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Avocados are a delicious fruit from the avocado tree, known as Persea Americana. When ripe, they develop a creamy texture and a mild, nutty flavour that is perfect for a variety of dishes. However, it is difficult to find perfectly ripened avocados in the market. Often, they are bright green and very hard, making them difficult to slice or mash for a salad, sandwich, or toast. Ripe avocados are perfect to be used in various dishes; you can add them with eggs for a nutritious breakfast, blend them for a smoothie, or enjoy them on toast.
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What Are The Health Benefits Of Avocados?
Avocados are packed with nutrients like vitamins E, K, C, and B6, as well as potassium and magnesium. Here are some of the avocado benefits:
- Avocados are good for heart health because they are rich in monounsaturated fats.
- They help with digestion as they are high in dietary fibre.
- The fruit contains antioxidants that can help reduce inflammation and oxidative stress, which is detrimental to health.
- The fruit consists of zeaxanthin and lutein, which are phytochemicals found in eye tissue. They offer protection and help minimise eye damage, including ultraviolet rays.
5 Tips To Ripen Avocados
Ripe avocados should be soft. If they are hard or squishy, it means they are either raw or overripe. Here are some avocado ripening methods you can use at home!
1. Keep Them In Warm Places
Avocados are to be stored in a warm place to help them ripen perfectly. Place them in a bowl and store in a warm place; this is a natural method to ripen the fruits. The only drawback of this method is that this process is slow and might take a few days or weeks for the avocados to ripen fully.
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2. The Paper Bag Hack
Avocados produce ethylene gas, a plant hormone that plays a key role in inducing the ripening process for many fruits. Surrounding an avocado with air full of ethylene gas can increase its ethylene production and speed up the ripening process. So, putting avocado in a paper bag can trap ethylene and help it ripen faster.
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Also Read: Avocado Fries and Avocado Tacos Recipe
3. Store It With A Banana
Bananas are a climacteric fruit; this means bananas can continue ripening after being separated from the plant. The ethylene gas this fruit emits can speed up ripening. All you must do is keep raw avocado with bananas and wait for at least two days.
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4. Put Avocado In Uncooked Rice
Put avocado with uncooked rice in a container. Make sure the fruit is nicely covered with the rice. This helps to build an ethylene gas trap that will help to ripen avocados in about two to three days.
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5. Use A Cotton Cloth
Use a clean cotton cloth to ripen avocados. Put the washed and dried cloth on a flat surface and place the avocados on top. Space them out, then cover the avocados with another piece of clean cloth. This will also take a few days to ripen the fruit.
Image Credit: Freepik
Try these simple tricks to rip your avocado at home and enjoy it with your breakfast!
