Personally, I'm a huge cilantro fan. So, I think guac with cilantro is always better than guac without. Also, oddly enough, Siracha adds immensely to guac.

Love your description - it was a fascinating read! Like many people, I am also very picky about my guac. I pretty much don't bother with ordering it in restaurants unless it is an authentic place. I make mine very minimalist: avacado, lime juice (instead of lemon), salt, and hot sauce of cayenne. No tomatoes, but sometimes a little diced red onion. I do like mine fairly creamy, but not pureed - I usually use a pastry cutter to get the right texture. And I hatehatehate when creamy ingredients like sour cream or cream cheese are added - egh! The whole point of gauc is the texture of the amazing avocado Thanks for the great article and recipe! I had never thought of curry...will have to try this now!!

Love the photo and recipe. Mine is similar but I add a big bunch of parsley, jalapeno peppers or Tobasco sauce, and green onions to mix. YUM. I could it it straight with no chips or bread!

I've been making my guac with garam masala and cumin (sometimes chinese five-spice powder) for quite some time, it really is delicious. Every now and then, if I want it to be even chunkier, I add a cup of lightly chopped cashew nuts just before serving. Yum. I like the naan wedges, by the way, nice touch.

great recipes--when my daughter was in 2nd grade the spanish teacher taught them how to make guacamole. so at our house it is "guacamolly" Molly's mom

A friend of mine routinely makes her guac with curry powder. I'd thought she was nuts, but it is actually a nice twist. Even better with those yummy-looking garlic naan wedges! Remember that not all fats are created equal. Avocados are high in fat, but 2/3 of that is the health-promoting kind (monounsaturated). And no one ever got fat from eating avocados.

Guacamole is something I could never get right. I tried lots of variations, but it ends up not tasting quite right. Plus it always seems to look yucky. So I'll try your advice, especially the part about not over mixing and the tomatoes. I'm guilty on both counts. It's really a shame considering I grew up with several avocado trees in our backyard.

I love guac and avocados in general. They are in peak season here in New Zealand and at 10 for $4 I should be eating a lot more of them than I have been!

Can't wait to try the Indian version. I love cross "pollinating" culinary cultures! I'm not a big fan of tomatoes either but a couple of years back I was introduced to the addition of sun dried tomatoes -- Deeeeelish! and of course some serranos for the heat. Another trick I learned was to cut the mixture down with two knives similar to how you would cut butter into flour for a pie crust recipe.

This is a great recipe, Heidi. If I may give a suggestion... I'm a big fan of "levels" of flavor and texture. As anyone who really loves avocadoes will tell you, each stage of ripeness has its own charm. And lovers of Indian and Indonesian cuisine are well aware, unripe mangoes are terrific for pickling or frying as a vegetable. In the American south, we have the fried green tomato. Ripeness is, to me, one of those things that's open to interpretation. Bright green flavors abound in unripe produce, and there are all sorts of ways to present it. That said (and in light of my love for "levels" of flavor and texture), I might suggest using three perfectly ripe avocadoes for the bulk of this recipe, then finely dicing one slightly less ripe avocado to add little explosions of texture and flavor. It may be advisable to "pickle" that avocado in lime juice and salt for eight hours before preparing the recipe. You could take the "levels" theory a step further. Use two perfectly ripe, one under ripe, and one slightly over ripe. In this way, the entire spectrum of avocado flavor is presented cohesively in a comprehensive batch of guacomole. Do keep up the good work here. We all enjoy the site and its insights. John J. Goddard

I love my guac smashed by hand so it becomes creamy with chunks. I also like to add fire roasted jalepenos, white onions,, garlic (all hail the microplane for both), cilantro,lime juice, salt and pepper.

I'm happy to see other people's takes on guacamole. I agree that it must be chunky, and some of your tips will definately be taken on board next time I make some.

Habaneros anyone?

I have to say that I agree with you that it is important not to over flavour such a wonderful treat such as the tast of an avacado. It's like the necter of the gods to me. I like it simple. I would like to futher add to the topic of adding onions to the guacomole...green onions seem to have a much fresher taste even more so than white onions. I also use a dash or two of worchestershire sauce..NOT too much or it will over power..that would not be nice. So, my version is very similiar to yours. Avacado, green onions, worchestershire sauce, ONE clove of garlic and I do love the freshest tomatoes I can get. That's it..no more!! Once in a blue moon I'll fire in low fat mayo..but that's if I'm streatching it. Love this information...I stumbled upon this site when I was using my gmail...I'm looking forward to reading more. Thanks for all the information.

If you would like another twist, add tomatillos, either raw or boiled (two very different flavors, both very appreciated in Mexico City -my home-). Just put a couple of ripe light green tomatillos on the processor to make them into a sauce, mix this sauce with your chunky guacamole recipe -cilantro is very important here-, this version is found in all variation ranges from 80% guacamole 20% tomatillo sauce all the way to the opposite 20-80 which is fairly liquid and yummy on carne asada soft tacos, or just to dip your naan bread, pita or tortilla chips, if you like it spicy add chopped serrano chiles or raw jalapenos....please no canned or pickled jalapenos like the ones used for nachos. dried chipotles or moritas -refreshed on hot water, seeded and pounded with a mortar or molcajete are even better but lots of fire If you like middle eastern food its worth saying that Lebanese people in Mexico will almost always eat their kepeeh or kebbe balls with this guacamole-tomatillo. Very yummy, good kepeeh and good guacamole makes an adictive combination

wow...it looks like i am in the majority here. I am also VERY picky about my avocado taste but i HATE chunks. augh. i like the flavors all blended together, not a too strong bite followed by a too bland bite. We have a local company (casa sanchez) that makes quite possibly the best quacamole of my life. However, it is chunky so I put it in my food processer when I bring it home. Of course, I also hate my salsa chunky. It might have something to do with hating tomatoes and onions, but enjoying the flavors lol.

Not going to discuss recipes with anyone- that's all a matter of taste> But, just had to add my tips on the perfct guacamole, which I picked up along the way: First, after scooping out the flesh, squeeze at least half of a lemon/lime all over the avo you're going to use in the recipe. This is an excellent way to keep the bright colour. The juice reduces the browning effect on avo, so to add the juice before attacking the avo with your mashing device is ideal. Secondly, I only ever mash an avo with a fork. Ideal for keeping the texture you want and helps to keep colour as well. Cheers from France! D.

I tried guacamole several years ago, hated it, and hadn't had it again until last Sunday. I've been looking for a good recipe ever since. Its like you read my mind. I'm going to try and make this soon. I'm sure it will turn out great!

Wonderful recipe for guacamole. Avocado is quite good for you, but it is quite high in fat. So, to keep the fat content down, I use baked pita instead of fried chips. I cut the pitas in half, then in half again (so you have quarters), then pop them under the broiler for a minute or two to crisp up. Because pitas are a bit heartier than chips, they seem to work wonderfully with the guacamole --- especially one that is as flavorful as yours. Thanks!

try using lemon in Guac. It is a whole new world I must say. Had it first in Sydney ~ Bill Clark, I believe does it that way...on corn fritters.