Avocado
Also called Alligator pear · Avocado pear · AvocadosPersea americana · Lauraceae family
Explore avocado as both a sliced savory topping and the creamy base of an unsweetened frozen preparation.
Find it near DetroitGet to know it
Avocado has buttery flesh that spreads under a fork. A ripe Hass tastes rich and nutty, with a silky texture that works in both guacamole and sweet milkshakes. The same creamy fruit can be a taco topping in Mexico or an ice-blended dessert in Vietnam.
What it is
Avocado, Persea americana, grows on a tree in the laurel family. The flesh is usually pale to rich yellow and may have a green layer beneath the peel. Its large centre is one seed.
Hass has pebbled skin that darkens towards purplish-black as it ripens. Reed is a large, round variety, weighing roughly 225–510 g (8–18 oz). A firm-ripe avocado cuts into neat slices; softer flesh suits mashing into guacamole or blending into a drink.
Where it comes from
Avocado comes from Mexico and Central America. Long before Europeans arrived, people grew it from the Rio Grande south to central Peru. Mexico remains the biggest producer, with an estimated crop of 2.73 million tonnes in 2025. Michoacán and Jalisco grow most of it.
In India, avocado grows on a small, scattered scale in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra, as well as Sikkim in the eastern Himalayas.
How it's eaten where it grows
In Mexico, guacamole is often a topping for tacos: coarsely mashed ripe avocado with salt and lime. Onion, tomato, green chile and coriander leaves add crunch, heat and aroma. The avocado stays the base, with the other ingredients worked into it.
In Vietnam, sinh tố bơ blends ripe avocado with ice, milk, sweetened condensed milk and sugar into a thick, smooth dessert drink. In the Philippines, the flesh is also eaten sweet, with milk and sugar.
How it's grown
An avocado tree can reach about 18 m (60 ft), although orchard trees are often shorter. Warm sun and soil that drains freely suit it. Grafted trees begin bearing after about three to four years.
At harvest, the fruit is clipped off with a little stalk still attached. A mature avocado softens after picking, so a hard fruit can be ready for harvest while still far from ready for toast.
When and where you'll find it
Michoacán’s overlapping flowering seasons keep fresh avocados moving to international markets throughout the year. You may see avocados all year, but California’s own crop usually runs from spring through summer and early autumn. Many California farmers’ markets carry avocados in season, including varieties beyond Hass.
In Australia, Hass usually runs from May to January, followed by Shepard from February to May. Once an avocado has softened enough for the meal you want, refrigeration slows it down; a firm-ripe one suits slices, while softer flesh suits a dip.
Sources · 11
- Australian Avocados, Hort Innovationaustralianavocados.com.au
- California Avocado Commissioncaliforniaavocado.comOther pages234
- Julia Morton, Fruits of Warm Climates (1987)hort.purdue.edu
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolboxplants.ces.ncsu.edu
- Rachel C. Sotto, Avocado Production in the Philippines, FAOfao.org
- Rick Baylessrickbayless.com
- Saurindra P. Ghosh, Avocado Production in India, FAOfao.org
- University of California Statewide IPM Programipm.ucanr.edu
- University of Florida IFASedis.ifas.ufl.edu
- USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Avocado Annual (2026)apps.fas.usda.gov
- Vicky Phamvickypham.com
Get it near Detroit
What it tastes like
As mild as a banana, no sweeter than a lemon≈
More about the taste
Avocado's flesh is buttery rather than sharply juicy. Its texture and richness vary by type; the large central seed is surrounded by the edible pulp.
Flesh color and fiber vary by variety — from pale to deeper yellow, and from smooth to moderately fibrous, as in the Cardinal variety.
A tasting invitation
Compare texture as carefully as flavor: firm, buttery, watery and fibrous describe different experiences. A named green-skinned variety and a Hass-type avocado can make a useful comparison, but ripeness and handling can influence the result as much as identity.
