Avocado is a tropical fruit with a unique texture and flavor. You can use it for many different purposes, to make guacamole or a home beauty treatment, or you can simply eat it on its own. To choose the best avocados you must first decide how you intend to use them: only in this way can you select the most appropriate variety and degree of ripeness.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Choosing Avocados Based on When and How You Plan to Use Them
Step 1. Use avocados from the Hass variety and choose ripe if you want to make guacamole
It is a variety available all year round and the most popular on the market. The creamy texture makes them perfect for guacamole. Since they have a hard skin, you can cut them in half and use it as a container in which to slice the pulp. After cutting the pulp horizontally and vertically, you can easily extract it with a spoon and add it to the other ingredients.
- Since the peel is tough and flexible, you can use it to creatively serve guacamole to your guests.
- If you intend to slice the pulp to add it to a salad or to eat it on its own, choose a fruit that is slightly less ripe than when using it to make guacamole.
- If the avocado is less ripe, the sliced pulp is less likely to break and this allows for a more elegant presentation of the dish.
Step 2. Determine when you will serve the avocados
If you're struggling with a recipe that calls for avocados and you need it right away, choose the ripest fruit available. If, on the other hand, you intend to buy them in advance, you can choose them unripe and let them ripen at home.
- Store avocados at room temperature if you want to ripen them at home. After 3-4 days they should be ready to eat, but it depends on how hard they were when you bought them.
- If you want to speed up the ripening process, put them in a paper bag along with a banana. The banana releases small quantities of a gas called ethylene which favors the ripening of the other fruits with which it comes into contact.
- If, on the other hand, you need to slow down the ripening process, keep the avocados in the refrigerator.
Step 3. Choose an avocado variety with a high percentage of oil if you want to create a moisturizing face mask
Being rich in oils, avocados are the main ingredient of many cosmetic products; their moisturizing action makes them particularly suitable for skin care. California grown fruits tend to have higher oil content, so be careful where they come from if you intend to use them for cosmetic purposes.
- Avocados of the Hass variety are generally the most popular and certainly contain enough oils to make a moisturizing beauty mask.
- Other varieties suitable for cosmetic use include Pinkerton, Sharwil, Anaheim, Daily 11 and MacArthur.
Part 2 of 3: Testing the Quality and Ripening Degree of Avocados
Step 1. Check how ripe it is by tapping the avocados
Place a fruit on the palm of your hand and squeeze it gently, being careful not to sink your fingers into it so as not to damage it. If it is soft and gives in to light pressure without sagging, it means it is ripe.
- If it is hard, it means it is unripe and it will take at least a couple of days for it to mature.
- Discard very soft or mushy fruits because they are too ripe.
- Touch the entire surface of the fruit instead of relying on the texture of the pulp closest to the stalk. That's the part of the avocado that ripens first, so it may be slightly saggy even though the rest of the fruit is still tough.
- Keep in mind that if you intend to use avocados after a few days, you can buy them unripe and let them ripen indoors.
Step 2. Check under the stem
If it's still attached to the fruit, try peeling it off. If it resists, it means that the avocado is not ripe yet. If it comes off easily and the area where it was attached is bright green, it means that it is a perfectly ripe fruit. If the area is yellow-green in color, it is best to let a couple of days pass before eating it. If the area is brown or dark green, the avocado is overripe.
Checking the color of the peel under the stalk is one of the simplest and most reliable methods of evaluating the degree of ripeness of an avocado. It also eliminates the risk of damaging the fruit by crushing it with your hands
Step 3. Check the color and integrity of the peel
Avocados of the Hass variety, which are generally the most popular in supermarkets, are bright green when they are unripe and turn dark green to black when ripe. Check the origin and characteristics of the fruit by reading the information available on the label or by asking the store staff for information. Remember that avocados of some varieties, such as those that come from Florida, have a light green skin even when ripe.
- If the skin is shiny, it means that the fruit is not yet ripe, but you can still buy it and let it ripen at home.
- Discard avocados with imperfect, damaged, or stained skins.
Part 3 of 3: Choosing the Avocado Variety
Step 1. Purchase according to your taste preferences
Once you understand how to choose a good quality, ripe fruit, you can determine which textures and flavors you prefer. Not all avocados are the same, some have a more intense flavor reminiscent of hazelnuts, others more delicate.
- Choose the Hass, Lamb Hass, Gwen, Reed or Sharwil varieties if you prefer an intense flavor reminiscent of hazelnuts.
- Choose Bacon or Zutano varieties if you prefer a milder flavor.
Step 2. Find out more about water and oil content
Varieties grown in Florida are rich in water, while those from Mexico or California generally have a high oil content. The latter, having a rich and greasy consistency, are suitable both for preparing guacamole and for nourishing the skin. On the other hand, water-rich avocados are the most suitable for making juices and smoothies. The latter tend to be larger (they can weigh more than 2 kg) and have a sweeter and more delicate flavor.
- Water-rich varieties include Choquette and Hall.
- In addition to oil-rich strains, thick-skinned ones, such as Hass and Gwen, are also great for cosmetic treatments. Massage the avocado peel into the skin of your face in gentle circular motions, then rinse it off with warm water.
- While not directly related to quality, size can help you understand where the avocado comes from and whether it belongs to a variety rich in water or oils.
- The largest avocados, which can weigh over 2kg, generally come from Florida and their size is determined by their high water content. The smaller avocados, which have a low water content, usually come from Mexico or California.
Step 3. Choose the best avocados for your diet
According to experts, they can help lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer; for this reason more and more people consume avocados regularly, some even on a daily basis. If you are also planning to start eating them regularly or even every day, the less fatty varieties may be the most suitable. Although two-thirds of the fats contained in avocados are monounsaturated and considered healthy, it is still a very fatty and caloric fruit.
- Among the most balanced are the Tonnage avocados which have a rich texture, but a significantly lower fat content than other varieties.
- Despite being among the most popular, Hass avocados have a very high percentage of fat. Strains that belong to its own family, such as Daily 11, have a very similar fat and oil content.
- In order not to overdo the calories and fat, go for avocados grown in Florida.
