Avocados are the rich and creamy fruit that have become a firm favourite for many UK households, popular for both their taste and health benefits.
But if you’re impatient to eat it and cut into an avocado before it’s fully ripened then it can be rather disappointing, leaving a bitter and slightly chalky taste in your mouth. In general, avocados usually take around four to seven days to ripen at room temperature, but this, of course, can vary depending on how firm it was when you bought it. If the avocado was quite hard and was green in colour then it will typically take longer to ripen.
But there is a very simple way to speed up the ripening process so you can tuck into your avocado much sooner, and it all comes down to how you store it. According to food experts, storing an avocado alongside a banana inside a brown paper bag will help it to ripen faster without the flesh turning brown.
Bananas are one of the biggest producers of ethylene gas, a natural chemical compound that promotes ripening. The gas causes fruits to soften and change colour, causing the starches to break down and form sugars which makes the flesh both sweet and supple.
The idea behind this storage method is that the brown paper bag traps the ethylene gas as it’s released from the banana, and as the avocado is sealed inside a small, concentrated space, this effectively helps it to ripen more quickly.
Experts at Fresh Avocados – Love One Today says: “Typically, this method takes around two to three days, depending on the initial avocado ripeness and environmental conditions.
“The key is to check the avocados periodically to monitor their progress. Factors such as temperature and humidity can influence the speed of the ripening process, so keeping an eye on them helps you achieve the desired ripeness without overdoing it.”
The paper bag method also works with other fruits, like an apple or a kiwi (or both), and should give you a deliciously ripe avocado within around two to three days.
You can usually tell when an avocado is ready to eat by its colour, as it will be almost black with just a hint of green, and should yield to pressure.
The colour can vary depending on the variety you choose, with Fuerte, Ettinger, Reed, and Sharwill avocados staying green when ripe, so it’s best to go by firmness as well as colour to determine if the fruit is ready to eat.
If your avocado has ripened and you’re not ready to eat it yet then it’s best to store it in the fridge to preserve its texture and to avoid it going to waste. Refrigeration will also prevent the flesh of the avocado from browning.
Simply Recipes says: ” If you’re not ready to use your avocado once it has reached peak ripeness, move it from the counter to the fridge. The cold environment helps temporarily hold it at its peak. Stored whole, ripe avocados will keep for two or three days in the crisper drawer.”