Learn How to Ripen Avocados Perfectly

• Avocados ripen after picking, posing selection & timing challenges for consumers.
• Ripeness is best gauged by feel, not color; avoid microwave "ripening".
• Refrigerate ripe avocados to extend life; limit air exposure to prevent browning.

Avocados, unlike many fruits, don't ripen on the tree. This guide provides solutions to common avocado dilemmas. Learn how to choose the best avocados, speed up the ripening process, and keep them fresh for longer, ensuring you always have perfectly ripe avocados at your fingertips.

The Ripening Paradox

Avocados are unlike other fruits and only start ripening after being picked, meaning that they create a unique challenge for both producers and home cooks. The article discusses how commercial growers slow down ripening, and how the average consumer can speed up this process.

Selecting Quality Avocados

This section explains how to select quality avocados by discussing how to choose them in the store to avoid any internal imperfections like brown spots and woody strings. The discussion included the fact that these are related to the season of harvest, and weather-related issues during growth.

Identifying Ripe Avocados

The main point of this section is to help the reader understand how to identify a ripe avocado. The article advises that color is not a reliable method to tell if an avocado is ripe, and the best way to determine ripeness is by gently squeezing the avocado near the stem.

Accelerating the Ripening

This section describes how to ripen avocados quickly by explaining how ethylene gas works and ways to accelerate the ripening. This section advises using a paper bag, and adding a banana to the bag to quicken the process. The author also suggests staggering the process.

Microwave Myths Debunked

This section debunks the myth that you can rapidly ripen an avocado in the microwave. The article claims that, although many people believe it, the microwave doesn't ripen the avocado; it cooks it. This process changes the flavor and texture of the avocado in a way that's not desirable.

Storing Ripe Avocados

This section explains how to store ripe avocados. The article claims that storing avocados at room temperature will cause them to develop brown spots in about two days, while refrigerating a ripe avocado can extend the shelf life to about five days. The best results can be achieved by purchasing avocados a few days before needed, and refrigerating them as soon as they soften.

Preventing Avocado Browning

This section addresses how to prevent avocados from browning. Oxygen is the enemy of cut avocados, so it is important to prevent exposure. Plastic wrap does not offer much protection, but submerging the avocado pieces in water provides a better, but short-term solution. When making guacamole or mashed avocados, pressing a double layer of plastic wrap directly onto the surface is recommended to minimize browning.