Spreading avocado on toast makes for a deliciously healthy breakfast choice, though the wait for avocados to soften can be a bit of a pain. If an avocado resists the knife, indicating it's not yet ripe, you could be looking at up to a week before it's ready to enjoy.
Facing such a delay is hardly anyone's preference. So Martie Duncan, a seasoned chef, has come forward with a neat trick to speed up avocado ripening using nothing more than a paper bag and some fruit.
As advised by Martie: "Since avocados release a natural ethylene gas, storing them in a paper bag will promote the ripening process." She continues, explaining: "Adding whole apples or kiwi to the bag will actually speed up the process. The more apples or kiwi you add to the bag, the faster the avocado will ripen."
Ethylene gas, released by certain fruits, serves to hasten their own ripening and enhance their taste. When these ethylene emitters are together, they can swiftly bring an avocado to that perfectly soft, edible state, reports the Express.
How to ripen avocados with a paper bag
Simply keep your avocados in a paper bag alongside an apple, banana, or kiwi fruit. Once sealed, place the bag in a kitchen cupboard or drawer, steering clear of any light sources or heat-emitting appliances which could interfere with the avocados’ ripening.
The result should be sumptuously tender avocados within just 24 hours-ready for that breakfast toast! Exposing unripe avocados to heat can cause the fruit's outer layer to soften and even start to spoil, while the inside remains hard.
This is why it's not advisable to place unripe avocados in the oven to ripen them. Despite being a common online hack, this method doesn't work and results in rubbery, unpleasant-tasting fruit.
When it comes to ripening avocados, using a paper bag is recommended. The bag traps the ethylene gas emitted by the fruits but also allows for adequate ventilation, preventing moisture build-up.
A plastic bag, on the other hand, restricts airflow, leading to excessive moisture that can cause the fruit to become mouldy or rotten instead of ripening.
A ripe avocado can be identified by its dark green, bumpy skin, whereas an unripe one will have smooth, bright green skin. If you employ the paper bag method, your avocado should be ripe and ready to eat within a day.
