How to Pick the Perfect Hass Avocado

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder and, when it comes to avocados, there is not much to initially behold. Their skin is wrinkly with a dull, lifeless color. How boring!!

It’s not until you actually cut the fruit open that you’re introduced to a world of amazingness. Inside that boring exterior houses the delicious, versatile, and vibrant flesh of hass avocados. Unfortunately, choosing the wrong avocado will cause you to miss all of that.

Don’t worry, we’ve prepared this comprehensive guide to ensure you are choosing the right avocado to fulfill your needs.

What to look at when choosing a ripe avocado

First things first, you need to know that the best indication of ripeness is NOT color, it’s actually pressure. Many think that green colored avocados are unripe while black colored avocados are guac ready. Pressure, or softness, is a more reliable indicator as there are certain times of year when unripe fruit is black in color – it just depends on the avocado season.

Avocados are broken into five stages of ripeness, with each stage distinguished by pressure.

Stage 1

Stage 1 is known as the hard stage. In this stage, the avocado is hard and barley yields under any pressure. They are usually green in color, but some fruit may be a darker shade.

It will typically take four or more days for the avocado to move from stage 1 to the ripe stage.

Stage 2

Stage 2 is the pre-conditioned stage for hass avocados. There is approximately three or more days until ripeness and the avocado will yield to 15-25 lbs of pressure.

Stage 3

At stage 3, you’ll finally start to see a slight yield to fruit. It should be ready to eat in two days if stored at room temperature.

Stage 3 is commonly known as the breaking or pre-ripened stage.

Stage 4

At stage 4, we are finally able to start eating the fruit! While not yet fully ripe, the avocado in this stage will yield to gentle pressure. If you have slicing and dicing avocado needs, you’ll want to choose an avocado in this stage.

Stage 5

We’re finally at the ripe stage, AKA stage 5. In this stage, avocados easily yield under gentle pressure. This is the perfect stage for guacamole, but avocados are good for all uses during this stage.

The lifespan of this stage is short. Avocados will remain in stage five approximately 2-3 days when held at room temperature.

Ripening at JVI

At John Vena Inc., our ripening department focuses on avocados (plus mangoes and plantains)! We often ripen to the exact pounds of pressure, rather than general stages, according to our clients’ needs and anticipated supply chain.