Fats · Ao

Avocado

15% fat · monounsaturated

Per 100 g

160 kcal Energy

2 g Protein

8.5 g Carbs

14.7 g Fat

6.7 g Fibre

Gluten-free Year round

Let’s cook with it → Invent something with it

What it is for

They carry aroma. Most smell molecules dissolve in fat rather than water, which is why you bloom spices in oil. They also conduct heat, shorten gluten and soften texture.

Where it catches you out

Every fat has its own smoke point. Butter burns at 150 °C, extra virgin olive oil holds to 190 — choose the fat for the job, not the bottle.

The knack

A cut surface browns within ten minutes, and the cause is polyphenol oxidase meeting oxygen. Lemon juice slows the enzyme by dropping the pH; film pressed onto the surface removes the oxygen altogether.

Storage and health

How to keep it, and who it suits.

Keeping it

Ripens at room temperature while firm, then keeps three days in the fridge. Lemon on a cut face slows the browning.

Gluten-free

A single-ingredient fresh fruit, with no gluten in it.

Glycaemic index

This ingredient carries no meaningful carbohydrate, so it has no glycaemic index. On its own it will not move blood sugar; what you eat alongside it decides that.