For the longest time, people have curiously asked me where I get my avocados from in Hong Kong. I used to post a lot of photos of avocado-related meals, and I still regularly consume them.
People ask me this because the problem with avocados in Hong Kong is two-fold:
- They are often rock hard when you buy them
- One day, they suddenly turn rotten
So where do I buy my avocados? There’s no magically superior supermarket I’ve come across that sells the perfectly ripe avocados that you might find outside Hong Kong. I simply buy the cheapest ones from the Wellcome supermarket near my home.
How to treat your avocados
Avocados are often rock hard when you buy them in Hong Kong, which means they’re still unripe and not ready to eat. If you leave them on the counter, they will ripen in a few days. Check on them daily, and once one feels slightly soft on the outside (give it a gentle squeeze), it’s ripe, ready and perfect to eat.
But if you’re not in the mood to eat it right at that moment, put it straight in the fridge. If you leave it out any longer, it will most definitely rot after another day or two. Placing soft, ripe avocados in the fridge will preserve them for up to a week.
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Dos & don’ts
- Do place avocados next to bananas if you want them to ripen faster.
- Do be patient. On average, it takes about three days for an avocado to ripen on the counter, but it could take as long as seven days to do so.
- Don’t place them in the fridge before they are ripe (soft) – they won’t ripen.
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