Gadget Or Gimmick: Guac-Lock

When it comes to guacamole, there are a few tricks out there to keep it from browning: Cover it in plastic wrap! Cover it in water! Use lots of lime! All the methods are meant to reduce the amount of air that comes in contact with guac, which leads to oxidation (and then browning) of the dip. But each exists on a spectrum from “old wive’s tale” to “worth dealing with the drawbacks.”

Yes, the water method is mostly fool-proof, but there’s an inexplicable ick factor in draining guac that I just can’t explain. And, apparently, there’s a reason that the plastic wrap method isn’t fool-proof — according to The Kitchn, most plastic wrap materials these days are actually fairly porous and do let air through.

So I had just resigned myself with a little bit of brown on the top of my leftover guacamole, figuring there are worse things in the world (like no guacamole at all). Then I met the Guac-Lock.

Think of the Guac-Lock as the Fort Knox of your dips, keeping it safely swaddled and away from oxygen. It does this by having a moveable base that is pushed upwards using an “elevator” that pushes guac up to the lid, where an air valve pushes the excess air out. Once the guac reaches the top, you seal the valve and store, keeping it fresh and ready to eat, no draining required.

The first time I used Guac-Loc, it did take some fiddling, but once I figured it out, it became pretty intuitive. It was also easy to re-seal if I wanted to eat the guacamole over a few meals. And while I was skeptical of a one-use container just for guacamole (as precious a food as it is), I can also use the Guac-Loc as regular food storage container. Besides, you don’t have to just keep guac in there – it’s also an easy way to keep spreadable, fresh avocado on hand for sandwiches or toast. While some avocado gadgets do strike me as completely unnecessary (does anyone really need a purpose-built avocado slicer?), guac fanatics who are always trying to outmaneuver oxygen can end the battle once and for all with this little device.