Avocado-lovers have all been there—you bring avocados home only to discover a day or two later that they’ve ripened too quickly and you can’t eat them all before some of them go bad. This is when you may be asking: Can you freeze avocados and will they still taste good?

Can You Freeze Avocados?

Yes! The great news for avocado fans is that you can freeze avocados very easily without losing flavor! But you will need to prep them.

In this article we’ll cover how to freeze avocados, how to use frozen avocados and also other ways to preserve avocados that when you have some that are will soon be over ripe if you don’t use them right away.

All you need is a cutting board, knife, fork (or masher), spoon, lemon juice, plastic wrap (cling film), and a freezer-safe container. Even a plastic freezer bag will do!

However, if you have a vacuum sealed food storage container or vacuum sealer machine, that should deliver the very best results,

How Do You Freeze Avocados?

Avocados will freeze best if they are mashed or pureed. You can freeze them in slices or halves, but they won’t maintain the same quality of flavor and texture.

Before you start, make sure your avocados are ripe and in good condition (firm and free from bruises). Freezing will not save an overripe avocado.

Freezing Mashed or Pureed Avocados — The Best Method

This method is to basically make guacamole out of the avocado before freezing it. The most basic guacamole recipe is lemon or lime juice and salt. You can also freeze it with other additions if you like such as pepper, garlic powder, garlic salt or minced garlic, but this is the most basic method for how to freeze avocados mashed.

1. CUTTING: Cut avocados in half, take out the pits, and scoop the fruit into a bowl.
2. PREPPING: Add a small amount of lemon juice. Just ¼-½ teaspoon per avocado is enough, but it is an important step! The lemon juice helps prevent browning and preserve freshness.
3. MASHING: Use a fork or potato masher to mash avocados to your desired consistency.
4. BLENDING: For a silky-smooth pureed consistency, you can put your avocados and lemon juice into a blender or food processor instead of mashing them.
5. FREEZING: Scoop the mashed or pureed avocados into a freezer bag or freezer-safe container, making it as air-tight as possible. Be careful not to fill your container all the way to the top so as to leave room for the avocados to expand as they freeze.
6. FOR FROZEN TREATS
   • Freeze mashed or pureed avocado in ice cube trays. Once frozen, you can transfer to air tight storage containers of zipper bags for easy dispensing into your favorite healthy treat.
   • Or, use these ice cube trays with lids for freezing and storing.

How to Freeze Sliced or Halved Avocados

While some use this method, others find that the slices become too mushy to enjoy. The pureed or mashed avocado already has that mushy texture, so the consistency is less affected by freezing if thawed properly.

However if you have extra avos to preserve, give each method a try with just one avocado prepared for each way first, and see which way you prefer. That way in just a few hours you’ll know how best to continue to preserve the rest.

1. Start by peeling the avocado, removing the pit, and slicing the fruit to your desired thickness.
2. Sprinkle a few drops of lemon juice onto each slice or half, rotating it to disperse the liquid over all surfaces. Or, you can use a pastry brush to brush lemon juice across the surface of each slice.
3. Next, wrap your slices in plastic wrap, making sure to cover the surfaces of your slices as tightly as possible
4. Put your wrapped slices in a freezer-safe container and freeze.

How Long Can You Freeze Avocados?

This will vary from freezer to freezer, and by freshness quality of the avocado, the prepping and preserving, and the container for freezing. Given that and the delicate nature of avocados, there’s no consensus on this that we’ve found, but In general, frozen avocados are best used sooner, so consider 1-3 months.

How to Thaw Frozen Avocados?

It may be tempting to thaw your avocados at room temperature or even defrost them in the microwave. However, it’s very important that you thaw your frozen avocados in the refrigerator overnight, regardless of whether they were mashed or sliced.

