We love this easy, authentic homemade guacamole and have made it more times than I can count! This is how to make the best guacamole with avocados, lime, and onion. Our recipe is quick, fresh, and easy.
Watch the Video
Related: We love serving guacamole alongside our easy red salsa and this homemade queso.
What is Guacamole?
Guacamole is a dip made by gently mashing avocados, lime, onion, and other fresh ingredients. It pairs perfectly with a generous bowl of tortilla chips or makes a fantastic addition to your favorite fajitas or tacos. Personally, I love spreading a dollop of guacamole on the base of these chili butter shrimp tacos.
Over the years, we have picked up a few secrets for making the best guacamole at home. Based on the rave reviews we receive from our friends, we can confidently say we have a winning recipe!
Guacamole Recipe Ingredients
This is our all-time favorite recipe for guacamole, featuring a handful of key ingredients that guarantee incredible, authentic Mexican flavors. To make it even easier for you, we’ve included a recipe video where you can watch me prepare the guacamole. In the video, I also share a genius trick for toning down the flavor of onions, ensuring they’re crisp and sweet without any lingering onion breath. You can find the complete recipe and video at the end of this article.
- Avocado: Scroll down to find our tips on selecting the perfect avocados.
- Onions: While I love adding onions to guacamole, I understand the desire for a milder flavor. Check out our tip below for reducing the raw onion taste.
- Cilantro: Just like when I make salsa, I’m generous with cilantro in my guacamole.
- Lime: Fresh lime juice works best, but I’ll be honest with you – if I run out of limes, I’ve substituted lemon juice, which gives a slightly different but still delicious flavor.
- Jalapeño: I enjoy adding diced jalapeños to my guacamole, but I remove all the seeds and white membrane to keep it on the milder side. You can watch me do this in the video. If you prefer spicier guacamole, use the whole pepper — seeds and all. Serrano peppers are a good substitute, but remember, they can be hotter than jalapeños.
- Salt: Don’t be shy when seasoning the avocados, it boosts the flavor of your guacamole.
These six ingredients are the foundation of our guacamole. Depending on your preference, there are two extra ingredients that can take it to the next level:
First, add some tomato. For three medium avocados, I typically use one small tomato (such as Roma or a small vine-ripened tomato). The tomato adds color and enhances the freshness. Second, for a hint of smoky spice, you can incorporate ground cumin or try a smoky hot spice like ground chipotle peppers. Start with 1/4 teaspoon and adjust according to your taste preferences.
How to Pick Avocados
Selecting ripe avocados is important for the best guacamole. Here’s a guide on how to determine if an avocado is ready to use:
- Gently squeeze the avocado with the palm of your hand, avoiding using fingertips as they can bruise it. If it yields slightly when pressed, it’s ready to eat. It needs a day or two to ripen if it feels firm and doesn’t give. If it gives too easily, it’s likely overripe and may have brown spots inside.
- Check under the stem. Use your fingers to gently pull the stem at the top of the avocado. If it easily comes off, and the area underneath is green, you’ve found an avocado ready to eat. If the stem is hard to remove, it needs a couple of days to fully ripen. The avocado is likely overripe if the area under the stem is brown.
How to Make the Best Guacamole
To achieve truly excellent guacamole, it’s important not to over-mash your avocados. We aim for a chunky dip rather than a completely smooth one. I recommend using a fork to mash the avocados for the best results, as shown in our video below.
In guacamole, we want to avoid an overpowering raw onion flavor. To tone down the raw onion flavor, while maintaining crunch, try this simple trick: after dicing the onion, place it in a bowl of cold water. Let the onion soak for 5 to 10 minutes, then drain and rinse it. We also use this trick when making shrimp ceviche and this easy red salsa.
More Avocado Recipes
We buy more avocados that I’d like to admit. If you have some leftover in your kitchen, consider making one of these easy recipes:
Easy Guacamole
For the best guacamole, use ripe avocados. You’ll know when an avocado is ripe when it gives slightly when squeezed. Keep unripe avocados at room temperature until they are ready. See this tutorial for more about buying, cutting, and storing avocados.
Try not to over-mash the avocados. We are looking for a chunky dip, not an entirely smooth one. I’ve found a fork to be the best tool when mashing avocados for guacamole. You can see me using one in our video below.
For spicy guacamole, leave the seeds and membrane in the peppers and add to taste.
Makes approximately 6 servings
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
3 ripe medium avocados
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 cup cilantro leaves and tender stems, chopped
1 large plum or Roma tomato, chopped, optional
1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, optional
1 to 2 teaspoons finely chopped jalapeño pepper, with seeds and membrane removed, optional
Directions
1Add the chopped onion to a small bowl and cover with cold water. Set aside for 5 minutes, drain, and then rinse. This simple step tones down the raw flavor of the onions.
2Cut avocados in half lengthwise, remove the pit, scoop out the flesh, and add to a bowl.
3Use a fork to mash the avocado into a chunky dip.
4Stir in the drained and rinsed onions, lime juice, cilantro, tomato, and salt. If you are adding them, add the finely chopped jalapeño and cumin.
5Taste the guacamole and adjust with more salt or lime juice.
6Guacamole is best when eaten soon after making it, but to store it, press plastic wrap down onto the guacamole and refrigerate for up to one day.
Adam and Joanne’s Tips
- Lime: Fresh lime juice is best, but I’ll be honest with you: I’ve swapped it for lemon juice when I’m out of lime. It’s slightly different from what you might be used to, but still quite delicious.
- Jalapeño: I love adding diced jalapeño to my guacamole, but since I prefer it on the milder side, I remove all of the seeds and white membrane inside the pepper (you can see me do this in the video). If you love spicier guacamole, add the whole pepper — seeds and all. Serrano peppers are a good substitute, but remember that they can be hotter than jalapeño peppers.
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
Nutrition Per Serving
Serving Size
1/6 of recipe
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Calories
119
/
Protein
2 g
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Carbohydrate
8 g
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Dietary Fiber
5 g
/
Total Sugars
2 g
/
Total Fat
10 g
/
Saturated Fat
1 g
/
Cholesterol
0 mg
