them but it's just too much money, cause I like them. I buy haas from SAMs, they are pretty good size

Haas avocados I can just peel the skin off too. Mine are only green when not ripe, they are a deep purple kinda colour when ripe.

azcowgirrlup

minties82 wrote: »

GSD_Mama wrote: »

Florida avocado is rare find and is pretty expensive. I used to eat them but it's just too much money, cause I like them. I buy haas from SAMs, they are pretty good size

Haas avocados I can just peel the skin off too. Mine are only green when not ripe, they are a deep purple kinda colour when ripe.

I love the big buttery Haas avocados! They are amazing grilled, too. Just cut in half, remove the seed and set them cut side down on the grill. You can brush them with a bit of olive oil first if you want. They only take a few minutes, so watch them. I love them grilled.

AreteAndWhimsy

Even when you have a perfectly ripe avocado, they can sometimes be not nice. Signs to look for when you cut it open are darkish freckling in the green flesh, any strange air pockets large or small, a fermented smell or acrid taste, and stringy, fibrous bits. Sometimes the avo gods are just not smiling upon you.

canadjineh

You will likely find two different kinds of avocado in your local stores - the very heavy pebbly skinned Hass or Haas, and the Fuerte smooth skinned green ones. Here's a ripeness and description picture chart: https://sigonas.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/hass-fuerte-avocado-comparison.jpg
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http://333oee3bik6e1t8q4y139009mcg.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Avocado-1.jpg
The little stem bit at the end should pick off fairly easily when they are ripe and a bit of gentle pressure at the stem end will tell you that they are good to eat for a couple days. DO NOT BUY THE SOFT DARK ONES - none of the fruit can be salvaged when the inside starts to turn dark, they are just NASTY! They are a tropical fruit so keep them on the counter for best flavour. When they are ripe they will keep a bit longer -sometimes up to a week- if then moved to the fridge. Most tropical countries treat them as a rich sweet dessert treat (amazing when mashed with pure dark cocoa and a bit of sweetener) while most northern countries use them as a savoury side.

jumanajane

Add prawns, mayo, bit of lemon and black pepper. Yum!
I often just peel them and eat them like an apple!
An easy way to remove the stone is, with a sharp knife, hit the pit so the knife embeds a bit and just twist. The pit comes away easily.

CoconuttyMummy

Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »

If you like eggs: http://thehealthyfoodie.com/eggs-avocado-boat/

This and Jumanajane's recipe both look lush. I'll be trying these for sure. Great thread.

azcowgirrlup

AreteAndWhimsy wrote: »

Even when you have a perfectly ripe avocado, they can sometimes be not nice. Signs to look for when you cut it open are darkish freckling in the green flesh, any strange air pockets large or small, a fermented smell or acrid taste, and stringy, fibrous bits. Sometimes the avo gods are just not smiling upon you.

I used to bring avocados to work with me for a snack or lunch. Ya never know whatcha got until you cut them open. If they were dark and nasty, I would throw them out, until a coworker told me that was wasteful. She loves them like that! So gross. I used to hide them in the bottom of the trash or take them home so she couldn't eat them. Ick. I was afraid she would get sick from eating rotten fruit.

Sabine_Stroehm

CoconuttyMummy wrote: »

Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »

If you like eggs: http://thehealthyfoodie.com/eggs-avocado-boat/

This and Jumanajane's recipe both look lush. I'll be trying these for sure. Great thread.

I'm having this for breakfast, actually. I put a couple of drops of Chipotle tabasco in the little pockets before adding the eggs and baking them. oh my. I do enjoy this.