Selecting an Avocado
When selecting a fresh avocado for purchase, squeeze the fruit gently and check for a slight firmness. The avocado should not be rock hard. Since most varieties of this fruit do not change color upon ripening, one cannot simply look at an avocado to check its ripeness. However, the Hass avocado will turn a very dark green, almost black color when it is ready to eat. If planning on serving the fruit within a few days, purchase unripened, hard avocados. Any avocados with blemishes on the skin, craters, or overly soft upon touch, should not be purchased.
Preparation
To ripen an avocado faster than normal, place it in a brown paper bag either alone or with an apple or banana. By storing at room temperature, the avocado will typically ripen within several days. Once ripe, the soft fruit should be refrigerated until it is ready to be eaten. Ripe, uncut avocados can be kept in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.
As for preparing avocados, begin by washing the fruit in warm, soapy water. Next dry the avocado and then cut it lengthwise. To cut the fruit, rotate it in the hand while running the blade of the knife around the seed. Once the avocado is cut it should separate into halves. The final step in preparing an avocado is to remove the seed with the tip of a spoon and scoop the meat of the fruit out and into a dish. Removing the seed can take a bit of work. It is important that once the meat of the fruit is removed from its outer shell that it should be lightly doused with an acid like white vinegar or lemon juice. By applying an acid, browning of the avocado is delayed.
Storage
Fresh cut avocados sprinkled with an acid and placed in the refrigerator will eventually turn brown within a couple of days. However, the fruit is still edible upon scooping away the top layer that has browned. If purchasing an abundance of avocados (ripe or unripe), consider placing them in the freezer. Also, pureed avocados will freeze well and can later be used in numerous recipes like dips, salads, and sandwiches. Avocados can be stored for up to five months in the freezer. These fruits can be enjoyed in many dishes, both sweet and savory. Avocados are very nutritious, vitamin packed fruits that make a wonderful addition to a daily diet.
