If the Nepali avocado was a celebrity it would be the George Clooney of fruit! These mouthwatering superfruits are a staple in our pantry, our health and our hearts.

For all of you avocado lovers out there, here is the ultimate guide about all things avocado! All the tricks, tips and hacks for being an avocado expert rather than just an enthusiast. 

How To Pick The Best Avocado: Steps for Success

When choosing fresh produce, it’s sometimes challenging to determine whether you’ve chosen a winner or are playing Russian roulette in your pickings once you bring it home (But fear not – we are here to help!)

To be a king or queen of picking the creamiest avocado from the crop, it’s not all about the avocado’s skin color to determine whether or not it’s ripe! The ripeness of an avocado comes from both the color as well as how it feels.

As most of us know; the lighter the skin color, the less ripe it is. The darker, the riper but to determine the perfect pick, place the avocado in your hand and squeeze gently without using your fingertips. If the avocado feels slightly soft but firm (not mushy), it’s perfect to eat right away or the next day!

Lastly, checking underneath the avocado’s stem will determine if it’s a gem! If it’s ready to eat that day, pull off the stem to determine its color. If it is green or yellow, it’s perfectly ripe! If the color is brown unfortunately your frown won’t turn upside down, because your prized avocado has gone to the dark side.

Pro Avo Tip: To prevent avocados from going bad quickly, you can slow down its ripening process and save its shelf-life by keeping it in the fridge!

The Avocado Conundrum: Waiting to Ripen

We’ve all been there – like a kid at Christmas waiting in anticipation to open presents. Except instead, we’re looking at our avocado and asking ourselves how we can mentally prepare to wait days until we can enjoy this luscious fruit.

Have no fear – two ripening processes are here:

If you say: “I can wait a day”

Place an unripe avocado in a paper bag with either a banana or an apple. In 2-3 days, your little green gem will be perfectly ripened and ready to eat!

If you have an avocado problem and you need to eat it straight away:

Thanks to huffpost.com, all you need is a baking sheet, tinfoil and your unripe avocado. 

“Wrap the whole fruit in tinfoil and set it on the baking sheet. Pop it in the oven at 200°F for ten minutes, or until the avocado is soft (depending on how hard it is, it could take up to an hour to soften). Remove it from the oven, then put your soft, ripe avocado in the fridge until it cools”. 

Saving your Beloved Avocado

To save your avocado and keep both its freshness and prevent it from browning, a key tip is to keep the pit in when storing for later. Additionally, squeeze citrus juice onto it such as a lime or lemon and wrap in plastic wrap and keep it in the refrigerator. Optionally you can store your avocado with an onion in a Tupperware container in the fridge to prevent oxidation; however your avocado will have a hint of an oniony taste. 

An Avocado Overload?

In our mind there’s no such thing but when you buy a giant bag there’s only so many you can eat before they reach their expiry date.

In order to save them at their prime, remove both the skin and pit keeping only the meaty section of the avocado. Cut them in half, coat them with lemon juice and place them on parchment paper cut-side down. Store them in a freezer-safe plastic ziplock bag and keep in the freezer until you’re ready to eat them!

Optionally, you can blend avocados and lemon juice in a blender; put the mixture into an ice cube tray covered with plastic wrap or a freezer-safe bag until frozen. (A great option to use for your go-to smoothies in the morning!)

Cutting An Avocado Like A Pro

The Horizontal Method: If the avocado is perfectly ripe, cut the avocado horizontally until it’s cut fully in half.  One side will still have the pit attached. To remove; gently squeeze the side of the avocado and it should pop out easily without needing to use a knife or fork! 

The Traditional Method: Cut the avocado lengthwise all the way around while keeping the knife in contact with the pit the same way you would typically cut a bagel. Next, grab both sides of the avocado and twist! To remove the pit, use a fork or knife to stab into the pit. Twist and it will be easily removed.

Congratulations, you’ve now become expert in the ways of the Nepali avocado!  Enjoy!