For any of you who have happened to make it through all of the FAQ’s (and actually read the blurb at the top about not getting answers to ALL of your questions), here is the final answer to a pretty darn important life question, if I do say so myself.

What is the secret to good guacamole?

I’m going to tell you. The secret is to hand mash it, not blend it or puree it like some foodies would have you believe.

1) You’re going to want to get a couple of perfect avocados (they should barely indent to the touch), split them open and remove the pit – you do this by whacking the sharp edge of the knife into the pit without stabbing it into your hand. It’ll stick into the pit nicely and – pop!- it’ll come right out, with no digging around and ruining the perfectly good fruit.

2) Next you’re going to slice the avocado while it’s still in the skin. Cut it lengthwise into strips and then crosswise into chunks, and they will fall right out into your awaiting bowl.

3) Now add your other ingredients, of which there aren’t many. I add minced garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste (this is where it gets tricky because there really aren’t appropriate measurements, it’s all according to your palette). You can also add a little bit of red onion and some cilantro, but don’t go overboard here because you don’t want to risk overpowering the delightful avocado flavor itself- which is the whole reason we eat guac in the first place. *If you’re planning on using garlic salt, you need to go ahead and close this window and go sit in the corner because you need punished (and publicly shamed) for thinking that garlic salt is an acceptable seasoning in any recipe, much less home-made (awesome-sauce) guacamole.

4) Before you go any further, STOP! Don’t dive into the bowl with a whisk, spoon, blender or other such device with the intent of mashing the mixture into a pulp- back away from any sort of mixing tool and instead, gently stir the mixture with a fork. That’s all you need to do.

Voila – perfect guacamole. See what we’ve learned here? You never know what you’ll find when you read all the way to the end…you might just end up with a treat. Enjoy! 🙂