Everyone has a different version of guacamole, it seems. Lime vs. lemon? Crushed garlic vs. spice? Then there's the question of salt---kosher, table, or sea salt?
It doesn't really matter (although my Texan Mexican friend would disagree) how you change up the recipe since avocado is the magic fruit that can do no harm. I have my own recipe that changes depending what I have in the fridge and cabinet at the time.
The usual ingredients consists of:
- 3 or 4 avocados
- 1 chopped grape tomato
- 1/4 cup minced onion (you can use onion spice as a substitute)
- lots of garlic salt and table salt (you can also use salt and garlic spices as a substitute for garlic salt)
The most important thing to know is how to safely extract the avocado pit. Eugene Robinson, columnist for the Washington Post, wrote about his staph infection from what his doctors joked was "deadly guacamole." In truth, Robinson simply cut his hand trying to remove the pit when he made guac one day. I've done the same thing before that resulted in a deep cut in the palm of my hand, but I luckily never ended up the hospital for my guac.
Here's a trick I learned from Alton Brown of Good Eats, quite possibly one of my favorite shows ever: Keep your knife steady and rotate the avocado so that the knife drags along the y axis. Cover your hand with a kitchen towel or oven mitt to hold the avocado, like a catcher's mitt. Then, take the base of the knife and chuck at the pit. Wiggle out the pit, leaving your hand pain free.
Scoop out the green stuff. Mix the ingredients; don't mash. Add salts to taste.
Then enjoy your blood-free guac!
