When Tony and I first started dating he didn’t do much exploration with meals. In fact, I’m 99% sure most of his diet consisted of corn dogs, fries and frozen pizza. It was a scary time for me. Somewhat joking. Somewhat not.
As our relationship progressed, so did Tony’s taste buds and his discovery of new cuisines. I’ve tried both Thai food and sushi with him for the first time. I introduced him to avocado black bean brownies. He started eating refried beans. He’s now obsessed with chocolate and homemade Reese’s eggs. He enjoys sprouted bread and brown rice. He also thinks my banana bread is the best thing on this planet (admittedly, in the world of banana breads, it totally is).
But the one thing he had never had before I met him?
AN AVOCADO. Which means my husband had never had guacamole. Ummm what?
After that, I officially made it my mission to get him to try avocados and fall in love. First up: avocado on toast with hot sauce and an egg. Next, I shared this homemade guacamole recipe with him and he said it was straight out of heaven.
Soon after I made this recipe for him, he began asking me if he should make “his guacamole recipe” for dinner. Wait… HIS GUACAMOLE RECIPE?! He said it as if he had been crafting the recipe for years, or like it was a big family secret or something. Adorable, I know.
Today I’m sharing my very famous, easy to make guacamole recipe with you. Prepare to fall in love just like my Tony.
What’s in guacamole?
There are only six ingredients in this guacamole recipe: avocados, fresh lime juice, grape tomatoes, red onion, jalapeño, cilantro. Plus of course, salt and pepper to taste!
Tips for making the best guacamole
- First of all, if you’ve ever had trouble cutting an avocado or getting the pit out, I’ve got an amazing, easy life-changing solution for you. Watch my video on how to cut an avocado without slicing your hand.
- Make sure you have ripe, but not too ripe of avocados. You want the avocados to be just very slightly soft when you squeeze them; these are the best avocados for texture and flavor. If your avocados are too hard, place them next to bananas or mangos on the counter to help ripen them up (it may take a day or two)! Alternatively, if your avocados are already ripe, you can place them in the fridge to help prevent any additional unwanted ripening. Ripe avocados should be used with 1-2 days.
- The perfect guacamole should be a cross between creamy and chunky. You’ll want a mix of avocado chunks and creamy mashed avocado. My tip is to use a fork to mash the avocado but avoid over-mixing the first time around, this will create too much creaminess and be more like avocado puree rather than guacamole. Plus you’ll be adding in other ingredients that you’ll need to fold in anyway.
- Red onion is preferred. I love using red onion for a little sharpness and additional flavor in my guacamole. Try it out! Don’t worry though, white onion will also work.
- Use grape tomatoes. In my opinion, all guacamole should include tomato for texture and flavor. I like to avoid using regular tomatoes because they tend to be too watery. Instead go for grape tomatoes! You can quarter them and they’ll stay nice and firm.
- Use only 1/2 lime (or about 1 teaspoon lime juice per avocado). I really dislike when I go to restaurants and the guacamole tastes like lime juice rather than creamy avocado goodness. So yes, a little lime juice will go a long way.
- Include a good amount of cilantro. I don’t know about you, but cilantro is my favorite herb to create a fresh flavor and essential to a good guacamole. Do not skip it!
- Don’t forget the heat! If you can tolerate jalapeños, then go for it! Personally, I like to keep a few seeds in just to give it a little kick of heat, but it depends on your spice preference. It is important to finely dice the jalapeño.
How to make guacamole
Now, guacamole seems simple, right?! But when you’re trying to perfect something, then you really need to take the time to do it right and to do it really, really well. This best guacamole recipe contains the perfect amount of avocados, heat, spice and herbs.
First, add avocados to a bowl and use a fork to mash them just enough like the photo above. You want some nice chunky pieces. Add in your lime juice, grape tomatoes, cilantro, jalapeño and a little salt and pepper. Give it a stir with your fork to fold in all of the ingredients. Taste and add more salt and pepper to your liking!
How to store guacamole
The best way to store fresh homemade guacamole is to reduce the amount of air exposure since guacamole turns brown when exposed to air. If you’re not going to serve your guacamole right away, simple place in a bowl and press the guacamole into the bowl with a spoon to compact it. This helps to get out the additional air within the guacamole itself. Immediately cover with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap into the top of the guacamole and sealing on the edges.
