Ok... I don't use exact measurements in this recipe.... reason being - limes and avocadoes can vary dramatically and I taste as I go until I get everything right. Also, this recipe is for a party-size large batch, not for weeknight dining for 2... so reduce your recipe as needed.
Ingredients:
-6-8 large avocados, not "soft" but not rock-hard. You want them to have a little yield when you lightly press.
-A buttload of limes. Why a "buttload"? Well - you never know if the limes you buy at the store are going to be loaded with juice, or be dry and pithy. Get a bunch. Whatever you have left over, make margaritas. Conversely, I like Nellie & Joe Key Lime juice almost as much as I like fresh lime juice, and you know exactly what you're getting.
-Minced garlic (I use a lot. You may not like as much.)
-Serrano chiles (spicier and easier to dice small, compared to jalapenos)
-1 white onion, diced small
-Roma tomatoes, diced
-iceberg lettuce
-salt
-ground cumin
-cayenne pepper
-However you want to remove the avocados from their shell, do so. Put 75% of the avocados in a big bowl. Leave the rest out for later. Use a potato masher to ... mash 'em up.
-squeeze the bejeezus out of the limes. All of them. Like I said... make margaritas with any juice you don't use.
-Dice the onion. I usually use about half a med/large white onion or one medium onion. To me the onion is about texture as much as it is flavor, so don't cut it TOO small between 1/8 and 1/4 inch.
-Dice the serranos small. I usually leave the seeds in about half of them. I find 2-3 peppers works well for this size recipe, but you can up the ante if you're feeling bold: leave all the seeds in or put in more peppers. But since I generally make this for parties with varied palates, I don't make it terribly spicy.
-I am not ashamed to admit I buy jars of minced garlic. It's just as good and a LOT less trouble than buying whole garlic bulbs, breaking them up and peeling the paper off them, then mincing it up fine. Aslo, it's a more mellow garlic flavor than the nose-hair curling punch of freshly minced. Anyway, add 2-3 tablespoons of minced garlic. 2 is enough, but when is "enough" garlic ever enough?
-Add the rest of the above vegetable matter except the lime juice. Fold in the chunks until uniformly spread about.
Ok... now this next part is where you're going to have to use your taste buds.
Start with about 1/3 cup lime juice. You can always add more, but you can't take it out.
2 heavy pinches of salt. I use kosher. If you're using table salt, it won't take that much.
1 teaspoon of cumin
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne.
Fold again, distributing the seasonings. Taste. I like a lot of lime flavor in my guac, but you may not. If you can't taste any salt, add another small pinch and mix in until you can just barely taste the salt (it will intensify as you let it chill.) Again, you can always add salt later if needed, plus the chips will be salty. Don't overdo it.
Add more cumin if you like the smoky flavor (and if you're a member here, we know you love smoky flavor.)
Now, take the rest of the avocados that you didn't put in the bowl at the start, and dice them up roughly. Fold them in. Now you have a nice guac paste, with sizable avocado chunks.
Be careful with the cayenne. It is easy to cross the line. Add more if you don't detect any heat at all. Like the salt, the heat will creep as the flavors meld in the fridge.
Store in the fridge for a couple hours before serving. Or even overnight. Get some saran wrap and lay it directly over the entire surface of the guac and press it down. Then put a lid on the bowl, or another layer of saran wrap over the top of the bowl. This will prevent exposure to air and browning of the guac. If it browns on top, no problem. Just stir it up before serving.
Most people like tomatoes with their guac, but I find if you add them in, it waters down the guac and makes the tomatoes mushy. Here's my solution: Make a guac salad like you get with your fajitas at the Tex/Mex restaurant. Chop some iceburg lettuce, dice the tomatoes (I like romas because they tend to have more flavor than regular tomatoes, and don't have as much seed/goo in the middle.) I spoon out the seed/gel goo and then dice what's left. Serve the lettuce and tomatoes on the side for people to add as they like, upon serving.
Serve with salty chips. Tortilla chips are traditional, but personally, I like good, salty Ruffles with my guac.
A word about tequila: I recommend using Patron silver or better (or comparable) tequlia. I wouldn't use Anejo, because the subtleties of a good anejo tequila are lost in a margarita. If you can find it, Cabrito is an excellent tequila that costs much less than Patron for similar quality. Don't get "gold" tequila, as this is usually what's known as "mixto" and can have additives and colorings added, which detract from the agave flavor of a young silver tequila. If you want something more mellow than a young silver tequila, go for a reposado, but again, don't waste the anejo on a margarita. It'll be good, but you will have spent a lot of money on really good tequila to make a margarita. Whichever you choose, get one that says "100% agave tequila" on the bottle. Avoid Jose Cuervo at all costs.
My "World's Greatest Margarita" recipe that pairs nicely with my "Award Winning Guac" -
-1 part tequila.
-1 part lime juice
-1 part Grand Marnier or Citronge (not as harsh as cheap Triple Sec.)
-1 part 1:1 simple syrup
Shake, with ice. Pour everything into a salted rim glass.
If you don't like the orange element and prefer the tequila and lime to shine, you can use 1 1/2 part tequila and 1 part agave syrup instead of the orange liquer and simple syrup. Your mileage may vary with substituting agave syrup (or nectar) for the simple syrup. I've considered dumping the orange liquer entirely, and going with the above recipe plus a dash of orange bitters. I like the flavor of the agave nectar, but I also like the orange element. I haven't pulled the trigger on this new recipe yet, though.
