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The popularity (and versatility) of avocado is undeniable. It’s rich, creamy, velvety, and is loaded with a great many nutrients including folate, potassium, magnesium, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, and vitamin C. You can have it on toast, in soup, salad, scrambled eggs – among others. So, avocados are not only super healthy but are fun to eat just as well.
But here’s the downside – avocados do not last long! Unfortunately, a ripe avocado comes with a short lifespan, which means, they can go bad easily in a short time. Don’t worry if you have avocados that are at risk of getting overripe and mushy. Here’s how you can store and preserve avocados for a long time.
How to Make Whole Avocado Last Longer?
For that, you will have to first determine whether or not your avocados are ripened. If they are fully developed, you will need to store them in the refrigerator. Your ripe avocados will be fit to eat for 3 – 5 days. What does ripe avocado look like, you may wonder? A well-ripe avocado feels firm and has bumpy dark green skin.
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On the other hand, the best place to keep an unripe avocado is the kitchen counter. At this stage, your avocados will need time to ripen, so keeping them at room temperature is ideal. Let them breathe, and keep them away from fruits such as apples and bananas to avoid accelerating ripening. But of course, if you want your avocados to ripen quickly, stash them with the everyday fruits. Once ripe, you can consider storing your avocados in the fridge to extend their lives to a few days.
How to Make Cut Avocado Last Longer?
Once you have cut the Mexican fruit, its green flesh can easily turn brown if not used for long. While the change in color isn’t so bad, it isn’t entirely fresh and healthy either. When you cut an avocado and use only half of it, and keep the other half unprotected, it develops dark streaks all around itself. What you can do is get rid of those veiny parts and consume the rest of the fruit. But if the entire avocado has become discolored, toss it in the bin.
To prevent the luscious green fruit from going to waste, try out the tips discussed below:
Slathering on Some Lemon Juice
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One of the best ways to keep avocados from browning is to squeeze some lemon all over them. Lemon juice is full of vitamin C and has a low pH level. Oxygen reacts with the acidity of lemon before it reaches the enzymes in the fruit that can cause discoloration of the fruit. Once coated with the juice, wrap the avocado in plastic wrap and store in the fridge for 3 – 4 days. This will help protect the flavor and texture of avocados for a good amount of time.
Keep Avocados in a Container Full of Water
Another great way to store cut avocados is by submerging them in a container filled with water. Cover with a lid and store in the fridge for a few days. Make sure you have placed the avocado flesh-side down in a Tupperware container with an airtight lid.
Freeze Avocados
You can make your avocados last longer by freezing them. However, make sure that they are at peak ripeness, or else, once the fruit is frozen, it will never ripe. When freezing cut avocados, make sure to coat them with a healthy amount of lemon juice. This will stop the avocado from browning. When stored properly, avocados can easily last for 3 – 6 months in the freezer.
Cover with Onion
This works brilliantly because onions contain sulfur, which prevents enzymes from interacting with oxygen. All you need to do is keep the cut up pieces of avocado in a container (preferably airtight) with a piece of onion. Next, cover the container and store it in the fridge. In this way, your avocados will last for a couple of days.
Even though your avocados will have a slight hint of onion to them, it won’t matter much when combining them in salads, soups, or any other dish.
Plastic Wrapping
This works usually for avocado dips or guacamole. For this one, you will simply need to wrap plastic around the bowl/container. The plastic wrap and the added lime juice of the dip or guac will help preserve the avocado dish for a day or two in the refrigerator.
When stored in the fridge, avocados can easily last for up to four days, max. However, if you want to further extend their lifespan, consider freezing them. In that way, your ripe avocados can preserve their flavor and texture for months on end.
