If You've Ever Thought Store-Bought Guacamole Tastes Off, Here's Why

Everyone knows that homemade guacamole always outshines store-bought options in consistency, texture, and especially flavor. If you've ever wondered why that is, it can typically be handed down to an ingredient called citric acid. This ingredient occurs naturally in citrus foods, and while it does play a similar role that a fresh squeeze of lime would in your homemade guacamole, it does so to another degree in the kind that you buy from the store. As opposed to natural citric acid, the manufactured form of citric acid used in store bought guacamole doesn't just introduce a tangy flavor but also doubles as a preservative.

Knowing that, you can credit the citric acid in your store-bought guacamole with keeping it green for an extended amount of time — and although there are many tips and tricks to keep it looking fresh, that is probably the one thing it has over homemade. Still, like everything, there is a catch. Citric acid is generally recognized as safe by the FDA, but even so, a study published in the National Library of Medicine showed that there have been allergic reactions to it — and when introduced to the avocado enzymes in your guacamole specifically, a chemical reaction can occur that causes a slight tingling sensation on your tongue, which might explain why it tastes so off sometimes.

Citric acid is one of the most commonly used food additives — found in everything from sour candy to dairy products. It's difficult to avoid. What you can do, however, is look for other ingredients in your guac.

Seeing as guacamole in its simplest form is just mashed avocado, there's not much you can do to avoid the tingly, citric acid reaction that happens on your tongue. What you can do, however, is look for alternative ingredients that might mimic its effects — or at least make it taste better. For instance, some store-bought guacamole brands opt to use ascorbic acid to preserve the color of the guacamole instead. If this is the case, the guacamole will stay just as green, but likely won't carry that same punch of citrus. Although that could be a positive, you might want to grab a fresh lime to squeeze on it before dipping in.

Aside from alternative ingredients, you can also look for all of the same things you would look for in any quality guacamole from the store. While you still might get that tingly sensation, you'll at least have something that's tasty enough to be worth it. The best tip to follow when shopping for store-bought guacamole is to look for ingredients that you can see. Tomato, cilantro, onion — whatever it might be, if it's listed on the ingredient list and you can actually see it inside the container, that's a good sign. While you might not be able to see them, powders and seasonings also add nice flavor. Be it a hit of garlic or chili powder, that added dimension might be enough to distract you from any tingles.