As a long-displaced Texan (first in New Orleans, and now in St. Louis, MO) the area most lacking in my life is access to authentic Tex-Mex. Having found nowhere suitable to fill this void, I’ve taken to taming cravings at home with mix-less margaritas (tequila + lime juice +Cointreau on ice. come on, people) and home-made guacamole.
Mitch and I sit on our deck and inhale our home-fixed fixin’s and slam our margaritas – one benefit of drinking at home is that you’re already home – and complain that we can’t find anyone to make these things for us. This issue – it doesn’t look good on us.
But complaints aside, I recently had the opportunity to enter my guacamole into a friendly competition at work. It’s not even fair, y’all. Below, my winning recipe:
Ingredients:
4 avocados
½ red onion, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 clove garlic
1 mango, chopped as best you can. (Mangos are hard.)
1 lemon, halved
salt + pepper
Process:
Halve your avocados and scoop out the flesh. If you don’t know how to do handle the seed, take your knife (MOVE YOUR HAND) and drop the blade firmly into the seed’s center. Twist and remove. Voila! You won’t lose any flesh.
Put your halves into a bowl – no need to mash yet – and immediately douse them with lemon. This will extend the life of your guacamole before it begins browning.
Add your diced onion and tomato. Press your clove of garlic into the bowl, and add salt and pepper to taste. (Personally, I use this pre-mixed variety which is also great cucumbers and tomatoes for snacking: www.janeskrazy.com).
Mash your guacamole, testing for flavor, and add salt and pepper as needed. When you’ve got that all right, add your mango and turn the guacamole over lightly, just enough to distribute the mango. This might sound like a funky addition, but it is so unexpected and delicious, and the texture is the perfect complement. Trust me on this.
I didn't style this well because I was distracted by eating it.
Have your own twist on traditional guacamole? Tell me in the comments! Know somewhere I can find puffy tacos or queso flameado in St. Louis? Create a PSA!
