Guacamole, my way
I’m often asked why I don’t have a guacamole recipe on my site. I reckon the simplest answer is because I don’t have a recipe for guacamole. Instead, I just add some ingredients to a smashed-up avocado and call it a dip.
When my mom was in the liturgical nacho stage of her life (so-called because she made her daily lunch of nachos always the exact same way) she’d whip up a batch of guacamole to go with them. She totally cheated, however, as she mashed an avocado with bottled hot sauce.
My mom can do many things very, very well, but I have to admit that this guacamole was not the best I’d eaten in my life. (And, for the record, she insists that she no longer makes guacamole this way.)
Guacamole is all about freshness and using a bottled hot sauce is anathema to this underlying principle. While you want the avocado to be the star, the other ingredients need to be heard as well, and nothing is louder than the crunch of fresh chiles, the tang of lime juice and the bite of fresh garlic.
There’s also the problem of bottled salsa having tomatoes as a base. I’m a firm believer that tomatoes shouldn’t be in guacamole; the texture is just wrong. Tomatoes are too juicy and soft and I want my accents to the avocado to be firm. I realize most people would disagree with me, but that’s OK as that’s probably the best thing about guacamole—everyone makes guacamole the way that they like it.
Take my uncle, for instance. He stirs in a heaping spoonful of mayonnaise into his guacamole, which he swears makes it super creamy. Then there’s a friend who’s been known to add sesame seeds to her guacamole, which is a subtle yet surprising accent. Obviously, the ways to make guacamole are infinite.
So, I’m happy to share with you how I make my guacamole, but what I really want to know is how you make your guacamole.
Guacamole
Ingredients
- 2 ripe Hass avocados, peeled, pitted, and cut in half
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Serrano chile, seeded and diced
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Mash the avocado with a fork in a bowl or Mexican mortar and pestle (molcajete) until desired consistency. Stir in the garlic, Serrano, cilantro, lime juice, and salt, then taste and add more salt if desired. Serve immediately.
Yup, this is what I call The Best Guacamole…but I use some chopped white onion, more lime juice and kosher salt. It's fabulous!
I make my guac in many different ways, depending on mood and avacados.
I am not big on salt in general, but a sprinkle is a must. My mother-in-law made excellent guac and always added grated onion–a good thing. Mainly, I love it most ways…the only time that I would add mayo would be for GBT sandwiches. Guac, bacon and really, really good tomatoes makes a heavenly sandwich!
My guac consists of avocado, lots of lime juice, salt, minced garlic, jalapeno (when that is not on hand I've been known to add Tabasco or cayenne just for a kick)
I have put minced cherry tomato in there too. I guess I just needed to see a little red that day.
I love seeing people refer to it as "guac"
In Sinaloa MX I had it served with crumbled Cojita on top and it was a nice contrast.
I do it myself now and then.
I learned to make homemade guacamole and homemade salsa from a native Texan when I attended UT Austin almost 30 years ago. So I guess mine is Tex-Mex.
I take 2 avocados, a little chopped ripe tomato, a little chopped onion (or even green onion), 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, some chopped fresh cilantro (if I have it)and any kind of spicy chili pepper that I have on hand, usually jalapeno or cayenne, and mash it all up with a fork to a slightly chunky consistency. If I am going to eat it right away, I don't bother adding lime juice. If I plan to store it for awhile before serving, then I add the lime. Usually it doesn't last more than 5 or 10 minutes around here.