Another option is to add a small amount of water on top of the guacamole. Once ready to serve, you can dump out the water, give it a stir and serve!
Once made, guacamole should be consumed within 1-2 days. I say the quicker you can eat it, the better it is!
This recipe is for the real deal guacamole lovers out there. Serve it with your favorite tortilla chips, carrot sticks or red bell pepper strips, these amazing paleo crackers or anything else you can dream up. Personally I love it on grilled chicken, salmon, and especially these vegetarian enchiladas.
Other healthy appetizers you’ll love:
Avocado Strawberry Mango Salsa
See how to make this guacamole recipe:
I know you’re going to love this easy guacamole recipe, please let me know if you make it by leaving a comment and rating the recipe below. I’d love to hear from you and it helps encourage others to make the recipe too! xo.
The Best Guacamole You'll Ever Eat
Ingredients
- 3 ripe avocados
- 1/2 lime, juiced (about 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice)
- 3/4 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
- 1/3 cup diced red or white onion
- 1 jalapeno, finely diced (or two if you like it really spicy!)
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- Optional: 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
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Mash avocado in a medium bowl, but not so much that it becomes overly creamy. You want a mixture between chunky and creamy consistency.
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Next add in lime juice, grape tomatoes, diced onion, jalapeno, cilantro and salt and pepper. Give it a stir. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary (add more salt if you like it a little bit saltier!).
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Garnish with extra sliced grape tomatoes, cilantro and jalapenos. Enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips!
24 comments
Oh my gosh those stories are amazing. Also guac is life and this looks insaaaane
Tony, make me some soon! I crave your amazing quac salad that is so fabulously fresh and bursting with incredible flavor! ❤️
I’m sort of embarrassed to say that I’ve never made guacamole by myself before! I usually buy it at Whole Foods for a wicked expensive price, like what am I doing? This guac looks EPIC and so flavorful!
Definitely pinning this to try later. We love guac in our house 🙂
This looks like my kinda guac! I hate it when the avocados are super creamy – I need some chunks in there! Gorgeous!
All about the ratios when it comes to tasty guac! I have never made it with grape tomatoes or white onion- usually a garlic girl. But this sounds amazing!
he’d never had an avocado before you?!?!? thank goodness you guys met (; my usual guac is avocados, tomatoes, garlic, onion and lemon; but i’m not picky about my guac as long as it’s chunky and fresh, so this version sounds delicious too!
I hate to admit it, but I never ate avocados growing up and I have never made my own guacamole. I need to make this!
Gosh I love avocados so much it’s ridiculous. But I too thought they seemed weird and gross until I finally tried them about 5 years ago. Now I make guac probably 2-3 times a month. I’m a tiny bit more of a purist though – no tomatoes in guac for me! And I often like to add a little fresh garlic. But otherwise – you and I are in total agreement! Spicy, chunky, creamy food of the gods!
Try with red onions rather than white – I think they are tastier
I love your story and it somewhat resonates with my story with my now hubby. Long story short, I grew up in Northern California where good real deal ripe avocados were not plentiful, so I simply disliked them because well they were usually brown and stringy inside…GROSS! Then I went off to college, met my husband (he grew up growing delcious Hass avocados) and re-introduced me to the lovely fruit. Now that I know what a REAL avocado tastes like, I cannot get enough! Good thing I married an avocado farmer 😉 I also love a chuckier style guacamole + YAAASSS to keeping the jalapeno seeds! Love your recipes and work!!
Omg that is so cute!!!
I’ve been introducing my boyfriend to so many foods too in the 3 years we’ve been together. Problem is: he’s suuuuuper picky. But I’m making slow progress. He went from saying avocado is “gross” to saying it is “slightly edible”. I think that’s progress? LOL. Anyway I can’t say I’m that mad about it because it means more guac for me!
I love the idea of “chunky guacamole.” This looks like it would be an awesome sandwich and burger topping too!
Mmmmmm…..yum. This looks totally amazing. I’m just starring at the screen looking at how delicious they look.
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Gorgeous photos, colors, and recipe! And, ohhhh your words. Always so meaningful and honest. LOVE.
Thanks so much!
I was told to keep the avocado pit in the middle of homemade quacamole and it would stay fresh longer. Seems to work for me.
Perfect! Great tip.