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The best Guacamole recipe is simple – just ripe avocados, tomatoes, jalapenos, onion, cilantro, lime and salt. It’s fresh and healthy and takes just 10 minutes to make!
Avocados show up in lots of recipes around here! You should try my Avocado Egg Salad and Tomato Avocado Salad next!
Table of Contents
Why This Recipe Works
- Only 7 Ingredients – Just 7 fresh ingredients (plus salt) make this easy guacamole recipe a must-make for any gathering or just for late-night snacking.
- Simple and Fresh – Authentic guacamole doesn’t need a bunch of fancy ingredients. You just need avocados, tomatoes, jalapenos, onions, cilantro, limes, and salt.
- Make a Lot or a Little – You can use a few avocados and make a quick snack just for yourself, or use a whole bag of them and share with your friends!
How To Pick Ripe Avocados
You want to look for ripe avocados that are ripe, but still firm. No one wants a mushy avocado in their guac. There are 3 main things to look for when choosing ripe avocados.
- Check the Stem End. Remove the woody brown cap at the top of the avocado. If it’s green, it’s not quite ready and was picked before its time. If it’s brown, it’s ripe, or at least was picked at its peak.
- Give it a Squeeze. If you’re still not sure it’s ripe, hold it in the palm of your hand and give it a gentle squeeze. It should have a slight give when gentle, firm pressure is applied. If it feels mushy, it’s overripe.
- Observe the Skin. A ripe avocado will have a dark green to black skin.
How To Make Guacamole
See recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Mash Avocados – Slice the avocados in half and remove the large seed. Using a spoon, scoop out the avocado flesh and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle salt and squeeze fresh lime juice over the avocado and mash with a fork. Hot Tip – Try using a potato masher instead of a for to mash your avocados!
Add Other Ingredients – Add red onion, cilantro, jalapeno and diced tomato to the bowl and gently stir to combine. Taste and adjust flavors, like salt and lime.
Serve – Transfer to a serving bowl and serve with tortilla chips.
Serving Suggestions
- Use it as a dip for tortilla chips or Fritos, raw veggies, or crackers.
- Top tacos, nachos, enchiladas, quesadillas or burritos.
- Mix it into Deviled Eggs.
- Use as a spread on sandwiches and wraps instead of mayo or dressings.
How To Keep Guacamole From Turning Brown
Like apples, avocados turn brown when air touches the flesh (oxidation), which is why it’s best to consume them right away. I do have one trick I use to extend the life of my dip as it sits.
As soon as you start mashing the avocados and before you’ve added the other ingredients, sprinkle the salt and lime juice over the avocado. This will ensure that the avocado is mixed with the salt and lime really well, at least for the time it sits out.
Another trick that I’ve had limited success with is to keep a couple of the avocado seeds and plop them right into the guacamole.
Freezing Avocados
Yes and no. Avocados freeze quite well but watery ingredients like tomatoes and onions, do not. The trick is to freeze just the mashed avocado.
- Slice avocado, then peel and seed them. Mash the avocados with the juice from half of a lemon or lime, then place mashed chunks into a freezer bag and squeeze out as much air as possible. Freeze your guacamole starter for up to four months.
- If you want to freeze whole chunks of avocado, slice, seed, and peel them. Brush each avocado half with lemon or lime juice, then wrap individually and tightly with plastic wrap. Place each half in a large ziploc bag and freeze for up to six months.
Expert Tips
- Know your avocados. Look for ripe Haas avocados by gently squeezing them in your hand at the store. They should feel slightly soft but not mushy. If they’re too hard, put them in a paper bag for a few days to ripen faster.
- Texture is important. Cut the avocados in half, take out the pit, and scoop the flesh into a big bowl. Mash the avocado gently with a fork until it’s slightly chunky for texture. Finely chop the onion, cilantro, and jalapenos so they blend nicely with the avocado. No one wants to bite into a big chunk of onion in their guac.
- Be a Pro. For the ultimate avocado lover, get an avocado slicer – one of my favorite kitchen tool! It cuts through the skin, removes the pit, and slices the flesh, all in one handy gadget. It’s a steal at about $10!
- To tomato or not to tomato. I love adding sweet, ripe tomato chunks to my guac; it enhances the flavor, adds a pop of acidity, and looks beautiful! But if you’re not a fan of tomatoes or can’t find ripe ones, feel free to skip them.
- Lime it up to prevent browning. To prevent browning, squeeze fresh lime juice over the avocados right after cutting them. Finding the perfect lime-to-avocado ratio may require some experimentation, but it’s worth it!
- Keep your guac fresh and prevent browning. Avocados start browning quickly after being cut due to oxidation when exposed to air, similar to apples. To prevent guacamole from browning, my favorite method is to press plastic wrap tightly over the guac, ensuring it touches all of it. You can add water on top of the plastic to keep it in place. For serving, keep guac green by placing an avocado pit or a large piece of onion in it.
More Mexican-Inspired Favorites
A creamy bowl of delicious guac is essential for a successful Mexican night, served with our favorites like Chicken Tacos, Ten Minute Oven Baked Tostadas, or Homemade Taquitos.
Need more inspiration? Try these:
- Homemade Taquitos
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
- Sheet Pan Nachos
- Chicken Taco Salad
- Turkey Taco Stuffed Peppers
- Easy Mexican Lasagna
Guacamole Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 Large ripe Avocados
- 1 Lime
- 2 Roma tomatoes Seeds remove, diced
- 1/4 cup Minced cilantro
- 2 Jalapenos
- ½ cup Diced red onion
- Kosher salt to taste
- Fresh cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Slice avocados in half, remove the seed and scoop the flesh into a large bowl. Squeeze juice of half of the lime over the avocado and sprinkle with salt. Mash with a fork or a potato masher to your desired texture.
- Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds so just the firmer flesh remains. Cut into strips, then dice. Add to the bowl of avocado.
- Add diced onion, diced jalapenos, minced cilantro and remaining lime juice to the bowl. Stir gently with a spoon or spatula.
- Season with salt, black pepper to taste and stir to combine well.
- Serve with tortilla chips, tacos, burritos and more.
Needs more lime. Great recipe.
Yum! I could eat that.
What’s the lemon for? I don’t see it mentioned except for in ingredient list! Thanks!
Good catch – it’s added with the lime juice at the end.