The Clever Flour Trick That Ripens Avocados Faster Than You Can Say Guacamole

Avocados are pesky little fruits that need to be under constant surveillance, since there's a short window between when it's completely unripe and when you cut it open (be sure to stay safe when removing the pit) and find it's so overripe you don't want it anywhere near your toast. Whether you've spent months waiting for the tree to grow fruit or you didn't pay attention on your latest trip to the produce aisle, we've all come across a time when we needed an avocado to ripen faster than it actually did. Luckily, all it takes is a paper bag and a handful of flour to have a ripe avocado.

To ripen avocados faster than you can say "guacamole," place the unripe fruit in a brown paper bag filled with a cup or two of flour. The paper bag trick is a tale as old as time, a long-known method of trapping the ethylene gas that avocados emit and using it to speed up ripening, but adding flour means that any excess moisture is going to be wicked up before it has a chance to negatively interfere with the ripening process. Plus, the flour acts as a cocoon, holding the ethylene gas closer to the avocado and forcing it to ripen even faster. If you want to triple your odds, try the banana trick for quick avocado ripening, which will increase the amount of ethylene gas in the bag.

Avocados fall into the climacteric category of fruits, which means they ripen after they've been harvested, not while they grow on the tree. According to research from the University of Maryland, the ripening process of climacteric fruits begins when an "initial concentration of ethylene causes an increase in production of ethylene." If trapped in a paper bag, the ethylene gases have nowhere to go and essentially force the avocado to ripen faster, though too much interaction with the gas could cause the fruit to brown. This method only works with a tightly sealed paper bag, since plastic bags won't do much to help with moisture, even doused in flour.

While using the flour method, make sure that you check on your avocado daily. With the help of the paper bag and flour, the avocado could be ripe in as little as one to two days, though the timetable may vary. The best way to tell when the avocado is properly ripe is to gently squeeze it in your palm, feeling how squishy or hard it is. A ripe avocado should move when you apply pressure, but not entirely concave. If it's still rock hard, put it back in the flour bag; if it's soft to the touch, your avocado is ready for this top-notch fresh mango guacamole recipe.