The Secret to Saving Avocados
Anyone who has scrolled through an instagram feed in the last year, is sure to be inundated with pics of ripe avocados and trendy toasts. Well, if you are like me and have jumped on the avocado bandwagon, then perhaps this sounds familiar...
You wake up for a relaxing morning, cut your perfectly ripened avocado in half. Decorate a piece of whole wheat toast with avocado & flaxseed (my special recipe for the perfect avo toast to come), and enjoy. But now, looking back you realize you have half of a perfectly good avocado left... now what? Throw it out? Definitely not an option, $1 avocados do not go to waste. Refrigerate? That will just brown it slightly slower than room temperature. Freeze? I've tried this, and while it works there are better ways.
Do not fear, the answer is here! And no, it's not lemon juice. Lemon and limes can prevent browning for a short time (say while you are serving that homemade guac), but not for the few days until your next avo toast craving. So the secret?
Olive Oil! Not what you were thinking right? Here's what you do.
Halve the avocado. Use the half without the pit immediately. The half with the pit is what we will save.
Drip a few droplets of olive oil onto the inside of the avocado. Make sure you cover all the exposed inside as well as the pit.
Seal in a Ziploc bag and refrigerate.
Remove from refrigerator when ready and enjoy!
The avocado will inevitably brown a bit during this time, but I guarantee this is the best preservation technique! It will give you an extra 3 days or so with that avocado half, and let's be honest... who can hold out any longer than that for their avo fix!
Try it out and let me know what you think!
**Freezing avocados will also work, although you can't return the room temperature very easily. My trick, freeze the avocado half; then when ready to serve remove the peel. Using a peeler, create thin slices of ripened avocado. These are great for sandwiches or garnish for a quick snack!**