Living in San Diego, we use any excuse for a BBQ, and I've somehow become the guacamole master. Every time I bring a batch of guac to a party, at least one person asks me for the recipe, so I'm posting it here.
This recipe is largely inspired by the one by Alton Brown, with a few modifications I've made over time as I experiment and tweak things. I like salt and garlic a lot, and I like my guac to have a little more zip.
Halve, pit and slice the avocado. I use an avocado slicer I found on Amazon for $8, and it makes scooping and slicing the avocado guts out an absolute breeze. (Seriously - I try to avoid single-purpose kitchen tools, but this thing is amazing.)
Place the avocado pulp in a large mixing bowl, and juice the lime over top. (This adds a nice acidity, and also prevents the avocado from browning while you work on the other ingredients.)
Add the salt, cumin and cayenne and mash using a potato masher or fork. You don't want this to be perfectly smooth, so make sure there are some chunks left in for texture.
Add the onion, tomatoes, garlic, cilantro and jalapeno and stir to combine. I add about 3/4 of the onion in at once, mix it together, and then taste it and decide if it needs more. Too much onion can really overpower the guac, so I add more, mix it, and taste as I go until I hit the right balance. Same goes for cilantro.
Lay plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole to keep it from turning brown while you transport it. (It's messy, but it works.)
Give it a try, and let me know how it works out in the comments!
