This Is How Restaurants Keep Avocados Fresh, According To A Chef (2024)
Wendy Leigh
·3 min read
We've all had to face the conundrum of storing unexpected avocado leftovers from appetizer plates, garnishes, or sandwich fixin's. The dreaded oxidation begins before you think of a quick fix, one that typically fails anyway. Surely there's an easy answer to saving the creamy deliciousness and nutrient-packed goodness of avocados, whether cut or uncut. There is, as we discovered in the wealth of information provided by an expert on keeping foods fresh and tasty: Diana Manalang, chef and owner of Little Chef Little Cafe in NYC.
We first turned to the most obvious avocado topic for home chefs: how to keep cut avocados from turning an unappetizing, murky brown. Manalang's answer was somewhat unexpected, but makes perfect sense. "The best trick to prevent avocados from turning brown," she said, "is to use them!" Rather than trying to prevent oxidation, simply turn them into purées and dressings. Manalang reveals how to make avocado purée the restaurant way. "For the purée, we blend avocados with lime, herbs, and salt — just like you would for guacamole but just smooth it out."
The purée then serves as a base for dreamy avocado dressing, thinned out by olive oil and a few dashes of extra lime juice, to taste. That citrus acidity provided by the lime juice protects the avocado purée from the unappealing color change. For extra measure, Manalang suggests protecting the purée or dressing from air exposure and oxidation by covering the container with a wet paper towel. The same goes for cut whole avocados; just keep the pits inside and cover them accordingly.
It's so tempting to overbuy avocados, especially during peak harvest months. For California avocados, which comprise about 90% of U.S. production, you'll get that ultimate fresh, seasonal flavor from spring through early autumn. Picked at their peak from roughly 3,000 state growers, they have the ultimate potential for "tree to table" freshness due to being grown locally. So, you may as well pile up and dig in. And restaurant tricks for keeping whole avocados fresh apply equally in home kitchens.
Diana Manalang explains that, in her New York City restaurant, they keep avocados refrigerated for extended preservation, though nuances arise depending on their level of ripeness. To determine if an avocado is ripe, look at its skin. Unripe avocados, which typically have bright green skins, get a ripening shortcut from the kitchen staff at Little Chef Little Cafe. Placing fresh avocados in brown paper bags, along with some apples, gets them ready for eating within a couple of days.
They'd likely ripen on their own at room temperature away from direct sunlight, but it's a common kitchen trick to use other fruits to hasten the avocado ripening process with bag-mates such as bananas, apples, kiwis, or other ethylene-gas emitters. Some home chefs alternatively advocate for ripening avocados and other fruits in a bag of rice. When blessed with a wealth of ripe avocados, utilize the frozen chambers of your fridge. "If they arrive at the restaurant already ripe," explains Manalang, "then we turn it all into purée and dressing and freeze it until we need to use it. This way, there's no waste on our end."
When blessed with a wealth of ripe avocados, utilize the frozen chambers of your fridge. "If they arrive at the restaurant already ripe," explains Manalang, "then we turn it all into purée and dressing and freeze it until we need to use it. This way, there's no waste on our end."
The main goal is to prevent oxygen from touching the avocado's flesh. Plastic wrap is a practical, albeit not foolproof way to slow down the natural course of fruit aging. The trick is to make sure the plastic wrap is sealed flush with the flesh.
According to Chef Betsy Wiegand of Great White, a coastal-Californian cafe in Venice Beach, California, adding a squeeze of lemon to a cut avocado can help prevent browning. To further preserve its hue, she also emphasizes the importance of storing it completely covered to reduce the oxygen exposure.
Problems include deforestation, loss of biodiversity, and water shortage in growing communities. Avocado farming is increasingly linked to deforestation, biodiversity loss, and water shortages.
Instead, here are a few safer strategies to extend the life of your avocado. To prevent oxidation (a.k.a. browning) on an avocado surface, splash some lemon or lime juice (or a sprinkle of citric acid) over the fruit and wrap it tightly in plastic or a designated avocado hugger before placing it in the fridge.
How do restaurants make their avocados so creamy and smooth? The chefs or cooks know how to properly ripen them until they are creamy smooth when mashed. They also tend to get better produce from their vendors than you can at the grocery store.
Acidulants, such as citric and ascorbic acid found in lemon juice, help lower the pH of avocados and decrease the enzymatic activity, keeping them from turning brown ( 1 , 3 ). Therefore, squeezing a little lemon juice on top of your cut avocado before storing it could help delay browning.
Pour a thin but visible layer of water or lemon/lime juice over the guacamole to form a barrier with the air. Cover the dish with plastic wrap, pushing the wrap, so it is flush with the guacamole to prevent air pockets, or put the guacamole in a sealed tub.
“Each panned guac gets sealed airtight with Saran Wrap,” he said. “Then it gets lidded, labeled and stored for later use. This process ensures freshness and prevents browning,” he continued.
Water is a great trick to use for storing guacamole so it stays fresh, but there are a few other options as well. Acid, like lemon, lime, or vinegar, creates a barrier against oxygen as well, so applying a thin layer will work in a similar way.
Avocados are rich in fats, so eating too much of this fruit may result in uncontrollable weight gain. Because of this, it is advised to reduce the amount of avocados in your daily meals if you are aiming to shed some excessive weight.
In December 2020, the U.S. stopped importing avocados from one region in Michoacán for a month after an armed group burned avocado shipments, Mexican officials said.
Being that they're a fruit, avocados are very low in protein. Protein is super important in the morning - it gives you a boost of energy and keeps you full longer. Avocado toast is essentially carb + fat.
A perfectly ripe avocado is best eaten right away. If this is not possible, the best way to store ripe avocados is in the fridge for a maximum of 2 to 3 days. Any longer and the avocado may brown inside. Unripe avocados, on the other hand, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Avocados. The refrigerator will slow avocados in the ripening process, so unless you're stacked with too many avocados for your weekly use, keep them out at room temperature. The cold temperature also hardens the texture of a ripe avocado, which might not be ideal for some when it comes to mealtime.
Ethylene gas, a natural plant hormone, can accelerate ripening and spoilage, making it important to store avocados away from ethylene-producing fruits like apples and bananas; unless you want your avocados to ripen faster.
Avocados and most other fruits and veggies contain an enzyme (polyphenol oxidase) that reacts with the oxygen in the air and turns the flesh a dull shade of drab, known as oxidation. Limes are very acidic and contain loads of ascorbic acid, aka, vitamin C, which combats the enzyme.
Avocados can be safely preserved by freezing, but when frozen, whole or sliced avocados do not maintain the best quality. Instead, freeze avocados as a puree and add one tablespoon of lemon juice for every two avocados, or 1/4 teaspoon ascorbic acid for every quart of puree. Leave headspace while packing the container.
“If you put your avocado in water, you're really just dropping it into a breeding ground for any bacteria that are present,” says Sedlacek. “This TikTok hack is a recipe for foodborne illness. It's very, very bad.”
Some chefs are moving away from using avocados in their restaurants due to concerns over the fruits' large carbon footprint, unsustainable harvesting methods, and role in organized crime.
Introduction: My name is Aracelis Kilback, I am a nice, gentle, agreeable, joyous, attractive, combative, gifted person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
