Learn how to make this easy and delicious 4-Ingredient Guacamole Recipe in 5 minutes from a dietitian! It's so much better than store-bought!
Have you ever had a recipe you know would win an award? Well, yeah, that's this recipe for me. I'm not exaggerating when I say that EVERYONE raves about it!
The first time I made guacamole I used all of the 'typical' ingredients. Needless to say, it was time-consuming. And, while diced onion, tomatoes, cilantro, or jalapeno can be added, it's not necessary.
It turns out that all you really need to make incredible guacamole are 4 basic ingredients. Why complicate things when you don't have to? 🤩
What makes this simple guacamole recipe even better is that it's super easy to serve. Set this guacamole out with your favorite tortilla chips or as a side with cheese quesadillas and it will be gone in no time!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick and Easy Recipe If you use a garlic press and food masher, it can be made in 5 minutes!
- Fresh Ingredients The best guacamole recipe is made with simple ingredients like creamy avocados, fresh lime, and fresh garlic, plus salt. If you like red onion, tomato, cilantro, or jalapeño in your guacamole, you can add some, but it's not necessary. I never add these, and my recipe always gets rave reviews. 🤩
- Smooth or Chunky Guacamole Can be made smooth or chunky. It all depends on how well you mash it.
- Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Actually, this recipe is free of the top 8 food allergies.
- Perfect Side Dish Guacamole is the perfect dip to serve as a side dish on busy weeknights, on game day, or at picnics, barbecues, and parties! 🥳
Dietitian Mom Tips
Tip 1 Guacamole is the best dip for chips, especially when kids need extra calories or fiber. This is a milder guacamole recipe with a consistent texture. It doesn't contain any jalapenos or raw onions which makes it more friendly towards kids, who usually have simpler pallets.
Tip 2 Use a food masher and garlic press to make this guacamole quickly and without chunks of garlic. I use both of these kitchen tools so much that I've included them in my Kitchen Gift Ideas for Busy Families post. Imagine getting a food masher as a stocking stuffer, lol. Genius!
Ingredient Notes
- Avocados Using ripe Hass avocados is key to making delicious guacamole. Avocados are a good source of monounsaturated fats (also known as 'healthy fats'), fiber, and various vitamins and minerals.
- Lime juice Use fresh lime juice.
- Garlic Use fresh garlic, not jarred. Garlic is considered a vegetable, offers a variety of vitamins and minerals, and has many positive health claims. Fresh garlic can be found in the produce section of most grocery stores.
How To Make This Easy Guacamole Recipe
Here is a summary of how to make this simple 4-ingredient guacamole recipe. For a complete list of ingredients and instructions, scroll down to the recipe card.
- Add all ingredients to a medium bowl.
- Use the back side of a fork or a meat and potato masher to mash all ingredients together. Serve and enjoy! It will be gone before you know it!
How to Serve Guacamole
Serving guacamole is simple. The most common way to serve it is with chips, either as chips and 'guac' or alongside pico de gallo or fruit salsa. You can also use guacamole as a spread on burgers and wraps, or with your favorite Mexican meals like tacos, burrito bowls, or bean and rice casserole.
Helpful Tips
- For best results, use a garlic press to mince the garlic cloves. Having to mince garlic into the tiniest pieces by hand using a knife can add another five minutes of time.
- Use a citrus juicer to get the most juice out of your lime.
- Serve homemade guacamole at room temperature.
- Guacamole is best eaten the same day you make it.
- Use avocados that are ripe (tender to the touch but not mushy).
- If you are buying avocados in advance, buy unripe avocados (hard to the touch) and let them sit out on a counter to ripen. Place them in a paper bag first to speed up the ripening process. Check on avocados daily to be sure they don't get overripe.
- Start by using ½ teaspoon of salt. After mixing in ½ teaspoon of salt, taste it. If you love it, great! If it could use more salt, add more. You really shouldn't need to add more than a total of ¾ teaspoon of salt.
- To freeze guacamole, simply place it in a freezer-safe resealable bag. Get as much air out of the bag as you can and seal it. Use it within one month.
Questions You May Have
Store leftover guacamole in a small airtight container. The less space there is between the top of the guacamole and the lid, the better.
As for same day eating, you can make guacamole an hour before it will be served with no problem. If the guacamole starts to brown on top, I like to use the top of a butter knife to scrape off a very thin layer from the surface of the guacamole to get rid of the brown color.
I suggest using fresh lime, but you can use lemon if it's what you have. I've used lemon in a pinch. It's definitely better than nothing, but the lemon can be a little overpowering.
I've also used fresh squeezed grapefruit juice. It changes the flavor and adds a little sweetness, but it still worked! Still, I suggest using fresh lime if you can!
There are a few ways to add 'chunks' to guacamole. One way is to use the back side of a fork instead of a food masher to break the avocado pieces into chunks. Stir the guacamole periodically as you press the avocado. Do this until your desired consistency is reached.
Another way is to stir in pico de gallo or chunks of tomato and onion into the guacamole.
I use a paring knife to slice the avocado lengthwise. Then, I twist each side to separate the halves. I use a knife to carefully remove the pit, then a spoon to scoop out the flesh from the skin.
Some people say that you can press on the backside of each avocado half once it's cut and the pit will come right out, but it's never worked for me.
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Does your family love this guacamole as much as mine? If so, please leave a comment and give this recipe a 5-star rating to let me know!
And don't forget to snap a pic of this incredible guacamole and tag @carrots.and.cookies on Instagram so I can see it. Enjoy!
4 Ingredient Guacamole Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Citrus juicer optional
- 1 Food masher optional
- 1 medium bowl
Ingredients
- 3 avocados
- 2 cloves of garlic finely minced
- 1 lime Juiced about 2 tablespoons
- ½ teaspoon salt may need up to an additional quarter teaspoon of salt, to taste
Instructions
- Place flesh of three avocados in a medium-sized mixing bowl
- Add minced garlic and lime juice to the avocados
- Mash avocado, garlic, and lime well with a fork or food masher for about one minute (this will take longer if using a fork), until it reaches your desired consistency
- Add ½-¾ teaspoon of salt and mix well. Taste it. *If you think it needs more salt, add up to an additional ¼ teaspoon more salt, to taste.
- Mix well. It's ready to serve!
Notes
- If you have a juicy lime, one lime will be enough.
- To save even more time, just squeeze (by hand) the lime juice directly into the mixture without measuring. If the lime is on the dry side, add juice from a second lime.
- A garlic mincer works great to get garlic to very small pieces (I use one from Pampered Chef).
- A meat or potato masher will make mashing the avocado so much easier. If you don't have a food masher, the back of a fork will do!
- This can be made in advance to freeze and enjoy later.
- Start by using ½ teaspoon of salt. After mixing in ½ teaspoon of salt, taste it. If you love it, great! If it could use more salt, add more. You really shouldn't need to add more than a total of ¾ teaspoon of salt.
L Reedy says
Delicious! Every kid at the party raved.
Kristi says
I'm so glad! Thank you for letting me know!
Britt K says
I LOVE making homemade guacamole. There's something about it that just can't be beat - and the fact that it's so simple is a total win! Not to mention all the health benefits of eating avocado.
Melanie Anders says
I usually make my guac just like this but always mash with a fork. I love the idea of using the Pampered Chef tool to mash. Also, I never knew you could freeze guac. Thanks for the tips.