When any fruit is frozen, avocados included, the water they contain turns into ice crystals. When the crystals melt, the fruit will either reabsorb the water, or the water will leak out, potentially taking some flavor compounds with it. ^[1]https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/food-nutrition/food-freezing-guide

Thawing avocados in the refrigerator slows down the melting process. This allows the avocados to reabsorb more of their water, which results in a fresher taste and higher quality than avocados thawed at room temperature.

Furthermore, thawing your avocados in the fridge slows the growth of food-borne microorganisms that thrive on food left out at room temperature.^[2]https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/food-nutrition/food-freezing-guide

How to Use Frozen Avocados – Thawed

How to Use Frozen Avocado – Mashed or Puree

Once thawed, your mashed or pureed avocados can be used as a spread, as a substitute for mayo in egg or chicken salad, or as a fat substitute in some baked goods. Of course, your thawed avocados can also become guacamole or the base for creamy dressings and sauces.

How to Use Frozen Avocado – Slices or Chunks

Your thawed avocado slices and chunks can be used in making blended or frozen treats, baking, casseroles, quiches, egg bake and baked goods.

How to Use Frozen Avocados

Substitute 6-8 cubes of frozen avocado for a medium fresh avocado in your favorite recipes for:

• Green juice
• Smoothies
• Avocado ice cream – in your favorite recipe like this chocolate banana avocado ice cream
• Salad dressing – blend frozen or refrigerator thawed avocado cubes in a blender or food processor with the rest of dressing ingredients

How to Cook With Frozen Avocados

You can use fresh or frozen avocado for these dishes. The mashed or pureed avocado works best for baked goods and can be fresh or thawed. We prefer the chopped avocados for casseroles.

• CASSEROLES: a good use for frozen avos as it adds nutrients and rich healthy fats to the casserole while masking that the avocados aren’t fresh. Place chopped frozen or slightly thawed avocado slices or chunks into:
  • your favorite casseroles
  • breakfast sausage casserole
  • vegetable egg bake
• BAKING: slightly thawed mashed or sliced avocados can be added to:
  • breads, such as zucchini bread but using frozen avocados instead of zucchini
  • cakes – especially chocolate cakes for added moisture, richness and nutrition
  • cheesecakes

Can You Freeze Avocados Whole?

Yes, conditionally. Avocados don’t freeze well with their skins or pits intact. So it’s best to use the sliced or mashed methods described above before freezing. If you do wish to freeze whole avocados, then this is the recommendation for best results:

• Peel and halve avocado
• Put the two pieces back together, both halves around the seed
• Drizzle or brush with lemon juice as described earlier
• Wrap snugly in cling wrap, before placing in a freezer proof container.

Freezing the avocado somewhat whole in this way makes it easier to wrap the avocado snugly in cling wrap without damaging or mashing the slices.

Another possible advantage of this approach is that storing avocado or guacamole with the seed in or around it is known to help preserve the avocado from darkening. It’s not yet proven when it comes to freezing, but it stands to reason that it might help. The only way to know for sure is to try your own test side by side with two similar avocados.

Avocados are expensive where we live in NC, so ours rarely make it to the too-ripe stage before we devour them. But next time we have a bunch on sale we’ll try that to see what happens. Please let us know how it goes if you do.

Can You Freeze Avocados for Baby Food?

Absolutely! Freezing pureed avocados is a great way to prep meals for your baby ahead of time. Ice cube trays work well for proportioning for baby foods too. The cube size also make it easier to blend up in the blender such as with carrots and other veggies or a little milk, including almond, coconut or oat milk.

Conclusion on Ways to Enjoy and Preserve Avocados

For avocados and most foods, fresh is always best. But for preserving avocados before they go bad, our favorite way is to cook them into casseroles and baked goods. The next best is to freeze them. When they’re frozen and thawed properly, you can enjoy their smooth texture and delicious flavor for months to come!

When the garden harvest rolls around you may also be wondering if you can freeze cucumbers and we’ve got some answers for you on that one too.