Shoppers buying avocados at supermarkets are urged to follow a strict ‘five-day rule’ to ensure maximum freshness.
Assessing the ripeness of an avocado can be a bit of a guessing game, as it can be hard to tell if it’s ready to eat simply from its colour and appearance alone. As such, shoppers are advised to apply a strict five-day rule to their purchases to help determine exactly when the fruit is ripe and to cut down on food waste. On average, it typically takes around five days for an avocado that is firm and green to fully ripen at room temperature, so if you make your purchase five days in advance of when you plan to eat it, this should guarantee it will be deliciously ripe.
According to Fresh Avocados – Love One Today, if you’re buying an avocado for a specific occasion or event, then you should select one that has green coloured skin and feels firm to the touch – and always buy it exactly five days before you actually intend to eat it.
The nutrition website explains: “Unripe, firm green avocados can be purchased 4-5 days ahead of an event. Ripe fresh avocados that yield to gentle pressure should be eaten within a day or two.
“For events that are four to five days out, purchase firm avocados instead. Unripe, firm or green fruit can take four to five days to ripen at room temperature, perfect for celebrations that are a few days out.
“Just be careful to watch the fruit to make sure the temperature in your kitchen does not cause them to ripen too quickly. If they begin to yield to gentle pressure, place them in the refrigerator to slow the ripening process.”
Fresh avocados that are almost ripe will feel less firm, be darker in colour and won’t quite yield to gentle pressure. When avocados are at this stage it is advised that you wait one to two days to allow the fruit to fully ripen, otherwise the flesh inside will be hard and difficult to mash.
If avocados are almost black in colour with just a hint of green, and yield to pressure, this is when they are at their ripest and should be eaten right away.
The colour of avocados can vary depending on the variety you choose, with Fuerte, Ettinger, Reed, and Sharwill avocados staying green when ripe, so it’s best to go by firmness as well as colour to determine if the fruit is ready to eat.
If an avocado feels mushy to the touch and has deep indentations, with darker yellow or brown coloured flesh, then it is overripe and is best avoided.