Chunky Guacamole

A dish of guacamole with crunchy tortilla chips.

Instead of mashing avocado for a traditional guacamole, this chunky guacamole is diced into bits that are lightly coated with fresh lime juice and hot sauce. Easy to make and the perfect match to a good margarita!

This post has been updated for content since its original publication in 2018.

I’m as gaga for avocado as the next person. They’re great on salads, tucked into sandwiches, as the anchor for my open-faced breakfast sandwich and of course in guacamole. Frankly, I didn’t think there was any way this singularly spectacular fruit with its buttery smooth texture, mild flavor and ombre-inspired pale green hues could disappoint.  I was wrong.

ingredients for chunky guacamole.

The best guacamole recipes stick with these classic ingredients. You can play with it and make it your own later…

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Ingredients for chunky guacamole:

  • Ripe Haas Avocados
  • Jalapenos
  • Red Onion
  • Ripe Tomatoes
  • Cilantro
  • Limes
  • Hot Sauce
  • Salt & Pepper
Mincing jalapenos.

Why I like my guacamole chunky

I was at a restaurant about a week ago and ordered their avocado toast, ’cause you know — Avocado Toast — it came with a poached egg and some fruit on the side. Nice, right?

No. I was thoroughly disappointed.  The avocado wasn’t smushed with a fork — it was pureed — in a blender. Pureed. Don’t do that. Just. Don’t.  Here’s the thing — the beauty of avocado is the slightly chunky, slightly creamy, spreadable vibe.  Pureed it’s too loose, more soupy.  No.

Not to mention that avocados oxidize and turn brown like apples when they’re exposed for too long. Oxidized avocados = bad.

Which is one reason I was so disappointed when I saw my toast.  Not only was it blitzed to oblivion, it had also taken on that dull, I’ve-been-sitting-out-too-long cast. In other words, gross.

Yes, it tasted fine, but since we eat with our eyes… well, let’s just say it wasn’t an Instagrammable breakfast.

Hours later I was still making snarky comments about that toast (Scott can attest to this). I ended up making this Chunky Guacamole to try and erase that “other image” from my brain. 

Dicing tomatoes on a cutting board.

My guacamole recipe starts with a ripe plum tomato (watery insides and seeds removed) along with finely diced red onion, jalapeño, cilantro and lime zest.

How to make chunky guacamole:

  1. Slice the tomatoes in half and remove the seeds and watery insides. Pat dry and add to a mixing bowl.
  2. Add the red onion, jalapeno, cilantro and lime zest to the tomatoes.
  3. Run a sharp knife around the avocado, cutting down to the pit from top to bottom, then twist the two halves. To get that seed out, hold the avocado half with the pit in one hand and firmly tap the blade of a sharp chef’s knife or santoku into the pit.
  4. Score the avocado with a paring knife, making horizontal cuts through the fruit about 1/2″ apart. Turn your knife 90° and continue making horizontal cuts to dice the avocado. Scoop out the flesh with a spoon and add to the diced vegetables.
  5. Add fresh lime juice and gently toss the chunky guacamole until mixed.
  6. Season the guac to taste with salt, pepper and your favorite hot sauce (if you like it hot).
I am combining red onion, jalapeno, lime zest and diced tomatoes in a bowl.

Picking avocados

For the avocados, make sure yours are ready.  

If they’re hard  and green on the outside, they’re typically gonna need another day or two on the counter.  The skins should be brown and yield just slightly to the touch.

Dicing vs. mashing avocados for guac

I know this is unorthodox, but I prefer dicing the avocado instead of mashing it.

I think it looks more appetizing and when it’s tossed with the other vegetables, it will take on a somewhat  creamy appearance. 

I am halving the avocado to make the guacamole.

Two ways to handle the avocados:

I prefer to peel the skin of the avocado, then dice the fruit on a cutting board, but you can also run a sharp knife in a cross-hatch dice pattern while the fruit is still in the peel and scoop out the flesh with a spoon — whatever works best for you.

Dice the avocado and add it to the tomato mixture.

Squeeze the lime juice over the avocado to delay that oxidation we talked about earlier.

