Easy Guacamole

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The best guacamole recipe made with avocado, grape tomatoes, garlic, red onion, jalapeño, fresh lime juice and cilantro. It comes together quickly and is the perfect appetizer with chips or topping for tacos, burritos and so much more.

Who doesn’t love guacamole?! It’s by far my favorite dip. I already have a guac recipe on the site that’s made with frozen peas (yes, peas!), but I thought it was time to share a real deal guacamole recipe. And just in time for Cinco de Mayo next week!

If you’ve never made homemade guacamole before, it’s super easy to whip up (from start to finish this recipe comes together in about 15 minutes) and tastes way better than store-bought guac, trust me!

An overhead view of a serving bowl of guacamole.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • Who doesn’t love fresh guacamole? This guacamole is bursting with flavor and loaded with fresh veggies.
  • It’s perfect as an appetizer with chips or makes for an awesome topping for tacos, burrito bowls and so much more!
  • Avocados are full of healthy fats and fiber, but they also are a concentrated source of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants!
  • All you need is a cutting board, knife and one bowl! Easy peasy.
Ingredients measured out to make guacamole: cilantro, sea salt, jalapeno, lime, garlic, red onion, avocados and grape tomatoes.

Ingredients Needed

  • avocado – can’t have guacamole without avocados! Look for avocados that give slightly when you press on the skin. If they’re too firm that means they aren’t ripe yet! I’m sharing more on this below.
  • lime – a must for guacamole! I recommend using freshly squeezed lime juice as opposed to the lime juice you can buy at the store.
  • grape tomatoes – cherry tomatoes or roma tomatoes work as well! I love the sweet flavor explosion that small tomatoes add to this guacamole.
  • red onion – adds a little zest, crunch and a ton of flavor to the salad. If raw red onion feels too pungent you can soak the onion slices in bowl of ice cold water for a 10-15 minutes before using. After soaking, just drain and use! This will mellow out the flavor a bit.
  • jalapeño pepper – to add a little kick! You can omit or swap for a bell pepper if you don’t like spice.
  • cilantro – I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: fresh herbs instantly elevate a recipe! Cilantro is the perfect herb accompaniment to avocados and a key ingredient in this salad. You can use the stems and the leaves here. The stems pack in a ton of flavor.
  • garlic – adds a ton of flavor!
  • sea salt – to bring all the flavors together!
Three photos, showing the ingredients in a bowl to make guacamole, a fork smashing the ingredients and then the final guacamole.

How to Make Guacamole

This recipe is so easy to whip up! First, slice your avocados in half, remove the pits and scoop the avocado flesh out into a large bowl. Then add the remaining ingredients and mash together with a fork, until combined, but still chunky. That’s it!

A chip scooping some guacamole out of a bowl.

How to Pick Ripe Avocados

My number one tip for making the best guacamole is using avocados that are perfectly ripe. The first sign of ripeness is color. You want your avocado to be dark green, almost black in color. An avocado that is bright green is almost always unripe.

To check if your avocado is ripe enough, you want to press gently on the outside of it. You want avocados that are firm and smooth, but give slightly when you press on the skin. If there is no give that means your avocados aren’t ripe enough and if there is too much give, the avocado might be overly ripe.

Here’s a more detailed guide on how to tell if an avocado is ripe.

pro tip!
If you need to speed up the ripening process of your avocado you can place it in a brown paper bag with a banana. Bananas produce ethylene gas, which helps fruits ripen. 
A serving bowl of guacamole surrounded by carrots, radishes, chips, celery, cucumber slices, orange pepper and carrots for dipping.

How to Serve Guacamole

A scoop of guacamole on a chip.

How to Store Guacamole

Guacamole is best served right away! Avocados oxidize, which is why guacamole usually turns brown pretty quickly. The acid from the lime juice helps to slow down the oxidation process, but eventually, your guacamole will start to brown.

That said, if you store guacamole properly it should last 2-3 days in the fridge. To store, transfer the guac to an airtight container and cover it with a layer of plastic wrap, making sure to press down the plastic wrap on top of the guacamole. This helps to keep air out, which will slow down the browning process.

More Mexican-Inspired Recipes to Try

Be sure to check out all the appetizer recipes as well as the full collection of healthy Mexican recipes on EBF!

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5 from 4 votes

Guacamole

The best guacamole recipe made with avocado, grape tomatoes, garlic, red onion, jalapeño, fresh lime juice and cilantro. It comes together quickly and is the perfect appetizer with chips or topping for tacos, burritos and so much more.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 -6

Ingredients  

  • 3 large ripe avocados
  • Juice from 1 lime, 2 Tablespoons
  • ½ cup grape tomatoes, diced
  • ½ cup red onion, chopped
  • 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
  • ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste

Instructions 

  • Slice your avocados in half, remove the pits and scoop the flesh of the avocados into a large mixing bowl.
  • Add the rest of your ingredients to the bowl.
    Avocado halves, tomato, red onion, cilantro, garlic and lime juice in a bowl.
  • Stir together with a fork, until combined, but still chunky, mashing the avocado as you stir.
    Mashed ingredients in a bowl to make guacamole.
  • Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve with an assortment of raw vegetables and tortilla chips.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/6 recipe | Calories: 134kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Sodium: 204mg | Potassium: 429mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 2g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: guacamole
Did you make this recipe?Mention @eatingbirdfood and tag #eatingbirdfood!

About Brittany

Hey there, I’m Brittany, the creator of Eating Bird Food, cookbook author, health coach and mama of two littles. Here you’ll find quick and easy recipes that make healthy fun and enjoyable for you and your family!

More about Brittany
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Recipe Rating




4 Comments

    1. Yay! So happy to hear this, Maureen. Thank you so much for sharing your review, I appreciate it so much!

    1. Hi Whitney, thanks so much for taking the time to come back and leave a review and rating! So glad you enjoyed this recipe!