How to Cut an Avocado

Growing up in Southern California, where avocados are in abundance, and we eat avocados all the time, I just always thought that everyone knew how to cut them and how to remove the seed.   But the other night while at a Christmas party, we were talking to someone who was telling us how she had cut herself very badly while removing the seed from an avocado, and she now has an aversion to cutting them.  That was a real eye opener to me.  So I thought I would show everyone how to properly remove the seed from an avocado to prevent anyone else cutting themselves while in the process.  This post is more of a public service announcement or a PSA, and is not like my normal posts.  I want everyone to be safe now rather than sorry later.

Once you know how, cutting avocados is really pretty easy.  Start with a sharp knife at the top of the avocado, right where the stem is.  Insert the knife at the stem and rotate the avocado away from you.  You will have one even cut that will cut the avocado in cleanly in half.   Slap the blade of the knife hard into the center of the seed.

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Give the knife and seed a slight turn to one side, which will loosen the seed from its pocket. The seed will come out of its pocket very easily, while still attached to the knife.

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Carefully remove the seed from the knife.  If you are using the whole avocado, and there will be no leftovers, discard the seed.  If you are only going to use part of the avocado, or if you are making guacamole, keep the seed and place it back on the remaining avocado or into the guacamole to help keep it fresh and to help preserve the “greenness” of the avocado.  Lemon or lime juice will also help.

Once the seed has been removed from the fruit, take a large spoon, and gently go around the edges of the skin and the “meat”, making sure to support the meat of the fruit with the spoon, and all the meat will come out of the skin very easily, in one piece.  This works best when the avocados are ripe.  With unripened avocados, you do the same thing, but unfortunately, the meat is more firm and does not cooperate as well.  If the avocados are not ripe, and you have a couple of days to wait before using them, place them in a brown paper bag with a banana to help soften and ripen them.

IMG_4356Once the avocado has been removed from its skin and the seed has been removed, it is ready for you to eat and enjoy how you like.  Desfruitas!

 

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Author: ajeanneinthekitchen

I have worked in the restaurant and catering industry for over 35 years. I attended 2 culinary schools in Southern California, and have a degree in culinary arts from the Southern California School of Culinary Arts, as well as a few other degrees in other areas. I love to cook and I love to feed people.

148 thoughts on “How to Cut an Avocado”

  1. Some people have a knack for removing the seed with a knife. I’ve always been scared to do it because I always think I’m going to miss… yea, I’m a wuss…

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      5. You’re a mom. You have a natural instinct for doing these things. You can’t miss! Like one handed, one hit egg cracking and getting it all in the pan… No fair.

        Liked by 3 people

    1. Lol! I’m just giving y’all a hard time. But I have experienced some great women in the kitchen. My grandma was a phenomenon to witness. The things she could do were amazing. Her biscuits were awesome.. and greatly missed. My wife learned to cook from her grandmothers and mom. She’s definitely got a talent for cooking! She’s a walking recipe book!

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  8. I’ve done that, especially when cubing the avocado for a salad. But, if I am just going to add the avocado to my bowl of blended soup, I only use the knife to cut it in half.

    I use my teaspoon after that to remove the meat and seed. One the non-seed half (moving it from the middle toward the skin), I make angular chunks til I get all the meat out. Then on the half with the seed, I circle the seed to loosen it and pop it out with the spoon and place the seed in the empty other half. I then chunk the meat out of that side, and throw the skin halves and seed in the trash/compost.

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  12. I’m going to go against the grain here and say there is absolutely a wrong, and dangerous way to do this, and this is it! You never cut anything towards your hand, in your hand. Every once in a while, a pit can be deformed or super soft. When that happens, the knife will go straight through. What’s going to stop it? Your bones. I always insert the knife horizontally, the blade facing away from me. I’ve had multiple friends with wounds from similar methods to yours.

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    1. That way works too. No matter how you cut it, you have to be careful. I always cut towards me. it is just how I have always done it. So far, so good, but I definitely see your point. Thank you for your feedback.

      I remember when I was in culinary school, and there were things we were working on that I just could not do the way they were teaching it. But after tweaking things or moving my hands just slightly, I was able to do them with no problems. There are many ways to cut an avocado. 🙂

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