A Splash Of Worcestershire Sauce Is The Ingredient Your Guacamole Is Missing

Guacamole is one of those foods that's so fun and easy to make, in part because it's pretty much a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, and also because it's so adaptable. It invites creativity and inspiration, is ripe for substitutions when you find yourself in a pinch and can find a place in so many settings and occasions. Serve it as a dip during the big game, as an appetizer for a larger dinner, or simply spoon it on top of tacos to bring a creamy, cool, and herbaceous touch to your favorite filling.

You can keep it super simple with avocado, cilantro, lime, and salt, or add onions, tomatoes, garlic, and other herbs. Kick up the heat with jalapenos, or sweeten things up with fresh fruit like mango or pineapple. But of all the many ingredients you can choose to amplify your avocado-based dip, perhaps you've been overlooking one that will totally change the game: The umami-rich wonder sauce known as Worcestershire.

Guacamole, with its bright citrus and herbs and the creamy unctuous avocado, is primed and ready for this particular kind of flavor infusion. The fat of the green fruit is rounded out by this savory boost, and that little dose of brown liquid deepens the flavor profile of every bite.

The condiment with a rich history and confounding name (it is actually pronounced wuss-tah-sher) can be a little intimidating if you're not familiar with its uses or ingredients. While there are different formulas out there, the most famous brand — Lea & Perrins — contains distilled white vinegar, molasses, sugar, salt, onions, anchovies, garlic, cloves, tamarind, and chili pepper extracts.

Upon reading that list, it's no surprise this stuff is a culinary secret weapon. All in a single vessel, you've got an almost perfect balance of flavors — from salty anchovies to spicy chili and garlic, sweetness from molasses, and acid from the vinegar. It's an umami bomb in a bottle, with layers of complexity in every dash.

To make this guacamole magic at home, simply add anywhere from a half to a full teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce per one to two avocados, to your taste. Proceed with your favorite recipe as per usual, and you'll have a result that is anything but.

Worcestershire has some pretty classic uses, as does guacamole, and with this new spin on hand, you can cross-reference their strengths to come up with some very fun new riffs on your favorite dishes. One of the most well-known applications for this brown sauce is as a marinade for beef, so this is a great opportunity to top your carne asada tacos with this guacamole to highlight that pairing — or go for a different type of handheld with a goat cheese guac burger.

If you're looking for a vegetarian take on this savory flavor affinity, you can use a vegan-specific Worcestershire (like The Wizard's) and top a rich pumpkin chili with a dollop of this infused guacamole. To stay with the green theme, lean into Worcestershire's legacy as a traditional ingredient in the original Caesar salad dressing, and whip up a chicken Caesar guacamoledip. If you want to work this into your morning, eggs love both Worcestershire sauce and avocados, so you can create a breakfast burrito that will become an easy, crave-able sunrise staple. You'll find that this Worcestershire-enhanced guac can inspire so many options, so experiment freely and enjoy this elevated iteration.