This simple 4-ingredient guacamole recipe is ready in just 5 minutes and makes the perfect dip, snack, appetizer, or topping for your favorite Mexican recipes!
Picky eaters, unite! This easy guacamole recipe is great for those of us who aren't a big fan of tomatoes, onions, and/or cilantro because it calls for the most basic ingredients. It also serves as the perfect base recipe for you to create your perfect guac with the add-ins of your choice.
It's the perfect snack, a great appetizer or healthy dip to enjoy on Cinco de Mayo or Taco Tuesday alongside other dips like this mango corn salsa, some tortilla chips and a margarita, or it can easily be doubled to serve a crowd! It's also great dolloped on top of elotes or tacos.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- You only need 4 main ingredients and 5 minutes to make this homemade guacamole, making it a great recipe for beginners.
- It's customizable! The best thing about this recipe is that it's a base recipe that can be jazzed up with the addition of your other favorite add-ins, like tomatoes or onions.
- It can easily be doubled or tripled to feed a large group, making it a great choice for parties, football season or any time you're serving guests.
- It's naturally vegan, gluten-free, low-carb, and keto! This healthy snack packs a ton of essential nutrients, like vitamin B6, healthy fats, and potassium.
- This delicious guacamole recipe is kid-friendly since it doesn't have any tomatoes, spicy jalapeño or large chunks of onion.
Equipment
You don't need anything special, just the most basic kitchen tools that you definitely already have:
- Cutting Board
- Mixing Bowl
- Chef's Knife: to cut, pit and cube the avocados
- Measuring Spoons
- Fork or Potato Masher
How to pick perfectly ripe avocados
First things first, to make perfect guac you need perfectly ripe and creamy avocados. The key to making the best guacamole recipe is finding avocados that are not hard and underripe, but also not too soft and overripe. Here are my tips on how to find the perfect avocados:
- Color: Look for avocados that have a rich, dark purplish-green color. Unripe avocados will be green, while black avocados are overripe. The flesh of the avocados should be a creamy, pale green to a light yellowish color.
- Firmness: Hold the avocado in the palm of your hand and gently squeeze. If it yields, it's ripe! If it doesn't give at all, it needs a few more days to ripen. If it's very soft, it's overripe.
- Stem: Flick off the stem. If it does not come off easily, the avocado is not ripe. If it comes off easily and the flesh underneath is brown, the avocado is overripe but if it comes off easily and the flesh is green, the avocado is ripe!
- Bruising: If there are large bruises, breaks in the skin or areas that are super soft, it is likely overripe.
- Shape: this has nothing to do with ripeness, but choosing an avocado that is more oblong/oval in shape, as opposed to circular, will have a smaller pit, giving you more bang for buck!
Timing is also incredibly important! If you're making this simple guacamole recipe today or within 1-2 days, follow the tips above. If you're planning to make the guacamole in 3-5 days, choose avocados that are green and hard with no give when pressure is applied.
Ingredients
- Avocados: because they are the main ingredient, you want to make sure you're using the best avocados. Make sure they're perfectly ripe, as it will give you the most flavorful guac. Read below for tips on how to pick the perfect avocado. I recommend using ripe Hass avocados because of their creamy flesh, rich flavor, and protective skin.
- Fresh lime juice: freshly squeezed lime juice for the best flavor! It will also help prevent your guac from browning as quickly.
- Garlic: Since we're using so few ingredients, I love to use freshly minced garlic cloves. Granulated garlic powder would work in a pinch!
- Salt: Just a hint of salt helps bring all the flavors together. I prefer to use flaky sea salt, but iodized or kosher salt works perfectly too.
See recipe card below for a complete list of ingredients and measurements.
Variations & Substitutions
Whether you make this simple recipe as a game-day snack, a delicious delicious dip, a healthy appetizer or as a condiment to dollop on your tacos, there are countless ways to make it yours.
- Use garlic powder as an easy, pantry-ready substitute for fresh garlic. You could also use garlic salt, just taste before adding any more salt!
- To make this low FODMAP friendly, omit the garlic completely.
- Don't like the taste of limes? Use lemon juice instead! You'll still get that citrusy kick and slow the browning.
- Make an even more kid-friendly version by reducing or omitting the lime juice and garlic.
Optional Add-Ins
This is a great base guacamole recipe so you can easily additional ingredients to it and make it perfect for you. Simply chop them up and add them in with the rest of the original ingredients. Here are my favorite add-ins:
- Fresh herbs: I like to add cilantro, but I know it can be a hit or miss! Parsley is great too. Aside from adding flavor, they also spruce up the presentation a bit.
- Red onion or white onion: make this guac a bit more authentic with the addition of onions. This will add both crunch and a nice pungent flavor!
- Tomatoes or salsa: for more color, juicy texture, and a garden-fresh taste. Feel free to add some chopped plum tomatoes, jarred salsa, or fresh salsa (pico de gallo).
- Jalapeño or serrano peppers: for a spicy kick!
- Other veggies: like bell peppers or corn.
- Spices: for some depth, add a dash of ground cumin, paprika or chili powder.
