Tostaguac – Easy Vegetarian Tostadas with Homemade Guacamole

You may or may not be surprised to learn that a tostaguac is precisely what it sounds like: a tostada with guacamole on top.

It’s quite possible that you’ve made your own version of this dish, whether or not you knew it was called a tostaguac.

I really enjoy making tacos or tostadas right when I get home from the grocery store. Then, I don’t need to put so many vegetables away in the fridge!

This tostaguac recipe yields a quick, tasty, and budget friendly meal suitable for even the busiest of weeks! If your schedule is particularly hectic, you can even pick up pre-made guacamole from your local grocery store for a meal you can get on the table in five minutes flat.

Fun facts about avocados

Early on in the 20th century, particularly in Florida, people used to call avocados alligator pears, due to their appearance.

However, the people trying to sell avocados weren’t exactly pleased with this unappetizing name. The California Avocado Society (at that time Association) denounced the name alligator pears and made it known that we should refer to these fruits as avocados.

Despite this, people still referred to this tasty food as butter pears or avocado pears for a time before the name avocado stuck.

Avocados belong to the family Lauraceae, which is the same family that laurels, bay leaves, cinnamon, camphor, and sassafras also belong to.

In addition, Max Lugavere names avocados as one of his genius foods in his book, appropriately titled Genius Foods, which is a New York Times bestseller. If you are interested in the science of how different foods affect your brain, it’s an interesting read. I enjoyed reading it.

If you’re more of a big picture kind of person, you can just check out the health benefits of avocados on healthline.com, which is a much quicker read.

How to peel an avocado

I opted for what I believe is the old fashioned way. I cut each one in half, removed the pit, and cut them into chunks while still in the skin. Then, I scooped out the chunks with a large spoon.

Another alternative is to score the outside of the avocado with a knife and then peel off strips of the skin. This reduces waste from avocado fruit being stuck to the skin and then discarded.

However, this would make the avocado slippery and hard to handle when you try to remove the pit, so I recommend just scooping out the fruit very well with a spoon to minimize waste.

How to store leftover guacamole

To minimize oxidation, place a layer of plastic wrap directly on top of any leftover guacamole. There should not be any air in between the guac and the plastic. Then you can put the lid on your storage container and put it in the fridge.

I’ve also heard of flattening the top of your guacamole and covering it with a thin layer of water. When you’re ready to eat again, you can just tip the dish and pour out the water. However, I have not personally tried that method.

Tostaguac Ingredients

Before you begin, you will need:

• 3 avocados
• 1/2 a red onion
• 3 tomatoes
• 1/2 a jalapeno (If you think fresh jalapeno will be too spicy, you can always substitute mild Hatch green chiles – or use both!)
• 1 large or 2 small cloves of fresh garlic
• The juice from 1/2 a lime (or all of it, to taste)
• 1/2 tsp salt

• Tostada shells (You could fry or bake corn tortillas for a more authentic meal, but that takes more time.)
• One 16 ounce can refried beans (If you are vegetarian, check the label – many contain lard, but you can find vegetarian refried beans made with vegetable oil. Store brands tend to have this option. Or, if you’re feeling ambitious, you could make them from scratch, but again, that is a pretty time-intensive process.)
• 1 cup shredded lettuce
• 1/2 cup of shredded cheese (I used mozzarella, but you could certainly use queso fresco instead.)
• Cilantro, to garnish (optional)
• Ground black pepper (optional)
• Garlic powder (optional)
• Large mixing bowl and spoon
• Knife and cutting board
• Can opener
• Garlic press (or allow more time for mincing)

How to make a tostaguac at home

First, how to make homemade guacamole

1. To begin, cut your avocados in half. Remove the pits, score the fruit with a knife, and scoop out the chunks with a spoon into a large mixing bowl.
2. After that, wash and dice two of the tomatoes and add them to the bowl with the avocado. While you’re chopping, go ahead and dice the third tomato, but set that aside for later. I like to add a squeeze of lime juice to this last tomato, as well as a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and a touch of garlic powder, but this is optional.
3. Next, peel your onion and chop about 1/2 of it, adding the chopped onion to the mixing bowl.
4. Then, wash the jalapeno, cut it in half, and remove the seeds (unless you want spicy guacamole). Finely dice about 1/2 of your jalapeno (or to taste) and add it to the bowl.
5. Once that’s done, peel your garlic and use a garlic press to add fresh garlic to the mixing bowl as well.
6. Finally, squeeze half of the lime juice over the bowl and sprinkle the salt on top. Mix well with a spoon for chunky guacamole, cover, and place in the fridge until needed.

After that, assemble the tostaguac

1. To begin, remove the refried beans from the can and heat them in either a microwave safe container or in a saucepan on the stove.
2. Once they are hot, spread some on your tostada shells.
3. Layer your ingredients in any order you desire. I did lettuce first, then guacamole, cheese, and the seasoned tomatoes we set aside earlier. If you want the cheese melted, you can add that first and heat the tostada in the microwave, toaster oven, oven, air fryer, etc.
4. Garnish with cilantro and a wedge of fresh lime, if desired. Serve warm and enjoy!

Make it vegan

Omit the cheese. The guacamole is rich enough that you really don’t need both.

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Variations on this tostaguac recipe

I sometimes add diced cucumber to my guacamole. This makes it very refreshing. It also reduces the fat per serving, so if that is a concern, you may want to try it. However, it does change the flavor pretty dramatically. Try adding a little cucumber to a small amount of guacamole first to make sure you like it. Our dinner guests all have, or else they were too polite to say otherwise!

Try drizzling Mexican crema over your tostaguac for a richer and more photogenic dish.

Of course, add or remove whatever toppings you’d like. Bell peppers, pickled cabbage, and pickled red onions would all be delicious on a tostaguac, as would salsa or pico de gallo.

Many people prefer guacamole without tomatoes, so feel free to leave the tomato out if you don’t think you’ll care for it.

As I mentioned, you could make the refried beans and/or tostada shells from scratch, but that’s the kind of undertaking where it would be nice to have some help in the kitchen to visit with during that process.

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I hope you enjoyed this tostaguac recipe!