Choose, ripen, store, eat
1ChooseGentle give under pressure
Look for
- Gentle give under pressure
- Sound, uninjured fruit
Ignore
- Turning black
For ripe fruit, look for gentle give under pressure — not every avocado turns black, since some varieties stay green when ripe. In Michoacán, overlapping bloom cycles keep supply nearly year-round; in Ventura County, Hass fruit may be picked January through October.
2RipenOn the counter
Ripens after pickingCounterAvocados soften after picking. Leave firm fruit at room temperature and check daily — the exact wait depends on maturity, variety and temperature.
3StoreFridge, ripe
- FridgeRipe
Refrigerate once the fruit reaches the firmness you want — firmer fruit for slicing, softer fruit for other uses. Refrigerated ripe fruit generally keeps about a week.
4EatFlesh · not peel, seed
Eat
FleshNot eaten
PeelSeedUse the flesh after removing the peel and central seed.
More tips
A useful detail Avocados don't ripen on the tree — only after picking. That's why a firm, just-harvested avocado is perfectly normal.
Worth knowing
- Neither peel nor storage temperature shows whether an avocado's flesh is ready to eat.
- Cool holding limits water loss in an already-ripe avocado, slowing how fast it shrivels.
Detroit, Michigan
When it’s good hereUsual monthsJust arrivedAt their bestLast chanceAll yearWhere it is in its usual monthsToday, Oct 22Grown hereIn season in your stateShips fromIn season where it growsOrderableListed by a seller we checkedThe day a seller was checked
61 growing areas, 20 countriesUsual monthsOur estimated monthsToday, Oct 22
- Antalya
- Antioquia
- Bahia
- California
- Castellón
- Chiang Mai +1
- Chiapas
- Coquimbo
- East Java
- Eastern Cape
- Florida +1
- Granada +1
- Hawaii
- Ica
- Jeju
- Johor
- Limpopo
- Makueni
- Murang'a
- Murcia
- New South Wales +1
- O'Higgins
- Pará
- Piura
- South Africa
- Tasmania
- Western Cape
- You
15 of 20 areas · October
Growing areas by country
- Australia7
- Brazil7
- Spain7
- United States5
- South Africa5
- Chile4
- Peru4
- Mexico3
and 15 more countriesand 12 more countries
In the Philippines, avocado is eaten with milk and sugar as a dessert.
137 varieties
- No variety photo yetJICA-TH-19
- Flavour
- faint anise MX-MIC · huerto experimental a 4 km de Uruapan, Michoacán
- Texture
- creamy MX-MIC · huerto experimental a 4 km de Uruapan, Michoacán
- Flesh
- green · yellow MX-MIC · huerto experimental a 4 km de Uruapan, Michoacán
- Shape
- oval MX-MIC · huerto experimental a 4 km de Uruapan, Michoacán
HassAlso HASSPhoto: Ivar Leidus · CC BY-SA 4.0
Fuerte- Flavour
- nutty Colombia
- Flesh
- yellow Colombia
Reed- Flavour
- nutty Colombia
- Flesh
- cream Colombia
- No variety photo yetPinkerton
- Feel
- soft Colombia
- Texture
- creamy Colombia
- Flesh
- green Colombia
- No variety photo yetPremero
- Feel
- firm
75 names in 26 languages
- ahuacatlroot
Cook it
How to serve it first
Open a ripe avocado on a stable board and separate the flesh from the skin and stone without striking a held fruit with a knife. Taste it plain first, then try salt and citrus in small increments.
3 avocado festivalsUsual monthToday, Oct 22
Strange but trueHistoryA myth, and the truthScienceNatureWhere the name came fromCustoms and cultureFood and drinkPeopleA record
If you like Avocado
Tastes alike
Nutrition, sources
Nutrition
Avocados, raw, California · per 100 g
- Carbohydrate
- 8.6 g
- Fiber
- 6.8 g
- Sugars
- 0.3 g
- Protein
- 2 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Vitamin C
- 8.8 mg
- Potassium
- 507 mg
Sources
Avocado · Fruitopia · checked Sep 23, 2026