• Place the avocado on a cutting board and hold gently with one hand. Insert the knife at the base of the avocado and slowly rotate the avocado until it is cut all around the pit.
• Holding gently with your fingertips, twist the top half of the avocado until it separates from the bottom half.
• Carefully chop the heel of a chef's knife into the avocado pit. Twist the pit until it comes loose. Remove and discard the pit.
• You can separate the fruit from the skin in one of two ways.

First method:

• Insert a small spoon between the fruit and the skin, gently working the skin away from the fruit. Carefully lift the fruit out of the skin.

Second method:

• Hold the skin between your thumb and the flat side of the knife blade. Peel off the skin in strips. This works particularly well with an avocado that is slightly underripe. If the avocado is ripe, you will be cutting the skin away from the fruit, rather than peeling off the skin.

Slices or chunks:

• To prepare the avocado for dishes such as salads, sandwiches and wrapped Mexican dishes (i.e., burritos), cut the avocado in lengthwise slices. If you prefer chunks, or will be mashing the avocado into guacamole, cut the strips crosswise into cubes.