Get: - 2 ripe avocados, smooshed (275g after removing peel and pit)
- salt and ground pepper
- spices: onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder
- heat: cayenne or red pepper flakes
- lime or lemon juice
- white vinegar
- fresh cilantro (optional)
- tortilla chips (if serving as guac)
- fresh ciabatta bread (if serving as avocado toast)
Picking avocados: - This is the most important thing! If you can't get ripe avocados then do not even bother making this. It will be gross.
- You want avocados with solid black skin. A little tiny bit of very dark green is sometimes okay, but solid black skin, or brown-black skin, is best.
- They should be soft touch. They should yield significantly with a gentle squeeze.
- If they are as hard as an apple, they're not ready.
- If they are green like a lime, they're not ready.
Peel and mash the avocados: - Run a knife around the outside, length and width-wise, to segment each avocado into quarters.
- Don't try to cut through the seed, it should be easy to pull the quarters away from it.
- Peel the shell away from the soft green flesh and discard the shell
- Place all the soft green flesh in a bowl. Discard the shell and seed.
- Using the edge of a strong fork, cut the avocado in the bowl repeatedly until the chunks are 2-3cm in size
- Turn the fork flat and use it to mash the avocado against the side of the bowl
- Alternate mashing and stirring until the avocado is a paste.
- You can't over-do it! Smoother is better. Fewer chunks is better. Keep stirring!
- Once you've mashed the avocado, you're basically done. Just season and serve, see below.
Before you spice it: - Guac is pretty forgiving to tune, but!
- Each time you make it you have to tune it a little differently, depending on the size and ripeness of the avocados you will definitely need to tune the flavor.
- Below is a starting point, but:
- You may need more salt, if the avocados are big.
- If the avocados are a bit bitter, you can put a bit of honey in.
- If you like a tangy guac (which I do!) then you can use much more lemon and/or vinegar.
- If you like a spicey guac, you can use more chili powder and/or red pepper flakes
- Its usually safe to increase the garlic and onion for a more savory guac.
- Leave out the cilantro unless you're sure everyone likes it.
Basic guac: - Start with:
- 0.25tsp kosher salt
- 0.25tsp ground pepper
- 0.25tsp onion powder
- 0.25tsp garlic powder
- 0.25tsp chili powder
- 1tsp minced cilantro leaves
- 20g meyer lemon juice (or 10g sour lemon juice)
- dash of red pepper flakes
- dash of white vinegar
- drop(s) of honey if bitter
- Taste and add more salt, pepper, etc.
Other options: - Do the above, plus:
- Mince 2 cherry tomatoes per avocado. You can use any decent tomato, but the cherry and grape ones seem usually more flavorful so I usually use those.
- Use very finely minced half a shallot, instead of onion powder. This will make a hotter, more savory guac.
Avocado toast: - Slice 1-2cm slices of fresh ciabata, and toast to medium so that the bread has a crust but is soft in the middle.
- Spread guac on toast and eat.
- You can garnish with pickled red onion and cilantro sprig.
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