This Fake Guacamole Recipe uses zucchini instead avocado to make a delicious sauce that replicates almost perfectly the most famous Mexican salsa.

It is super economical, delicious, and perfect to drizzle over your favorite tacos, quesadillas, burritos, or any other Mexican favorites. Just as the real avocado taco sauce!

Fake guacamole is a popular salsa that features Mexican squash (calabacitas) instead of avocado. It has a creamy texture and a herbaceous and spicy taste, just like the real thing!

This “fake” sauce was born in Mexico taquerías (taco stands) many years ago, but just recently has taken all over the internet revealing its true face: It is not made with avocados.

How can this be even possible? it tastes identical! Yes, it does. Because the squash and the oil create an emulsion that perfectly replicates the creaminess of the avocado.

Fake guacamole in a bowl.
Look at that smooth consistency!

Why You Should Make It

  • It is economical: Avocados sometimes are very expensive and not easily available around the world, so this zucchini salsa becomes the perfect replacement because is really budget-friendly to make.
  • It is nutritious: Of course, it doesn’t have the same nutritional value as real guacamole but is still a delicious sauce made of fresh ingredients. After all, calabacitas are also a good source of Vitamin C and they are good for your health.
  • It stores wonderfully: Contrary to the real thing, this salsa has the great benefit of not oxidizing within minutes, since doesn’t use avocado, it last days and days in the fridge and is perfect to bring to parties and potlucks.
  • It is good for the planet: Last, but not least, avocados are one of the most unsustainable crops to grow. It is energy and resource-intensive as each avocado requires hundreds of litres of water to grow and harvest. To meet the global demand, avocado farmers are driving the deforestation of some of the most diverse landscapes in the world.

So, either you’re curious about the taste, wanna save some money, you’re looking for recipes with avocado substitutes, or want to help the planet: Give this recipe a try whenever you can. You won’t regret it.

Ingredients

Let me tell you about the ingredients. Because don’t get fooled by the name, this fake sauce still needs some ingredients to make it “real”.

  • CILANTRO: Fresh cilantro add a nice flavor and aroma. Use more than suggested if you really like the flavor.
  • ZUCCHINI: Use any type of green squash you can find, zucchini works wonder here. Mexican summer squash calabacitas is what’s used in the authentic recipe, but again, not so easy to find outside Mexico.
  • ONIONS: White or yellow, just do not add so much or you’ll salsa will taste too sweet.
  • GREEN CHILIES: You can use chile Serranos or jalapeños. But also other types of green hot chilies are a good option.
  • OIL: Use an oil with a neutral taste. Like sunflower, canola, corn, or olive oil (not Extra virgin!). This is the key ingredient that will make the difference, so don’t leave it out.
  • TOMATILLO: Optional. Sure adds a nice flavor to this sauce, but it’s pretty hard to find outside Mexico. Use it only if you have it available. You can also sub with one green tomato, it will add a nice sour taste.
Fake guacamole ingredients displayed on a marble surface with names written over.

How To Make Fake Guacamole

  • Place the zucchini in a medium saucepan. Add chilies and cover with water.
  • Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until zucchini and chiles are nicely tender (about 10 minutes).
  • Strain and let all the ingredients reach room temperature.
  • Place cooked ingredients into a blender. Add cilantro, garlic, onion, and a teaspoon of salt. Pour in the oil.
  • Add ¼ cup of the cooking water then blend until you will have a smooth guac sauce.
  • Taste the salsa, adjust salt if needed then transfer to a bowl or jar. Enjoy as suggested below or store it for later.

Expert Tips

  • Do not leave out the oil. This is the secret ingredient to make this sauce taste like avocado.
  • Let the cooked ingredients reach room temperature or you’ll end with cooked cilantro and the taste will be “weird”.
  • If you can’t find tomatillos, leave them out. I always do my sauce without and it turns out perfect.
  • Add some drops of lime juice. It makes the flavors of this zucchini guacamole outstand.
  • Remove seeds and membranes of chilies if you don’t like your salsa to be overly spicy. But don’t leave them out since they add that guacamole flavor we all love.
  • If you can’t find fresh cilantro, replace it with dried cilantro leaves for flavor. Then, add some fresh parsley or spinach to achieve a vibrant and bright green color.

How To Serve

Fake guacamole is pretty much like any Mexican sauce that you can pour almost on everything. I love making a small bowl from time to time and enjoying it with homemade tortilla chips and a cold drink.

However, here are some Mexican recipes you might want to try to enjoy your freshly made zucchini guacamole:

Flautas with fake guacamole.
Taquitos served with fake guacamole sauce.

How To Store

Since fake guacamole doesn’t contain avocado, it lasts a lot more! I keep mine in a jar for over a week in the refrigerator and it doesn’t brown at all. The garlic helps to preserve the sauce too.

And yes, you can freeze this fake guacamole. Make a large batch and divide them into small resaleable bags, add a tag with the preparation date and freeze for up to 3-4 months.

