The buttery, creamy, and slightly nutty fruit is a kitchen chameleon. It is an easily transformative ingredient for smoothies, salads, dressings, and guacamole.
Beyond its rich taste, avocados offer heart-healthy benefits that support nutrient absorption - whether it’s boosting your diet or adding versatility to your cooking. No need to pay someone to write your essay on superfoods; they are the answer. Moreover, they’re turning into a staple in multiple cuisines.
Why Choose Avocado?
A quick fact: Avocado is a type of berry. It contains a healthy count of monounsaturated fatty acids plus other minerals and vitamins. Consuming these healthy fats boosts your skin health while enhancing the absorption of other minerals, vitamins, and other nutrients.
Recent studies reveal that fruit plays an integral role in boosting heart health. This is due to its constitution of potassium, magnesium, polyunsaturated fatty acids, phytonutrients, and bioactive compounds.
The same potassium is linked to a healthy digestive function. Due to its low-fructose content, it’s less likely to cause gas.
Versatility of the Green Gold
Are you still deliberating how to incorporate it into your daily cuisines? Worry not! It is one of the most versatile fruits to store in your pantry. Let’s take a look at different ways to add such a powerhouse to your plate:
Peanut butter or jam are less-healthy choices to start your day with. They lead to excess consumption of calories, fat, and carbohydrates. It doesn’t mean you have to contend with bland toast.
Hipster toast is a new trendy breakfast dish that mashes ripe ‘alligators’ and spreads the creamy mixture over toasted bread. Moreover, you can lightly rub a raw peeled garlic clove over the top or add fresh leafy herbs for a complete mix-up.
Guacamole
These pear-shaped tropical fruits are the base for guacamole; other elements like sweet white onions, cilantro, Roma tomatoes, jalapeno pepper, and lime juice give their texture. The popular Mexican dip is announcing a comeback in most cuisines.
The best mix is made from ripe fruits mashed to a mellow chunky consistency. Throw in freshly diced onions, freshly chopped cilantro, a pinch of salt, a squeeze of lime juice, and salt for bright flavors. Minced garlic and cubed tomatoes add depth.
Spice it up with finely chopped hot rod serrano peppers for a kick if you want some heat. It balances the creamy flavor that shines through while adjusting seasonings as needed. It works well with cheesy chicken and lime quesadillas, multigrain chips, chili cheese bread, hamburgers, or plantains.
Salads and dressings
Do you want to add a creamy, buttery, mild flavor to your salads and dressings? Swap out those empty calories for these health-boosting unsaturated fatty acids. The natural oil it contains binds other ingredients and makes it more satisfying.
For dressings, mashed avocado creates a smooth, velvety base that’s healthier than mayonnaise. Also, it blends perfectly with citrus juices, herbs, and vinegar for a creamy dressing.
Add cubed avocados to cucumber, lime, olive oil, fresh herbs, garlic, and jalapeno mix for a salad. Please give it a gentle toss while slowly mixing these ingredients into a bowl.
Smoothies
An avocado smoothie is a refreshing, creamy, and nutrient-dense drink for the hot summer holidays. It pushes on its creamy and smooth texture to make the final product delicious and satisfying.
A basic smoothie starts with a ripe avocado, milk, a sweetener, and ice. Blend these ingredients until you get the desired consistency.
Why stop there? Get creative and add a handful of spinach for its nutrition and bananas for its natural sweetness. Finish with a tropical twist with mango or pineapple chunks. Try a chocolate avocado or blueberry mix if you're feeling more adventurous.
Other Ways to Make It Work
Are you still hesitant about trying these recipes? Well, there are other engrossing ways to add it to your diet, like:
In scrambled eggs
A simple fix for an early morning breakfast run is avocado scrambled eggs. The idea sounds basic, but the execution needs key attention to detail. Start by whisking eggs with milk in a bowl. Throw in the dissected chunks directly into the ensemble. Afterward, release it gently into a wok and start scrambling.
Fresh, soft herbs add a touch of flavor and crispiness. Avoid using woody herbs like rosemary or thyme, which overpower the eggs.
Stuffed
A stuffed filling is an exciting way to keep your kitchen adventures spicy and creative. Fill a halved avocado with an egg and bake it for 15-20 minutes at 220⁰C until fully set. Season with herbs and spices.
Butter substitute
Want to reduce your dairy intake? Or, simply try something new; adding avocado as a butter substitute is highly recommended.
You can spread mashed avocado on your morning toast instead of butter. It’s a nutritional upgrade packed with loads of fats and fibers. Moreover, you can swap it for baking in a ratio of 1:1, which works perfectly for brownies, some cakes, and muffins.
Grilled
Another unconventional way of consuming avocado is grilling it. The heat brings out a subtle smokiness while adding a new dimension to the creamy texture.
Start by cutting it in half and dashing the pit. Brush the cut sides with olive oil and a squash of lemon oil to prevent browning. Place the cut halves on a hot grill for close to three minutes.
The result is a warm, slightly charred avocado with an intensified buttery flavor, crisp exterior, and delightful soft interior.
Pickled
Maybe you’ve bought avocados on a whim and must figure out how to prevent them from going bad. Pickling them is one means of preserving them. Other than eating them straight out of the jar, avocados are a topper for everything.
You’ll need 2-3 under-ripe avocados, a cup of distilled vinegar, salt, garlic, sugar, water, and red pepper flakes. Use sea salt, whole black peppercorns, and red pepper flakes for seasoning. Heat the mixture to boiling and let it cool slightly. Pack these pieces into a clean jar and pour the liquid concentrate.