Roasted Jalapeño Guacamole

If you like spicy food, my approach to guacamole is what you need in your life. Flame roasted Jalapeños provide a moist and spicy crunch along with finely chopped white onion, while an abundance of lime juice steps in to deliver a tangy coolness. However, the texture if also front and center in my recipe. The absence of tomatoes eliminates the “slime” factor, and using a pastry cutter to mash everything allows you to preserve some buttery pieces of avocado much better than a fork would do. 

Finding ripe avocados year-round can be a challenge, but there is a trick. And, no … not the trick of storing them in a paper bag to ripen faster. Skip all of that drama and seek out a Mexican grocery store. By grocery store I don’t mean a large mainstream-looking supermarket. Instead, look for small “bodegas” (or corner stores) that look more like a convenience store. Many times they have awesomely ripe avocados in a basket near the cash register; if not they sometimes pull one out of thin air if you ask nicely. These stores tend to take their avocados super seriously, so I imagine they take whatever steps are needed to get great avocado deliveries all year long. Because of this, I’ve made this guacamole recipe even in the winter months.

Another trick I implement here is the order in which I mix things. Squeeze the heck out of all the limes to extract the juice FIRST. Then add the salt, garlic, and Jalapeños and let that mixture rest for a little while. Doing it this way creates a thoroughly seasoned base of which to mash everything into. When you add things in random concentrated patches it doesn’t mix as thoroughly. 

How to store guacamole 

Guacamole is infamously known for turning brown very quickly. To combat this, simply store your guac in the fridge with the pits kept in them. It will not complete eliminate browning, but it slows it down tremendously. The other obvious solution is to not make so much in the first place.

Ingredients

• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tsp salt, divided
• 1 jalapeño pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped white onion
• juice of 1/2 lime
• 2 Hass avocados
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• pinch of chili powder (optional)

Instructions

1.  On a gas stove, place jalapeño pepper directly on an open flame. As it blisters and turns black, rotate and repeat until entire surface is charred on all the way around.  Remove from heat, let cool for one minute. Peel off charred skin with your fingers, its okay if a little black is smeared on the pepper. Remove tips of pepper along with seeds and most of the inner ribs. I tend to keep some of the inner ribs because they can deliver some heat without having to deal with biting into a seed.
   
2. Crush garlic clove with ½ teaspoon kosher salt to a paste-like consistency. I recommend using mortar and pestle but you can also use the side of a knife blade and mince it with a knife. Finely chop prepared jalapeño, white onion and cilantro. Transfer garlic, jalapeño, onion and cilantro to a medium bowl. Add lime juice and remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and stir thoroughly. This is acts as a base to season your avocados.
3. Loosely cut avocados into cubes and thoroughly stir into prepared mixture. Using pastry blender, break down avocados until desired texture is achieved. You could use a fork if needed.

Yield: About 2 cups.