Thaw overnight and enjoy this creamy sauce whenever you want.

FAQ

Do restaurants use fake guacamole?

Avocado prices have caused many restaurants and taquerias to replace this ingredient with a cheap alternative such as calabacita or other types of summer squash. Not all taco stands went this way, but many did in order to keep up with prices.

How can I know the difference between real guacamole and fake?

First of all, taste. Even though the taste is very similar, the fake avocado sauce has a sweeter and herbaceous taste. Then you can also see the difference in the texture which is more watery in the fake sauce. When in doubt, ask whoever is serving you this sauce.

Is there fake avocado?

As a matter of fact, yes! In Great Britain, a fake avocado was created by Arina Shokouhi using beans, hazelnuts, apple, and rapeseed oil. It was called Ecovado.

Similar Recipes

Video

Fake guacamole recipe.

Fake guacamole recipe

2 cups
Fake guacamole recipe uses zucchini instead avocado to make a delicious sauce that replicates almost perfectly the most famous Mexican sauce. You won’t believe how identical it tastes and how easy is to make!
prep 5 minutes
cook 5 minutes
total 10 minutes

Ingredients 

  • 2 medium zucchini or Mexican squash ( ends trimmed and quartered)
  • ½ medium white onion (cut into quarters)
  • 5 green chillies (or more to taste)
  • 1 small bunch of cilantro
  • ¼ cup canola oil or any neutral-flavoured oil
  • 1 garlic clove
  • salt (to taste)

Instructions
 

  • Put the zucchini in a medium saucepan. Add chilies (and tomatillo, if you using) and cover with water.
  • Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until zucchini is tender (about 5 minutes). Strain and let the ingredients reach room temperature.
  • Place the zucchini, chilies, and tomatillo into a blender.
  • Add cilantro, garlic, onion, and a teaspoon of salt. Pour in the oil.
  • Pour ¼ cup of water. If you use tomatillo, don’t need to add water. Then blend until you have a smooth sauce.
  • Taste for salt and transfer to a bowl or jar. Serve with your favorite dishes.

Notes

  • Do not leave out the oil. This is the secret ingredient to make this sauce taste like avocado.
  • Let the cooked ingredients reach room temperature before blending.
  • If you can’t find tomatillos, leave them out.
  • To bring out flavors, add a few drops of lime juice.
  • Remove seeds and membranes of chilies if you don’t like your salsa to be overly spicy. But don’t leave them out since they add that guacamole flavor we all love.
  • If you can’t find fresh cilantro, replace it with dried cilantro leaves for flavor. Then, add some fresh parsley or spinach to achieve a vibrant and bright green color.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1 cup | Calories: 325kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 1555mg | Potassium: 563mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 460IU | Vitamin C: 51mg | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 1mg
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Recipe Rating




11 Comments

  1. I can find tomatillos easily and we can always find them in a can (or a jarred tomatillo salsa). How many are suggested to use for this recipe? I love their lemony flavor.

  2. Has anyone tried any other avacado substitute? A long time ago there was a guacamole recipe using peas, fresh or frozen in place of the avacado. I am very interested in substitute ingredients.

  3. 5 stars
    Muchas gracias por esta receta y por compartir tu cultura. Tengo alergia a aguacuates y buscaba una buena sustitution. Eso es perfecto. Gracias de nuevo de Inglaterra

  4. 5 stars
    This is AWESOME. Ok, mine didn’t taste like guacamole, to me, but it is delicious… and a fun substitute for guac… AND a fun way to use zucchini!!! I’m so happy I found this THANK YOU!
    I weighed my large garden zucchini, and so ended up using only about 1/3 of it for one recipe (1/3 of my seeded zuke we about 10 oz.).
    The only “cilantro” I had was some scary, spindly garden cilantro stems that had already started to go to seed, but I used it.

    I also forgot the onion. Oops!

    And used 3 seeded jalapenos, and 1 large garlic clove. And I used corn oil for the oil. I just left it at the 1 teaspoon of salt. And didn’t add any water, (or the tomatillos).

    Sorry for all the changes. I’m positive this recipe is fantastic per the recipe. I just used what I had (except the onion that I forgot about).

    Both of my kids thought it was really good, too. I can’t wait to share it with others. Thank you so much!!! Yum.

    1. ahaha omg! That’s a huge zucchini for sure! And I’m glad you liked the recipe and that you were able to do it with whatever you had on hand.

    1. 5 stars
      My husband made this recipe. It was delicious. Didn’t notice if he used oil or not but he did use tomatillo although I don’t know how many. He made it very spicy but the nice thing is the hotness wears away quickly without trying to make it die down. His version was so spicy, I couldn’t say tell if it or didn’t have avocado. This was probably the 2nd time in our 39 years together, I willingly tasted something spicy. It was so good, I actually added some to our salad today as part of the dressing. Yum!

      1. I am so glad you liked it! Yes, you can make it as spicier as you want by adding lots of chiles. I guess he used oil since this ingredient also helps with spiciness to wear off.