Squeezing lime juice into the bowl.

Because of the lime zest AND lime juice, this guacamole is bright and citrusy. It’s so good that even though this recipe  makes enough to serve four — Scott and I have done an admirable job of eating an entire bowl, just the two of us — in one sitting…  with an obligatory margarita. Don’t judge.

Tossing the avocado and tomato mixture to make guacamole.

Toss the guacamole and taste for seasoning — a little kosher salt, maybe some black pepper and my personal favorite, hot sauce.

Try your favorite hot sauce or the old standbys like tabasco sauce or Crystal’s hot sauce.

I go for my grandfather’s homemade piment (pronounced pee-muhn) sauce — it’s made with habanero peppers from the Caribbean (they taste completely different from the habaneros we get here in the states).

Adding hot sauce to the guac.

How and when to serve chunky guacamole:

Give it a quick toss and serve immediately. Not tonight, not tomorrow.  Now.

Obviously, serve your Chunky Guacamole with salted corn tortilla chips or use it as a light topping for grilled chicken, pork or fish.  Heavenly.

More easy dip recipes you’ll love:

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A dish of chunky guacamole with tortilla chips.
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4.28 from 11 votes

Chunky Guacamole

When you’re craving a creamy, tangy, spiced avocado dip, this chunky Mexican guacamole is one of our favorites. Made with garden fresh ingredients, this healthy snack is always a hit. This is the chunky guacamole and chips you’ve been dreaming about.
Author: Lisa Lotts
Course Appetizer, Snack
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword avocado, cilantro, guacamole
Dietary Restrictions Dairy-Free, Egg Free, Gluten-Free, Vegan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 4

INGREDIENTS:

  • ¼ cup red onion finely minced
  • 1 large plum tomato seeded and cut into 1/4″ dice
  • 1 medium jalapeno seeded and minced
  • ¼ cup cilantro chopped
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 firm, ripe avocados peeled and cut into 1/2″ dice
  • 1 lime
  • hot sauce (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

  • In a medium bowl, combine the red onion, tomato, jalapeño, cilantro, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. 
  • Zest half of the lime and add the zest to the red onion mixture.  
  • Add the avocado to the vegetables.  slice the lime in half and squeeze the lime juice from both halves over the avocado.  Toss lightly to coat the vegetables with juice, being careful not to mash the avocado.
  • Add a few drops of your favorite hot sauce to taste if desired. (I like Crystal’s hot sauce — or my grandfather’s homemade “piment” sauce.)
  • Serve with white or yellow tortilla chips.

NOTES:

To store leftovers, cover with plastic wrap and press the plastic gently into the guacamole to prevent air from oxidizing the avocado. Refrigerate for up to 2 days.

NUTRITION:

Calories: 170kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 298mg | Potassium: 519mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 215IU | Vitamin C: 16.3mg | Calcium: 18mg | Iron: 0.6mg

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8 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Thankyou Lisa, I thought I was the only one that didn’t enjoy mushy, mashed to within an inch of its life avocado. Chunky avocado with a poached egg and some crumbled feta is a wonderful way to the start the day. And Chunky Guac is heaven. Yours is pretty much the same as mine although I don’t add hot sauce but do include ground cumin and a little minced garlic. It’s usually served with some toasted Turkish bread or a salad side with enchiladas. I call it “packed, chunky, guac salad”. Just heaven. And thankyou, just discovered your site, beautiful, will be trying out quite a few of your recipes very soon.
    Thanks Sx

  2. 5 stars
    yummy! I was thinking of guacamole sandwich and this would be so perfect to make it!

  3. 5 stars
    I love your photos! I too would not be happy about my oxidized avocado if I got it in a restaurant. Like you said we eat with our eyes so If it looked like that I would just be disappointed. Your guacamole looks perfect!

  4. 5 stars
    I love guacamole – it’s definitely one of my favorite appetizers! So healthy, colorful and delicious! Your chunky version looks and sounds so good!

  5. 5 stars
    I’m so with you on this one, Lisa. Team chunky any day of the week! Your version looks so delicious, I can’t wait to give it a go!! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe 🙂