You'll Definitely Want to Steal this Shockingly Simple Trick for Keeping Guacamole Green
Bowl of guacamole
Keeping guacamole green is an age-old snack struggle. Maybe you have leftovers from your Cinco de Mayo feast or you would simply like to make the rich and creamy dip a bit in advance. But despite your best efforts, when you come back to your guac the surface is an unappealing brown color. Your options at that point are to scrape off the browned bits or vigorously stir everything together, turning the whole thing a slightly darker shade of green.
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Neither of those options is ideal, so before we started in on our Super Bowl snack-making this year we decided to do a little test to find out the best way to keep guacamole green. After smashing, mashing, storing and observing, we had a clear winner and new go-to method for protecting this precious dip.
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Why Does Guacamole Turn Brown?
Nathan Hutsenpiller
So what exactly is causing guacamole to change its color in the first place? In short, oxidation. When an avocado is cut in half, the enzymes in its flesh begin to react almost immediately with oxygen in the air. The more time spent directly in contact with oxygen, the more discoloration you'll have.
Now that we knew that oxygen was to blame, we headed online to sort through posts and videos and comment threads where folks claim to have solved this problem once and for all.
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3 Popular Ways to Keep Guacamole Green
Nathan Hutsenpiller
After combing through the many methods online, we narrowed our test down to three popular ways to keep guacamole green.
1. Put plastic wrap directly on the surface.
For this method, you put your guacamole in a container, smooth the top, then stick the plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guac. The idea here is to cover the entire surface of the dip so no oxygen can get to your snack.
2. Add the avocado pit and cover with plastic wrap.
Perhaps one of the few very unique methods, this version uses the same plastic wrap coverup but with a twist. Once the guacamole has been transferred to a container, drop the pit directly in the center, smooth out the surface and cover the surface with plastic wrap, as you'd do in method #1. People swear by the magic of the avocado pit.
3. Cover it with water.
For this method, you spoon your guacamole into a container, smooth the surface, then gently pour in enough water to cover the dip by about 1/2 inch. People who like this method mention the fact that water doesn't affect the flavor of the guacamole and it creates a barrier to keep out the oxygen. It's also super easy and free.
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The Absolute Best Way to Keep Guacamole Green
Nathan Hutsenpiller
As you can see, the winner was abundantly clear.
Although we took our time and tried to make sure every bit of the guacamole was covered with plastic wrap, it was still very easy to get small bubbles on the surface, which allowed oxygen to sneak in. The pit version suffered a similar fate. The guac that wasn't in contact with the pit was as discolored as the plain plastic wrap test. On the bright side (literally), the guacamole that was in contact with the pit was perfectly green once the pit was removed because the pit created an oxygen-proof barrier.
But covering the guacamole with water was the hands-down winner. The water kept the dip nice and green and it was easy to just pour the water out of the container and stir up the guac. There was very little water left after we poured it off so it didn't dilute the flavor of the dip. For ease, effectiveness and economy, this is absolutely the method we'll be using from now on.