Ingredients:
-6-8 large avocados, not "soft" but not rock-hard. You want them to have a little yield when you lightly press.
-A buttload of limes. Why a "buttload"? Well - you never know if the limes you buy at the store are going to be loaded with juice, or be dry and pithy. Get a bunch. Whatever you have left over, make margaritas. Conversely, I like Nellie & Joe Key Lime juice almost as much as I like fresh lime juice, and you know exactly what you're getting.
-Minced garlic (I use a lot. You may not like as much.)
-Serrano chiles (spicier and easier to dice small, compared to jalapenos)
-1 white onion, diced small
-Roma tomatoes, diced
-iceberg lettuce
-salt
-ground cumin
-cayenne pepper
-However you want to remove the avocados from their shell, do so. Put 75% of the avocados in a big bowl. Leave the rest out for later. Use a potato masher to ... mash 'em up.
-squeeze the bejeezus out of the limes. All of them. Like I said... make margaritas with any juice you don't use.
-Dice the onion. I usually use about half a med/large white onion or one medium onion. To me the onion is about texture as much as it is flavor, so don't cut it TOO small between 1/8 and 1/4 inch.
-Dice the serranos small. I usually leave the seeds in about half of them. I find 2-3 peppers works well for this size recipe, but you can up the ante if you're feeling bold: leave all the seeds in or put in more peppers. But since I generally make this for parties with varied palates, I don't make it terribly spicy.
-I am not ashamed to admit I buy jars of minced garlic. It's just as good and a LOT less trouble than buying whole garlic bulbs, breaking them up and peeling the paper off them, then mincing it up fine. Aslo, it's a more mellow garlic flavor than the nose-hair curling punch of freshly minced. Anyway, add 2-3 tablespoons of minced garlic. 2 is enough, but when is "enough" garlic ever enough?
-Add the rest of the above vegetable matter except the lime juice. Fold in the chunks until uniformly spread about.
Ok... now this next part is where you're going to have to use your taste buds.
Start with about 1/3 cup lime juice. You can always add more, but you can't take it out.
2 heavy pinches of salt. I use kosher. If you're using table salt, it won't take that much.
1 teaspoon of cumin
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne.
Fold again, distributing the seasonings. Taste. I like a lot of lime flavor in my guac, but you may not. If you can't taste any salt, add another small pinch and mix in until you can just barely taste the salt (it will intensify as you let it chill.) Again, you can always add salt later if needed, plus the chips will be salty. Don't overdo it.
Add more cumin if you like the smoky flavor (and if you're a member here, we know you love smoky flavor.)
Now, take the rest of the avocados that you didn't put in the bowl at the start, and dice them up roughly. Fold them in. Now you have a nice guac paste, with sizable avocado chunks.
Be careful with the cayenne. It is easy to cross the line. Add more if you don't detect any heat at all. Like the salt, the heat will creep as the flavors meld in the fridge.
Store in the fridge for a couple hours before serving. Or even overnight. Get some saran wrap and lay it directly over the entire surface of the guac and press it down. Then put a lid on the bowl, or another layer of saran wrap over the top of the bowl. This will prevent exposure to air and browning of the guac. If it browns on top, no problem. Just stir it up before serving.
Most people like tomatoes with their guac, but I find if you add them in, it waters down the guac and makes the tomatoes mushy. Here's my solution: Make a guac salad like you get with your fajitas at the Tex/Mex restaurant. Chop some iceburg lettuce, dice the tomatoes (I like romas because they tend to have more flavor than regular tomatoes, and don't have as much seed/goo in the middle.) I spoon out the seed/gel goo and then dice what's left. Serve the lettuce and tomatoes on the side for people to add as they like, upon serving.
Serve with salty chips. Tortilla chips are traditional, but personally, I like good, salty Ruffles with my guac.
A word about tequila: I recommend using Patron silver or better (or comparable) tequlia. I wouldn't use Anejo, because the subtleties of a good anejo tequila are lost in a margarita. If you can find it, Cabrito is an excellent tequila that costs much less than Patron for similar quality. Don't get "gold" tequila, as this is usually what's known as "mixto" and can have additives and colorings added, which detract from the agave flavor of a young silver tequila. If you want something more mellow than a young silver tequila, go for a reposado, but again, don't waste the anejo on a margarita. It'll be good, but you will have spent a lot of money on really good tequila to make a margarita. Whichever you choose, get one that says "100% agave tequila" on the bottle. Avoid Jose Cuervo at all costs.
My "World's Greatest Margarita" recipe that pairs nicely with my "Award Winning Guac" -
-1 part tequila.
-1 part lime juice
-1 part Grand Marnier or Citronge (not as harsh as cheap Triple Sec.)
-1 part 1:1 simple syrup
Shake, with ice. Pour everything into a salted rim glass.
If you don't like the orange element and prefer the tequila and lime to shine, you can use 1 1/2 part tequila and 1 part agave syrup instead of the orange liquer and simple syrup. Your mileage may vary with substituting agave syrup (or nectar) for the simple syrup. I've considered dumping the orange liquer entirely, and going with the above recipe plus a dash of orange bitters. I like the flavor of the agave nectar, but I also like the orange element. I haven't pulled the trigger on this new recipe yet, though.
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