Avocado

Cookbook | Recipes | Ingredients | Fruit

The avocado, also known as the avocado pear or alligator pear, is a starchy high-fat fruit. Like tomatoes, it is sometimes considered a vegetable. The avocado is very popular in vegetarian cuisine, making a good substitute for meats and cheeses in sandwiches because of the high fat content. The fruit is not sweet, but starchy, flavorful, and of smooth, more or less creamy, texture. Avocados have a large smooth pit and a leathery skin, both of which are easy to remove. The flesh is typically greenish yellow to golden yellow if ripe, turning dark soon after exposure to air. Mashed avocados are excellent baby food.

Avocado oil is a monounsaturated fat. The purified oil has a very high smoke point of about 510°F/265°C, making it suitable for the hottest types of frying.

Avocado varieties can be classified into two types. The type grown in dry areas has a rough dark skin which may be almost black. This type is the size of a small pear. It is the creamiest and best tasting because of its high fat content. The type grown in wet areas has a bright green skin. It is larger, perhaps 5 inches long and 3.5 in diameter. This type is commonly chosen for the more-attractive skin and for reduced calories, though it is generally inferior for eating.

Avocados ripen a few days after they are picked, but ripen faster if stored with other fruit such as bananas.

Avocados have a taste reminiscent of century eggs.

Seasonality

Seasonality tables|Autumn|Winter|Spring|Summer|All year
Avocado Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere

The precise season for avocados depends highly on the cultivar, but nearly all varieties reach their peak season around spring. The Hass avocado is the only variety that is available all year.

Avocado recipes

  • California Rare Fruit Growers Notes on the botany and cultivation of the avocado tree.
  • Avocado.org Contains detailed information on avocados, including details about various cultivars grown in California.
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