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The Chopped-Salad Dice
While a thin slice of avocado almost melts on your tongue, diced pieces can have a texture similar to soft cheese, a welcome contrast to the crunchy romaine in salads such as this stunner. Ashley Blom, whose forthcoming book How to Eat a Lobster: And Other Edible Enigmas Explained covers avocados, says the best way to get neatly shaped avocado chunks is to first slice the fruit in half vertically, then go up the other side. Twist the two pieces apart, remove the pit (use a spoon to gently lever it out) and use a paring knife to score the flesh in a crosshatch pattern, cutting all the way down to but not through the skin. Then, turn the skin inside out and the chunks will fall out.