bout de papier, Vol. 31, No. 1 (2020), pp. 41–42
AVOCADO. I love avocados. They make me happy. It took me most of my life to discover them. I didn’t grow up eating them. I didn’t know what they tasted like or what to do with them. Also, they’re green and weird-looking. Turns out I wasn’t the only one
BUT NOW I’VE SEEN TRUTH. This fruit is magical. It’s full of good stuff, including monounsaturated fat and vitamin K, which helps your blood to clot, and vitamins B5 and B6 for good hair, skin and immunity. Avos also have folate and fibre. Plus, they’re creamy and easy to prepare. So if you have ready access, why aren’t you eating them?
Mexico is by far the world’s largest producer of avocados, producing about three times more than the next closest country. The Dominican Republic, Indonesia and a number of Latin American countries are also strong producers, with the US and Oceania growing more modest quantities. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the US is the largest consumer; a 1990s marketing campaign made guacamole a signature Super Bowl item and consumption there exploded permanently. Global consumption of avocados also continues to grow. The Netherlands, which imports South American avocados for most of Europe, has seen its avocado importations grow fourfold in just eight years.
Avocados’ increased popularity has also brought some controversy. Avocado trees need water, but do not have the means to seek it from deep in the soil, owing to their shallow root system. That means regular irrigation is needed in dry climates. California’s recently-ended longterm drought, combined with its huge agricultural sector, generated debate over the use of water for crops like almonds, pomegranates and avos. In the case of almonds, a boycott was proposed, given the significant amounts of land devoted to a cash crop that is mostly shipped abroad; avocados escaped being directly targeted.
Some people in the US and Canada don’t consider the avocado vegan. To pollinate avocado flowers in California, bees are brought in from across the US (and a large percentage have died there in the past due to exposure to pesticides), violating the vegan ethic that food production should not exploit an animal or cause suffering. Concern over the exploitation of bees is also the reason vegans don’t eat honey. While I don’t find the argument entirely convincing as an omnivore, I certainly do think it is worth considering from an ecological and sustainability point of view.
Okay, heavy conversation is over. Let’s talk about how to prep an avocado. Many are intimidated by this process, but it’s really easy if you remember the following advice.
First, only eat an avocado when it’s ripe. Press your thumb next to the stem at the skinny end of the avo and it should sink in with a bit of resistance. If not, it’s not ripe yet and no amount of wishing will help you. You can pop it in a paper bag or just leave it out in a bowl. Place it somewhere you’|l see it in 24 hours — I leave mine near the coffee grinder and check each morning. When it’s ripe, eat it within a day or pop it in the fridge and it’ll stay perfect for a week. Avos are infamous for their short time at peak perfection, so when you happen upon it, be ready for action!
Second, don’t use a knife for anything except to cut it in half. Place the avo on its side on a cutting board and use a sharp knife to slice it down the centre until you hit the pit. Turn it over and repeat. Then twist the two sides and pull apart. Use a spoon (yes, a spoon) to gently work the pit loose and scoop it out. Don’t try to be impressive by swiping it with a knife; there’s no need for that kind of carnage. Then (no, put the knife down), use the very same spoon to smoothly scoop out each half of the avo. From there, go ahead and slice or mash it. Don’t follow what most instructions say to score the soft flesh while holding a half avocado in your hand. The knife passes through the fruit and skin easily and is increasingly sending people to hospital with “avocado hand”. It’s a real thing. Google it.
Recipe // Recette: Guacamole
Guacamole can be as complicated or simple as you want it to be. At its most basic, I just use mashed avo, with salt, lime and garlic. Add cilantro, diced onion, some salsa, or anything else you think it needs. I don’t measure, just eyeball what seems reasonable. Add a bit of each at a time and add more if you think it needs it.
And don’t limit yourself to eating it only with tortilla chips; my favourite application is as a sandwich spread with chicken, bacon and cheese, a topping on tortilla soup or as a condiment on eggs with toast. When you buy a whole bag of wonderful Mexican avocados, you need options, since you’ll be eating an awful lot of it! I’ve also seen it baked into chocolate cake, but I’ll leave it to you to decide if you’re ready to take such an unorthodox step and eat chocolate cake that is slightly tinged green.
Originally published in bout de papier, Vol. 31, No. 1 (2020), pp. 41–42. Read the rest of this issue →
