Much like a peach or plum, an avocado has a very large, singular seed or ‘pit’ in the very center of the fruit. This pit can cause difficulty when trying to cut the fruit open. Unlike the peach and plum, you do not want to consume the exterior of the avocado.

When consuming this fruit, you need to remove the pit and the peel so you can enjoy the internal green creamy flesh of the avocado. It is important to know how to cut an avocado. See How To Cut A Papaya and How To Cut A Mango

washing avocado 

Cutting Process

Step 1:Pre-cut

The very first step before cutting into this scrumptious fruit is easy to wash and clean the exterior. Cleaning the fruit is a very important step. When these fruits are grown, there is always the chance of pesticides or if you choose organically, there may be natural insect deterrents. These fruits have also been handled by many people.

They move from the tree, to transport, stocked in the produce section of a grocery store, and even examined by customers. These fruits, like all others, pass through many hands before they reach your own.

Though you do not consume the outside portion of the fruit, the knife has to pass through in inorder to reach the internal flesh. This can spread any form of dirt and bacteria into the inner portion that you do consume. So always remember to wash your produce!

Washing avocado fruits

Step 2: Knife preference

Choose your knife. This part is totally up to you! Whichever type of knife feels best for you will work just fine. The external peel and internal flesh are soft enough that just about any knife will pass through with ease. Personally,I prefer to use a paring knife. This is a small, short knife with a pointed tip and sharp blade. I prefer this knife because of its small features. You are able to roll the fruit while cutting and only needing one hand for the knife. It is perfectly sharp enough and thin enough to cut the avocado with ease

cutting avocado with paring knife

Step 3: Separation cut 

Now it is time to cut. Starting from the center of the tip of the fruit, begin your cut. You can then roll the fruit in your hand or on your countertop while cutting. You want to ensure you cut evenly around the fruit so you will have two equal halves. Remember, you want the halves to be the two sides. Not the top and bottom. You will feel the pit with your knife and you cut through the fruit. Go around this pit and not through while creating the halves.

avocado cut into half

Step 4: Separating halves

Now that you have completed your cut, you can now separate the two halves of the avocado. This may, in some cases, be very simple and separate without any issues. If it feels harder to pull, you can simply twist the two halves in opposite directions. This will completely loosen the pit from one portion of the avocado, leaving it full in only one-half of the fruit.

avocado pit removed with knife

Step 5: Removing the pit

Removing the pit can either be a very simple task or a bit of a more difficult one. This really all depends on the avocado itself. It may pop out on its own. If that is the case, then you can move onto the next step. If it does not pop out that easily, you will have to wiggle it out yourself. This can be done by placing the avocado half on the countertop then tapping the knife into the pit with one quick but a firm movement. When the knife is then secured into the pit, you can twist the knife and the pit will turn with it, releasing it from the avocado.

scooping avocado vs slicing on a wooden background

Step 6: The scoop and cut vs. the cut and scoop

There are many different methods of removing the avocado’s flesh from the outer skin. The process of doing this really all depends on how you intend to use the avocado. Will it be mashed? Cubed? Sliced?

If you intend to use the avocado in a means that presentation does not matter when removed from the skin, you can use the knife and score the avocado, making it easier to remove in smaller sections. If you are planning to use the avocado in slices and want the proper presentation of the fruit, you can use a smaller spoon and gently scoop the flesh from the skin, while keeping the entire half intact. This way when it is removed, it is easy to slice and creates a beautiful presentation for the consumer.

How do you cut your avocados? There are so many ways that you can go about cutting and preparing your avocados. What cool and innovative ways do you use to cut your avocados? Comment below!

Avocado Recipes

mashed avocado in a wooden bowl on a wooden boafdo

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Categories

Nutrition

(Per serving)
  • Energy: 137 kcal / 573 kJ
  • Fat: 13.1 g
  • Protein: 1.3 g
  • Carbs: 5.8 g

Cook Time

  • Preparation: 5 min
  • Ready in: 5 min
  • For: 3 Servings

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Wash avocado and dry with a clean towel
  2. Holding the avocado in the palm of your hand. using a sharp knife cut the avocado through the skin into half lengthwise, going around the seed.
  3. Twist both halves in opposite directions to separate both halves.
  4. Remove the pit by using the knife carefully to tap into the seed, once the knife is lodged, then twist the seed out and discard. Also because the seed is in one half of the avocado, you can cut the half into half lengthwise to expose more of the seed and then it is much easier to remove.
  5. You can peel off the skin and cut the halves into slices or cubes. Or you can leave the skin on and cut into cubes, slices then using a spoon scoop out the flesh.
Recipe author's Gravatar image

Michelle Blackwood, RN

Hi, I’m Michelle, I’m the voice, content creator and photographer behind Healthier Steps. I share vegan and gluten-free recipes because of past health issues. My goal is to help you make healthier choices and show you how healthy eating is easy and delicious.