Buzz
Avocados have a devoted following of fans who can’t help but adore them. They’re delicious, whether sliced, mashed, or blended, and can be used to create everything from salad dressings to ice cream. But they’re temperamental. For a brief moment, they might be perfectly ripe, but more often than not, they spend their time either too hard or too mushy on the counter.
This dilemma has sparked a wave of so-called “quick ripening” tricks. If you're eager to try them, take a moment to appreciate that anticipation. Nice, right? But here’s the reality—most of these hacks fall short. There’s really just one reliable method to ripen an avocado in no time.
The Secret to Rapidly Ripening an Avocado
Aside from allowing the fruit to ripen naturally over a few days, there is one surefire way to speed up your avocado's ripening process. Just keep in mind: It’s quicker, but it still isn’t instant.
All you need to do is place the avocado in a paper bag (or any enclosed space), ideally paired with another climacteric fruit that’s already ripe, such as an apple or banana. Paper is recommended because it absorbs excess moisture that could cause mold, though mold isn’t likely to form in just one day. (If you’re out of paper, a napkin or paper towel in a plastic bag works too.) Depending on how ripe the avocado was to begin with, it should be ready in 12-24 hours, and the accompanying fruit will ripen as well. All the other “ripening” tricks I’ve seen tend to be more about softening. So, ask yourself—do you want your avocado ripe, or just soft enough to use?
Why the Paper Bag Method Works for Ripening
As the University of Maryland Extension explains, several changes occur when a fruit ripens, and softening is just one of them.
The fruit’s flesh usually softens, the sugar content increases, and acid levels drop. Volatile compounds are released, enhancing the aroma and flavor. The color darkens, and both the skin and flesh soften as the green undertones fade.
To truly impact a fruit's ripening, you need to initiate its biological processes, and the best way to do that is through ethylene. This plant hormone signals the ripening stage, and no, you don’t need to order it online. Here’s where the paper bag comes into play. Climacteric fruits are those that can continue ripening after being harvested. These fruits, though picked before fully ripe, will continue to ripen due to their natural production of ethylene. Initially, an unripe fruit emits small amounts of ethylene, but as it ripens, this gas triggers further development, causing the fruit to release more ethylene, speeding up the process.
When an avocado is already releasing ethylene, placing it in an enclosed space like a paper bag, plastic bag, or box helps trap the ethylene around the fruit, promoting its ripening. Left out in the open, however, that precious ethylene will escape into the air, slowing down the ripening process.
If your avocado is still quite green, adding another ripe fruit that’s already emitting higher levels of ethylene can speed up the ripening process. However, be cautious: that ripe fruit will also be affected by the ethylene and could become overripe. The avocado will thrive from the added ethylene, but the helper fruit will likely turn into mush. To monitor your avocado’s progress, place it in a bag and check every 8 to 10 hours to gauge its ripeness, then remove it to slow the ripening once it's reached the desired stage.
The ethylene trapping method works for any climacteric fruit (I'm looking at you, hard peaches), and it will improve the fruit’s texture, color, and most importantly, flavor. Anyone who's been disappointed by underripe avocado slices in a dish knows how bland and tasteless they can be. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become used to chewing on firmer foods, but unripe avocado still tastes like watery nothing.
Softness and ripeness should not be confused with one another.
Tricks to soften avocado (like sprinkling on salt, baking it in the oven, or blending it to death in a food processor) might help you mash the fruit, but the flavor won’t change: it’ll still be bland and lacking.
If you're hosting a football Sunday gathering and you’re responsible for the guacamole, my best advice is to give yourself at least 24 hours for the avocado-in-a-bag method. If you’re short on time, your best bet is to grab a couple of tubs of Sabra and slyly scoop them into your own Tupperware.
