There aren’t too many things in this world that taste better than making a delicious bowl of guacamole from scratch. Watching a waitperson mix up a bowl at your table in the restaurant gets the salivary glands activated. Then, when you dig in, the freshness zings you. Makes you want to create it yourself at home. At least it does for me.
Recently, I began making guacamole from scratch at home. This was driven primarily by the rising price of pre-prepared guac in the three supermarkets we use. It didn’t matter which one you went to – the price was astronomical.
That led to the foraging for the right ingredients, ones that you want in the dish and are properly ripe. This pertains mostly to the avocados. Not ripe enough and you can’t squash them. Too ripe and they are mealy. Picking the right ones is an art form – gotta give it just the right squeeze to feel the softness.
Once I figured that out, I determined where to get the best avocados. From there, a determination had to be made on what else to add. One part of the equation for my wife and I is dialing down the jalapeno factor as she is very sensitive to hot spices. The easiest decision was to eliminate the burning peppers.
From there, my mind went to: “What do you like? When you’ve eaten the best guac, what were the ingredients that popped out?”
This, too, became a relatively easy question to answer: tomatoes, onions, lime juice, a touch of salt, red pepper. How to chop, cut, dice was next.
Having gotten feedback not to have these ingredients overwhelm the avocado, I diced them in smaller amounts after peeling and dropping two perfect avocados into the mixing dish. First the tomatoes, then the onions, red pepper and a splash of lime juice (you can, of course, squeeze a real lime in there, which probably is a better idea for freshness and taste).
Mash it, slowly. You don’t want to turn the mixture to a paste. Slowly work all the ingredients together, pushing them together with a serving-size fork to allow the avocados to not only mix with their partners, but also absorb into each other. This is important. Get it smooth, but leave some chunks in there for texture.
Once this looks good (taste to see if it fits your buds). Grab a chip. Get the crunch texture with the guacamole and see how they interact before moving to the salt.
I’m not a big salt person. I do think guac must have a touch of it. I grab a pinch, sprinkle it on top, give it one more mixing.
Back to munching your creation with chips, and if successful, proudly bring it to those you are serving. They will love you. It’s a great feeling.
If you want the heat, but all means, add those jalapeno peppers. Know your audience beforehand to be sure.
Cilantro, another all-time great spice, can also be inserted. I’ve found cilantro haters and cilantro lovers, with many more falling into the latter category. If you happen to have your consumers falling into the hater category, leave the cilantro on the side and let folks drop it in their batch to season to taste.
You are now an expert guac maker. Get out there and dominate the avocados.
Recently, I began making guacamole from scratch at home. This was driven primarily by the rising price of pre-prepared guac in the three supermarkets we use. It didn’t matter which one you went to – the price was astronomical.
That led to the foraging for the right ingredients, ones that you want in the dish and are properly ripe. This pertains mostly to the avocados. Not ripe enough and you can’t squash them. Too ripe and they are mealy. Picking the right ones is an art form – gotta give it just the right squeeze to feel the softness.
Once I figured that out, I determined where to get the best avocados. From there, a determination had to be made on what else to add. One part of the equation for my wife and I is dialing down the jalapeno factor as she is very sensitive to hot spices. The easiest decision was to eliminate the burning peppers.
From there, my mind went to: “What do you like? When you’ve eaten the best guac, what were the ingredients that popped out?”
This, too, became a relatively easy question to answer: tomatoes, onions, lime juice, a touch of salt, red pepper. How to chop, cut, dice was next.
Having gotten feedback not to have these ingredients overwhelm the avocado, I diced them in smaller amounts after peeling and dropping two perfect avocados into the mixing dish. First the tomatoes, then the onions, red pepper and a splash of lime juice (you can, of course, squeeze a real lime in there, which probably is a better idea for freshness and taste).
Mash it, slowly. You don’t want to turn the mixture to a paste. Slowly work all the ingredients together, pushing them together with a serving-size fork to allow the avocados to not only mix with their partners, but also absorb into each other. This is important. Get it smooth, but leave some chunks in there for texture.
Once this looks good (taste to see if it fits your buds). Grab a chip. Get the crunch texture with the guacamole and see how they interact before moving to the salt.
I’m not a big salt person. I do think guac must have a touch of it. I grab a pinch, sprinkle it on top, give it one more mixing.
Back to munching your creation with chips, and if successful, proudly bring it to those you are serving. They will love you. It’s a great feeling.
If you want the heat, but all means, add those jalapeno peppers. Know your audience beforehand to be sure.
Cilantro, another all-time great spice, can also be inserted. I’ve found cilantro haters and cilantro lovers, with many more falling into the latter category. If you happen to have your consumers falling into the hater category, leave the cilantro on the side and let folks drop it in their batch to season to taste.
You are now an expert guac maker. Get out there and dominate the avocados.