scooping sliced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
Once it’s ripe, an avocado is one of the greatest foods in existence, and so versatile that you can add it to many of your favorite dishes for a boost of healthy fats, fiber, potassium and more vitamins and minerals. Learn how to cut an avocado for salads, toast, guacamole and more. Plus, learn how to peel an avocado. What You Need to Open an Avocado You don’t need any special avocado tools to open an avocado. Though they seem effective, any single-tasking avocado tool won’t work any better than what you already have in your kitchen. All you need is a cutting board and a sharp knife, preferably ceramic or even plastic. Why? A metal knife can react with the avocado to initiate the oxidation process, which turns the avocado flesh brown. Unlike metal, ceramic and plastic are nonreactive, so the oxidation process doesn’t start as quickly—though the avocado will start to brown eventually. How to Cut Open an Avocado Carefully slice into the avocado with a knife until the blade hits the pit in the center. two hands slicing an avocado with red knife over a wooden cutting board Credit: Casey Barber Run the knife lengthwise around the avocado. Twist the two halves of the avocado to separate and open the avocado. two hands holding avocado halves over a wooden cutting board with red knife Credit: Casey Barber How to Remove an Avocado Pit To remove with a knife, firmly smack the thick end of the knife blade into the pit until it sticks. Rotate the avocado so that the pit separates from the flesh and remains on the knife. pitting an avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber To remove the slippery avocado pit from the knife, smack the side of the pit against a cutting board or countertop to loosen it. Or if you would rather not use a knife, you can simply run the tip of a spoon around the pit and scoop it out. scooping out an avocado pit with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber How to Slice an Avocado With the pit removed and the avocado still in the peel, make vertical slices with the tip of the knife. slicing avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber Run a spoon around the edge of the avocado to separate the peel and the flesh, then scoop out the slices. Try sliced avocado in this Avocado & Kale Omelet. scooping sliced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber How to Dice an Avocado Start by slicing the avocado as described above, then make horizontal slices to create cubes. dicing avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber Run a spoon around the edge of the avocado to separate the peel and the flesh, then scoop out the diced avocado. Use diced avocado in salads or as part of a fresh salsa. scooping diced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber How to Peel an Avocado Whether you’re dicing or slicing, it’s easy to peel an avocado. Simply run a spoon around the edge of the avocado and it will release the flesh. However, if you don’t plan to eat the entire avocado at once, be sure to leave the remaining flesh in the peel for storage purposes. Learn how to store cut avocados properly.
scooping sliced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
scooping sliced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
scooping sliced avocado with a spoon
Credit: Casey Barber
Once it’s ripe, an avocado is one of the greatest foods in existence, and so versatile that you can add it to many of your favorite dishes for a boost of healthy fats, fiber, potassium and more vitamins and minerals. Learn how to cut an avocado for salads, toast, guacamole and more. Plus, learn how to peel an avocado.
What You Need to Open an Avocado
You don’t need any special avocado tools to open an avocado. Though they seem effective, any single-tasking avocado tool won’t work any better than what you already have in your kitchen. All you need is a cutting board and a sharp knife, preferably ceramic or even plastic. Why? A metal knife can react with the avocado to initiate the oxidation process, which turns the avocado flesh brown. Unlike metal, ceramic and plastic are nonreactive, so the oxidation process doesn’t start as quickly—though the avocado will start to brown eventually.
How to Cut Open an Avocado
Carefully slice into the avocado with a knife until the blade hits the pit in the center.
two hands slicing an avocado with red knife over a wooden cutting board Credit: Casey Barber
Run the knife lengthwise around the avocado. Twist the two halves of the avocado to separate and open the avocado.
two hands holding avocado halves over a wooden cutting board with red knife Credit: Casey Barber
How to Remove an Avocado Pit
To remove with a knife, firmly smack the thick end of the knife blade into the pit until it sticks. Rotate the avocado so that the pit separates from the flesh and remains on the knife.
pitting an avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber
To remove the slippery avocado pit from the knife, smack the side of the pit against a cutting board or countertop to loosen it. Or if you would rather not use a knife, you can simply run the tip of a spoon around the pit and scoop it out.
scooping out an avocado pit with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
How to Slice an Avocado
With the pit removed and the avocado still in the peel, make vertical slices with the tip of the knife.
slicing avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber
Run a spoon around the edge of the avocado to separate the peel and the flesh, then scoop out the slices. Try sliced avocado in this Avocado & Kale Omelet.
How to Dice an Avocado
Start by slicing the avocado as described above, then make horizontal slices to create cubes.
dicing avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber
Run a spoon around the edge of the avocado to separate the peel and the flesh, then scoop out the diced avocado. Use diced avocado in salads or as part of a fresh salsa.
scooping diced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
How to Peel an Avocado
Whether you’re dicing or slicing, it’s easy to peel an avocado. Simply run a spoon around the edge of the avocado and it will release the flesh. However, if you don’t plan to eat the entire avocado at once, be sure to leave the remaining flesh in the peel for storage purposes. Learn how to store cut avocados properly.
two hands slicing an avocado with red knife over a wooden cutting board Credit: Casey Barber
two hands slicing an avocado with red knife over a wooden cutting board
two hands holding avocado halves over a wooden cutting board with red knife Credit: Casey Barber
two hands holding avocado halves over a wooden cutting board with red knife
pitting an avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber
pitting an avocado with a red knife
scooping out an avocado pit with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
scooping out an avocado pit with a spoon
slicing avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber
slicing avocado with a red knife
dicing avocado with a red knife Credit: Casey Barber
dicing avocado with a red knife
scooping diced avocado with a spoon Credit: Casey Barber
scooping diced avocado with a spoon
