How To Freeze Avocados

Rich, creamy, and stunning, avocados are a fruit that can’t be missed. They stand alone, with plenty of flesh and a buttery texture, while most fruits are watery and sugar-filled instead. Their rich subtle flavor makes them perfect on toast, in guacamole, and in countless other ways. Avocados truly are without equal.

The high fat makes avocado perfect for keto dieters (and anyone else wanting more fat and fewer carbs). Plus, we’re talking about healthy monounsaturated fats, so avocados are actually quite good for you.

Yet, as delicious as they are, avocados are also extremely frustrating. It often seems that they’re underripe and useless one day, then mushy and overripe the next. Or, you’ll end up with all your avocados ready at once, leaving you more fruit than you know what to do with.

You can control the ripening somewhat by storing avocados near fruits like bananas and apples to help the avocados ripen faster. Or, you can slow the process down by placing your avocados in the fridge.

Those techniques help, but they only get you so far. Sometimes, learning how to freeze avocados is the only way to keep them useable as long as you need.

Frustrating? Without a doubt. Still, freezing avocados is surprisingly easy; you simply need to cut the avocado into appropriate pieces, freeze these on a baking sheet, then transfer them into a freezer safe bag. You can remove the skin and pit before freezing the avocados or leave both in place.

Freezing avocados like this allows you to enjoy them for much longer. It also means you can buy avocados in bulk when they’re on special, without fear that some will go to waste.

How To Freeze Avocados

Despite all their differences, most types of fruit and vegetables are frozen using the same techniques. You typically prep them first, freeze them on a sheet pan, then place them in an airtight container.

Vegetables like green beans and spinach may be blanched first to improve their quality, while fruits like strawberries and apples don’t need that blanching step at all.  

The sheet pan approach here is interesting. It involves lining a baking sheet with baking paper and carefully arranging your prepped fruit or vegetables on top. Then, the pan is frozen until the produce is hard and can be transferred. Doing so stops your food from freezing into a single lump within the bag.

You could skip using a baking sheet like this if you’re in a hurry. However, it truly makes everything easier after freezing, so it’s worth considering.

Techniques For Freezing Avocados

While we’ve already outlined the general principles for freezing avocados, there are some variations to consider.

First and crucially, the avocados you freeze should always be just ripe. Avocados stop ripening once they’ve been frozen and thawed, so any underripe avocado will never reach full ripeness.

You could theoretically freeze overripe mushy avocados, but they’d simply get mushier after freezing, making them unappealing indeed. It’s best to simply make something with these avocados instead.

Freezing Whole Avocados With The Skin

The simplest possible approach is to take a whole avocado, wrap it in plastic wrap, and seal it in a freezer bag. The avocado can then be frozen just like that.

Freezing it this way means more work on the other end. First, you’ll need to thaw it completely, which takes a few hours in the fridge. Then, you’ll need to remove the skin and pit. Those processes are more difficult (and messier!) with thawed avocado compared to fresh, which can be frustrating.

There’s also the risk that the avocado freezes unevenly, giving you a less appealing texture.

Still, this approach requires less effort than any other, so it’s worth considering. The avocado flesh doesn’t get exposed to oxygen either, so it should brown less than with other techniques.

Slicing Avocados First

Another approach is to cut the avocado in half and remove the pit. Then, you can freeze the halves with their skin still on or slice the avocado into quarters or smaller and freeze them.

Avocado halves could be placed straight into freezer bags, while smaller pieces should be frozen in a baking sheet first. Keeping the skin on reduces prep time, while protecting some of the flesh from oxidation and freezer burn.

However, the skin can also make the avocado freeze and thaw unevenly. The skin will be harder to get off after thawing too.

You can also try rubbing avocado halves with a fresh lemon and wrapping them in plastic wrap before placing them in the freezer bag. Doing so further reduces the risk of oxidation.

Freezing Avocado Flesh

While you can clearly freeze avocado with the skin on, why not remove it instead? Doing so doesn’t take much extra time and ensures the avocado freezes evenly.

Plus, the avocado is now easy to use. You can even simply grab pieces from the freezer and blend them into a smoothie or add to recipes.

One approach is to cut the avocado in half and remove the pit. Then cut each half in half again and gently peel away the skin. Doing so gives you skinless avocado quarter that can be frozen on a baking sheet and then added to freezer bags.

Quartering the avocado like this means you can easily grab the exact amount needed for a recipe. So, if your keto avocado smoothie calls for a whole avocado – grab four quarters. If it calls for half an avocado instead – grab two quarters.

Other options include freezing avocado halves, avocado slices, or cutting the avocado into chunks. To decide, think about how you’ll use the avocados afterward.

Mashed Avocado

Mashed avocado is a great alternative to avocado pieces. This simply involves mashing the avocado together with a little lemon juice. The lemon juice prevents browning and has minimal flavor impact.

This is perfect for any recipe where the avocado is going to get mashed or blended anyway.

An easy way to do this is to spoon the mashed avocado into a freezer bag and press it into a single even layer. Ensure all the air is removed before sealing the bag and placing it in the freezer. This approach minimizes air exposure, giving you the best quality frozen avocado.