This recipe has not been tested with any other substitutions or variations than the ones listed above. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
Instructions
Step 1: Slice the avocados in half lengthwise (from top to bottom). Insert the knife until you feel the pit, then rotate the avocado around until it is cut into two halves. Rotate the two halves to separate the avocado, and pull apart.
Step 2: Insert your knife into the avocado pit and carefully lift it out and remove it from your knife. Either scoop the flesh of the avocado out with a spoon or score the inside of the avocado by cutting lines vertically and horizontally in order to create smaller cubes of avocados (as shown here).
Step 3: Add the avocado, lime juice garlic, and salt to mixing bowl.
Step 4: Whether you prefer chunky or creamy guacamole, mash to your desired consistency (I like mine slightly chunky) with the back of a fork or a potato masher.
Taste and adjust your seasonings as desired. Serve and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
There are so many different ways you can serve this homemade guacamole without tomatoes. It doesn't matter how you serve this 4 ingredient guacamole because it just makes everything better but here are my favorite ways:
- By itself: as a delicious avocado dip paired with your favorite tortilla chips, other dips, or raw veggies like celery, carrots, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes or cucumbers for a healthy snack.
- As a condiment: dollop this on top of your favorite Mexican recipe like tacos or quesadillas, burgers, nachos, burrito bowls or buddha bowls, chili or a fresh bean salad to take them all to next level! You could also spread it on top of these crispy smashed potatoes.
- Paired with margaritas and mexican elote!
- Use leftovers to make a flavorful avocado toast.
Expert Tips
This easy 4-ingredient guacamole recipe is super simple to make, but even easier with these pro tips:
- Serve the guacamole at room temperature. It not only makes it easier to scoop, but ripe avocados have better flavor at room temp.
- Add all of the ingredients at the same time. Mashing the avocado first then adding the remaining ingredients and mixing again (aka overmixing!) will change the texture of your guac and may become too smooth for your liking! Your guac should have some chunks/texture.
- Use a citrus squeezer to get the most out of your limes. Sometimes they're hard to squeeze by hand!
- If you're customizing this guac with add-ins, store the base recipe as is and only mix in the add-ins when you're ready to serve. This will ensure your guacamole doesn't get watery.
How to Store
Make Ahead: Make this 4 ingredient guacamole recipe 1 day in advance. Follow storage tips below for best results.
Refrigerator: Evenly spread the guacamole in an airtight container, smoothing it out with a spoon or rubber spatula to ensure there are no air bubbles. Next, cover the top of the guacamole with a thin layer of either lime juice, lemon juice or water. This will create a barrier between the air and the guac to help slowing the oxidation process (aka help to stop the guac from browning as quickly). Then, cover with a piece of plastic wrap, pressing the wrap flush against the surface of the guacamole. Seal the container and refrigerate for up to 2-3 days. When ready to eat, remove the liquid and give it a good stir.
Freezer: Unlike guacamole recipes with water-filled ingredients (think tomatoes, onions, and jalapenos) this basic guacamole recipe with simple ingredients freezes perfectly. Transfer leftover guacamole into an airtight container, like freezer-friendly bags, and remove as much air as possible. Seal and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
FAQs
Yes! It's loaded with vitamins, healthy fats, and potassium, among countless other essential nutrients.
Spread the guac out evenly in an airtight container, add a thin layer of lime juice then cover with plastic wrap that is directly pressed against the surface of the guac. This will add 2 layers of protection from the air and slowing the browning process.
Yes! Though it looks unappetizing, the brown color or brown spots you'll see are a result of oxidation (a non-toxic chemical reaction). Follow the storage tips above to help slow the oxidation process as much as possible.
I recommend adding ¼ teaspoon of salt at a time and adding more as needed. However, if you've added too much you can add more avocado or more lime juice to help balance it back out.
You can, but it will taste a little bit different! Be sure to fully thaw the avocado first then follow the rest of the recipe as is.
If you need them right away, wrap them in aluminum foil and put in oven at 200ºF for 10-20 minutes, or until soft. This is one of the best ways to speed up the ripening process. If you don't need them for a few days, store them in a bowl or in a brown paper bag with bananas. The ethylene gas will help ripen the avocados quickly!
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📖 Recipe
Easy 4-Ingredient Guacamole Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 ripe Hass avocados peeled, pitted and cubed
- 4-6 tablespoons lime juice (~2 limes) freshly squeezed
- 2 (7 g) garlic cloves minced
- ½ teaspoon sea salt or to taste
Instructions
- Slice the avocados in half lengthwise (from top to bottom). Insert your knife into the pit and carefully remove it. Either scoop the flesh of the avocado out with a spoon or score the inside of the avocado by cutting lines vertically and horizontally in order to create smaller cubes of avocados.4 ripe Hass avocados
- Add the avocado, garlic, lime juice, and sea salt to a mixing bowl. Using a potato masher or the back of a fork, mash the avocados and mix until combined and until it reaches to your desired level of chunkiness.4-6 tablespoons lime juice (~2 limes), 2 garlic cloves, ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Taste to adjust seasoning, if desired.
- Serve immediately alongside tortilla chips or dollop on top of tacos and more. Enjoy!
Loretta Ingersoll says
So good
Lauren Casolaro says
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it Loretta!
Lauren says
Love that theres no tomatoes in this homemade guac!