Ready to enjoy your fresh avocado, but it isn’t quite ripe? Read our tips for ripening an avocado quickly.
Avocados are a delicious addition to many dishes if they’re perfectly ripe. A ripe avocado offers a rich, creamy texture and subtle flavor. Oftentimes, it can be difficult to find avocados that are not overripe or unripe at the store. This is because avocados do not ripen while on the tree, but the ripening process begins after the avocados have been harvested.
It is better to purchase unripe avocados, because they can ripen naturally over time. There is no saving an avocado that is already too ripe. However, an unripe avocado may take time to fully ripen. If you want to speed up the ripening process of an avocado, follow these tips below.
How Can You Tell if an Avocado is Ripe?
A ripe avocado will reach a dark green, almost black color that will indicate ripeness. Some types of avocados remain bright green even as they ripen, so the best way to test the ripeness of an avocado is to feel the avocado.
A ripe avocado will be slightly soft to the touch. If the avocado is firm and has no give beneath your fingers, it is not ripe. If the avocado sinks beneath your fingers and feels separated from the exterior skin, it may be too ripe.
In order to monitor the freshness of your avocados and other produce, download the Lil’ Broc app.
Set the Avocado in Sunlight
Avocados naturally ripen through exposure to warmth and sunlight. If you live in a hot, humid climate, your avocados will ripen much more quickly than if you live in a dry, cold climate. Some people store their avocados in the refrigerator, which can be excellent if you wish to slow the ripening process, but avocados will not ripen quickly in the refrigerator.
Find a warm, sunny spot in your kitchen to set the avocados. The natural sunlight should ripen the avocados within 5-7 days.
Place the Avocado in a Paper Bag
If you wish to further accelerate the ripening process, add your avocados to a paper bag. Paper bags trap the ethylene gas that avocados release, which aids the ripening process. When the ethylene is contained, the avocados will ripen more quickly. Leaving avocados in a paper bag can speed up the ripening process to just a few days.
Add Other Fruits to the Paper Bag
If you find that the avocado is still not ripening fast enough, adding other fruits to the paper bag can aid the ripening process. Apples are known to produce high levels of ethylene, so adding an apple to the paper bag can encourage the ripening process. This can ripen the avocado within a day or two.
Pears and bananas can also be used to speed up the ripening process if you don’t have apples on hand.
Place the Avocado in Uncooked Rice
Turns out, uncooked rice can serve other purposes aside from saving your water-damaged smartphone. As an alternative to the paper bag method, uncooked rice can also be used to trap the ethylene and speed up the ripening process.
In order to use uncooked rice to ripen an avocado, submerge the avocado in a sealed container of rice. Leave the avocado for about a day, and it should ripen significantly.
How to Soften an Avocado
All of these methods can help you ripen an avocado within a day or two. If you want to eat an avocado sooner, there are ways to soften avocados. This won’t necessarily ripen the avocado, but it will soften the texture of the avocado enough to make it edible. If you’re in a rush to make guacamole for an event or plan to leave town soon and don’t want your produce to go to waste, this could work as a last resort.
The avocado might not taste as rich and creamy as a naturally ripened avocado, but the texture of the avocado should still suffice. Adding seasonings to your avocado dish will help to improve the taste.
Bake the Avocado in the Oven
In order to soften an avocado, the avocado can be baked in the oven. This should be done at a low heat not exceeding 200 degrees Fahrenheit, for a minimum of 10 minutes. This should be enough time to gently heat the avocado and soften its texture.
If the avocado is still too hard, the process can be repeated for another 10 minutes. Afterwards, cool the avocado down by placing it in the refrigerator before eating it.
Microwave the Avocado in 30 Second Increments
While this method is not recommended because it can ruin the texture of the avocado and cause the avocado to produce a bad smell, it can be used in a pinch. In order to soften an avocado in the microwave, microwave the avocado for short 30 second increments, feeling the avocado after each increment to test the softness.
Use this method with caution as overheating your avocado in the microwave can cause it to become mushy and unappetizing. This method can work if your avocado is not quite ripe enough and just needs a little softening.
How to Ripen an Avocado Quickly: Final Thoughts
While the best way to ripen an avocado is to let it ripen naturally in the sun, this method might not suffice if you need to use an avocado within a day or two. The paper bag or rice method will help to accelerate the ripening process so that you can enjoy your avocados as soon as possible.
Otherwise, an avocado can be softened with gentle heat to make an unripe avocado edible.
After ripening your avocado, make sure to store any unused avocado correctly so that it can be enjoyed at a later date.