You’ll need to thaw and use the whole bag at once, so think carefully about the amount to include. If you don’t use much avocado at a time, try using small freezer bags and freeze just a quarter of an avocado at a time.

You can also freeze avocado puree in an ice cube tray or silicone mold, to help with portion sizing. The silicone mold approach is the most powerful, as the mold flexes and makes it easier to get the avocado cubes out.

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Tips For Freezing Avocados

Minimize Air Exposure

Oxygen is always a challenge when you’re freezing food. This is doubly true for avocado, as even a little air exposure quickly leads to browning.

A crucial aspect is getting as much air as possible from freezer bags before sealing them. Also, if you’re freezing avocado halves, you might cover them with plastic wrap before placing them in a freezer bag.

This issue is relevant when you’re thawing your avocados as well. Try to minimize air exposure wherever possible until you’re ready to use the avocados.

Add Citrus Juice

If your avocado has been cut at all, spritzing the pieces with lemon juice helps reduce browning. Don’t worry, the lemon flavor won’t be noticeable in most recipes (including smoothies).

Using juice is crucial if you’re slicing the avocado or chopping it into large pieces. Those approaches produce a decent amount of air exposure, so the pieces will quickly brown.

Label Your Bags

Labeling your bags has two big purposes.

First, it means you know when the avocado was frozen, so you can use it before the quality decreases. If you freeze avocado regularly, this also helps you know which bag has been in there the longest.

Second, labeling tells you what’s in the bag, as it can get difficult to tell after freezing. You might also write down the amount of avocado and how it was prepped (like 1 avocado, chopped or 3 avocados, quartered). This way you know which bag to grab for which recipe.

Think About How You’ll Use The Avocado Later

The best way to freeze avocado is the way that matches your needs. Here are some questions to consider:

• Do you want to use the avocado from frozen? If so, it should be peeled and chopped to the right size before freezing.
• Do you need precise amounts of avocado for recipes? If so, you’ll need to freeze in consistent sizes, like quarters or ensure bags are portioned appropriately.
• Does browning matter? Mashing avocado with lemon juice reduces browning considerably. You could also consider freezing a whole avocado or freezing larger pieces, so you can cut off any browning.
• Do you want it to taste like fresh avocado? If so, forget it. Freezing will always change the flavor and texture of your avocado.

Effects Of Freezing Avocados

Freezing forever changes avocados. They lose some of their creamy texture and become softer and mushier instead. This means they don’t hold their shape as well either. Their flavor doesn’t change dramatically, but thawed avocados are sometimes described as duller than fresh ones.

You’ll see color changes as well. Even if you use lemon juice and are very careful, thawed avocados tend to have some brown spots and may appear a little gray.

These changes mean thawed avocados don’t work in dishes that rely on their appearance or texture. They’re certainly no good sliced on toast and aren’t great in guacamole either. 

Ways To Use Frozen Avocados

Frozen avocados are best in cases where the flavor and texture aren’t the star of the dish. Here are some examples:

• Smoothies. Smoothies are one of the ultimate ways to use frozen avocados, as you won’t notice the texture difference at all. You’ll often even be able to blend the avocados from frozen, no thawing required.
• In soups and sauces. If pureed, thawed avocado adds a delicious depth of flavor and some creaminess to soups and sauces. The effect won’t be quite the same as using avocado, but you still end up with a delicious meal.
• Add to baking. Avocado is sometimes used in baking. This is a great approach, as the softness of the avocado works in your favor. Here, it’s best to stick to small pieces of avocado, so the differences between thawed and fresh avocados aren’t too noticeable.
• Some salads. You can sometimes use thawed avocado in salads and potato salads. This works best if the avocado pieces are small and there are many other flavors and textures at play.
• Use in chocolate mousse. Avocado is a surprising yet popular ingredient in chocolate mousse. It adds a delicious creamy texture, while being vegan-friendly and containing plenty of healthy fats. This approach works just as well with thawed avocado as it does with fresh.

Finally, some people use frozen avocado in guacamole. The texture of guacamole and other ingredients make the thawed texture less noticeable than it would normally be. Even so, the guacamole won’t be as good as the version made with fresh avocado.

How To Thaw Raw Avocado

It’s always best to thaw avocados in the fridge. The low temperature ensures they thaw slowly, giving you the best possible texture.

If you need the avocados faster than this, try thawing them on the counter instead.

Before doing so, check whether you even need to thaw the avocados. Some recipes work well with frozen avocados instead – making everything much simpler.

Other Ways To Preserve Avocados

Keep Them In The Fridge

Keeping avocados in the fridge slows the ripening process, giving you a few more days than you’d get otherwise. This is especially important if you’ve eaten half of the avocado and want to save the rest for later.

Dehydrate Them

Your other preservation option is to dehydrate avocados, but this isn’t as effective as it sounds. Notably, the high fat content means that you end up with a sticky and leathery avocado, rather than something that’s fully dry.

Because the fat can easily become rancid, this avocado won’t last as long as regular dehydrated food. It might be good for a few months if kept in the fridge and perhaps just a week or two at room temperature.

While this approach works, the flavor and texture aren’t that appealing. It’s best to either use or freeze your avocados instead.