This Is the Safest, Easiest Way to Remove an Avocado Pit

There are multiple approaches one can take to remove the round, slippery pit from the creamy flesh of an avocado. You can squeeze everything—pit and all—out into a bowl, but that only works if you need mashed avocado. If you want pretty wedges or slices for aesthetic toast, though, you need to get that thing out without smushing the fruit. You can always thwack it with a sharp knife, but that maneuver is not without risk—avocado-related hand injuries caused by swinging blades are so common, they have their own name (“avocado hand”).

But—and I can’t believe I’m saying this—thanks to TikTok, Joel and I now have a better, safer way to remove the pit from the avocado without hurting our delicate computer hands. (We need them! They’re our money makers!)

You should watch the video to get the full visual effect, but it’s a simple motion: Grab the avocado half that still has the pit inside of it, place your index and middle fingers on either side of the pit, and your thumb around the back of the fruit. Gently press your thumb into—but not through—the back of the avocado, and marvel at the ease with which the pit pops out. Caution: Make sure to use the pad of your thumb, not the tip. I pushed my first pit out with the tip of my thumb (which has a pretty sharp nail on it), and then I had a thumb-shaped hole in my avocado. (I still ate it though.)

Once the pit has been removed from your avocado, you can fill the dent it left behind with things and stuff. I personally like to fill my avocado dents with soy sauce or sherry vinegar and little bits of allium, such as thinly-sliced shallot or green onion. (If avocado toast is more your thing, try it with ‘nduja.)