If you want a good avocado, you have to plan ahead. Most of the Hass avocados sold in grocery stores are underripe, with green skin and rock-hard flesh—nowhere near ready to eat. So say you want to buy an avocado that will be ready to eat in two days, or three days, or one day: What characteristics should you look for? This is why we made the avocado-choosing primer above.
Keep in mind that you have some control over how quickly an avocado will ripen: If you want it to ripen as quickly as possible, keep it in a closed paper bag at room temperature. If you want it to ripen more slowly, keep it in the fridge. If you want it to ripen at a Goldilocks pace, keep it uncovered at room temperature.
Once your avocado is perfectly ripe, the obvious thing to do is to make guacamole. But if you’re feeling lazy or minimalist, you can never go wrong with avocado toast.
