To ripen avocados faster, here are the most effective methods:
- Use a paper bag with ethylene-producing fruit: Place the avocado in a brown paper bag along with a banana, apple, or kiwi. These fruits emit ethylene gas, a natural plant hormone that speeds up ripening. Folding the bag traps the gas inside, accelerating the process. This typically ripens the avocado within 1 to 4 days
- Keep avocados at room temperature in a warm spot: Setting avocados on a sunny windowsill or a warm area in your kitchen helps ripen them naturally within 2 to 5 days. The warmth stimulates ethylene production and softening
- Paper bag alone: If you don’t have other fruits, placing an avocado in a paper bag by itself can still trap its own ethylene gas and speed ripening, though not as quickly as with added fruit
- Oven method (softens, not true ripening): Wrap the avocado in foil and bake at 200°F (about 90°C) for 10 to 20 minutes, checking softness every 10 minutes. This softens the avocado for immediate use but doesn’t develop the full flavor or creamy texture of naturally ripened fruit
- Microwave method (softens quickly): Cut the avocado in half, wrap each half tightly in plastic wrap, and microwave in 30-second bursts until soft. Then cool in ice water to stop cooking. Like the oven method, this softens but doesn’t truly ripen the avocado
Less effective or unnecessary methods include covering the avocado with flour or rice in a bag, which do not speed ripening significantly
. In summary, the best natural way to ripen avocados faster is to use a paper bag with a banana or apple and keep it at room temperature in a warm place, checking daily for ripeness. For immediate softening, the oven or microwave methods can be used but sacrifice flavor and texture
