The Beloved Fruit You've Probably Never Thought To Freeze-Dry

Freeze-dried fruit, in all its crunchy, weightless glory, easily enhances a variety of convenient snacks, homemade meals, and decadent desserts. While you might enjoy sprinkling freeze-dried strawberries on crave-worthy PB overnight oats and adding crunchy cherries to homemade trail mix, there is another popular yet unexpected fruit worthy of freeze-drying. Believe it or not, avocados can be enjoyed in a multitude of ways, including fresh and freeze-dried.

To better understand exactly how avocados can be freeze-dried, it's important to distinguish the differences between freeze-dried versus dehydrated fruit. Unlike dehydrated fruit which has significantly less moisture than fresh fruit and often presents a chewy, leather-like texture, freeze-dried fruit is essentially frozen fruit without water thanks to the process of sublimation. Freeze-dried produce has a light and airy texture accompanied by a crisp bite. Moreover, freeze-drying can extend the shelf life of fruits to anywhere between 10 and 25 years depending on how well they are stored — as opposed to the handful of days you get with fresh avocados.

However, in order to effectively freeze-dry avocado (and any other fruit of choice), you need access to an at-home freeze-dryer. Whether you use a friend's or already have your own, the next few steps are simple. Start by selecting ripe, semi-firm avocados and cut the flesh into uniform slices that measure about ¼ of an inch thick so that they are thin enough to dry quickly but also have some bite. Next, place the strips on a parchment-lined baking sheet and pop them in the freezer until frozen. From here, freeze-dry your frozen avocado slices before storing them in vacuum-sealed plastic bags. Once you have your own stash, feel free to add freeze-dried avocado to all your favorite meals.

Sure enough, freeze-dried avocado can enhance a wide assortment of dishes straight from their vacuum-sealed containers. Sprinkle some dried chunks onto your next grilled romaine and corn salad with herby mustard dressing or add a handful to a warm bowl of white chicken chili and vegetable soup. You can also grind up chunks of freeze-dried avocado and combine that with chili powder, smoked paprika, and garlic powder to make a flavorful spice mix. Luckily, with freeze-dried avocado, you don't have to worry about oxidation or browning since most of the moisture in your fruit has been removed.

Once you become comfortable freeze-drying standard slices of avocado, get creative with your next batch of fruit. For example, while pico de gallo may be your longstanding shortcut for guacamole in a pinch, you can also freeze-dry fresh guacamole in uniform scoops to make every taco night all the more easy and enjoyable. Simply prepare a regular batch of guacamole with all your favorite additions including garlic, cilantro, and lime juice. Then all you need to do is preserve individual portions in your freeze-dryer.  

That being said, you can also quickly rehydrate freeze-dried avocado to make a variety of dips, sauces, and spreads. Simply add a small amount of water to rehydrate avocado or guacamole and stir to combine. Reconstituted avocado is strikingly similar to fresh, mashed avocado and can be used interchangeably.