Here's everything worth knowing about guacamole and how to pick it, what it is, how to store it, and what to use instead, plus 42 recipes to cook tonight.

What is guacamole?

Guacamole is a Mexican dip of mashed ripe avocado seasoned with lime and salt, usually with diced onion and chile, plus a handful of cilantro. The name comes from the Nahuatl ahuacamolli, meaning avocado sauce. The oldest versions were nothing more than avocado crushed in a molcajete.

At heart it is a way to show off a perfectly ripe avocado, so the avocado has to be right or no amount of seasoning will save it.

It plays two roles in the kitchen: a scoopable dip with tortilla chips, and a cool, creamy topping that calms the heat in tacos and fajitas.

How to Make and Use It

The simplest good guacamole is ripe avocado mashed with a fork, then a squeeze of lime and a pinch of salt. From there the classic mix-ins are finely diced white onion, minced serrano or jalapeño, chopped cilantro, and sometimes a little diced tomato.

Leave it chunky rather than whipping it smooth. A few intact pieces of avocado give it body and signal that you started with the real thing.

Salt and lime do more than flavor. The lime's acid slows browning and the salt pulls the seasoning through, so taste and adjust both right before serving.

As a topping, guacamole works on anything from the grill or griddle. Spoon it over Favorite Chicken Fajitas or Granny's Tacos, build it into an Easy Layered Taco Salad, or pile it onto a plate of MacHo Nachos where it offsets the salt and spice.

It also anchors a party spread. The Avocado Multi-Layer Party Dip stacks guacamole over refried beans under sour cream and cheese for scooping.

Keeping It Green

The enemy of guacamole is air. Cut avocado browns within an hour or two because an enzyme reacts with oxygen, turning the surface gray-brown, though that discoloration is harmless and only skin-deep.

Acid is your first defense, which is why every recipe leans on lime juice. Beyond that, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface so no air touches it, or float a thin layer of water on top and pour it off before serving.

Skip the old pit trick. Leaving the avocado pit in the bowl only protects the small patch of guacamole hiding directly under it.

The mistakes that ruin guacamole are usually two. Underripe avocado makes it pasty and bland, and over-mashing turns it to baby food. The fix for both starts at the store: buy fruit that yields to gentle pressure, and mash with a light hand.

Substitutes

There is no true substitute for guacamole, since the avocado is the whole point, but you can stretch or stand in for it. Mashed avocado with just salt and lime, no other mix-ins, covers most uses when you are short on time or ingredients.

For a dip with a similar cool, creamy role but no avocado, a sour cream or Greek yogurt base with lime and cilantro reads differently but fills the same spot beside spicy food.

Edamame or green pea purée, blitzed with lime and jalapeño, mimics the color and freshness for anyone avoiding avocado, though the texture is grainier and the flavor more vegetal.

In a pinch, good store-bought guacamole works, but check the label, since many tubs are mostly thickener with very little actual avocado.

Buying and Storing

Guacamole lives and dies on the avocado, so choose Hass for the richest, buttery flesh; it goes from green to nearly black as it ripens. A ripe one yields slightly to gentle pressure in your palm, not your fingertip, which bruises it.

If they are rock hard, ripen them on the counter for two to four days, faster in a paper bag with a banana. Once ripe, the fridge slows them down for a few more days.

Made guacamole does not keep well. Refrigerate it pressed airtight against the surface and eat it within a day or two, stirring the browned top back in or scraping it off.

Guacamole does not freeze cleanly because the texture turns watery and stringy on thawing. If you must, freeze plain mashed avocado with lime, then stir in the fresh onion and herbs once it thaws.

Quick facts

Where to find guacamole: Guacamole is usually found in the mexican section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

In Chinese

鳄梨

British (UK) term

Guacamole

en français

guacamole

en español

guacamole

Recipes using guacamole

There are 42 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 42 recipes