How to Tell If an Avocado Is Ripe and Good to Eat

Avocado is one of the most popular fruits all over the world. There are plenty of ways to eat an avocado. You can make it into a salad, toast, smoothies, salsa, sandwiches, chips, desserts, and a lot more. There are so many recipes to choose from. But you can also enjoy an avocado as is or with a pinch of salt and pepper or your favorite seasonings for some added flavor.

RELATED: How to Freeze an Avocado in Three Ways

If you are planning to make avocado recipes at home and want to know if they are already ripe before using them, you are on the right page. Let Cooking with Dr. Chill teach you how to tell if an avocado is ripe and good to eat with these simple steps. He will also teach you how to tell if an avocado is bad, so you know what to get from the store or use from your stock.

For easy avocado recipes, check these out: Easy Creamy Avocado Toast Recipe, Cheesecake Factory Avocado Egg Rolls Copycat Recipe, Best Tuna and Avocado Salad

How to Tell If an Avocado is Ripe

Color test

If it’s green it’s not ripe, if it’s black it’s either ripe or too ripe. You are looking for something right before black.

The spots on an avocado do not mean that it’s bad, it just means that it has been squeezed too much leaving a bruise on the meat.

Squeeze test

Grab the avocado and lightly squeeze it. If it yields without leaving indentations, it is ripe.

How Do You Know If an Avocado is Bad

Check if there are cuts or holes in your avocado. Next, check the top part of the avocado. You want to pop it off. If it is dark brown, black, or gray, chances are it’s bad. If it’s green, chances are it’s going to be a good fruit when you open it up.

If you see a green avocado in a store, don’t bother to pop the top off, so you don’t ruin the avocado. If you pop it off, it starts increasing the decay time of the avocado.

How to Ripen Avocados Quickly

Take a paper bag and place the avocados including some apples and bananas.

How to Tell If an Avocado Is Ripe and Good to Eat