Steps

1. Place the chiles, onion, garlic and a little salt in a mortar or small bowl. Mash the chile mixture with the pestle or the back of a wooden spoon.
2. Cut the avocados into halves. Cut the halves into quarters, remove the pits and peel off the skins. Dice the avocado flesh and place it in the mortar or bowl and squeeze some lime juice over it. Using a fork, lightly mash the avocados into a very chunky purée.
3. Stir in the tomatoes and cilantro. Adjust seasoning with additional salt and lime juice as needed.
4. Serve immediately with plain tortilla chips or warm corn tortillas.

Notes

Guacamole is only as good as the avocados from which it is made. Choose small, rough-skinned California, Mexican, or South American avocados. Large, smooth, bright-green Florida avocados do not make great guacamole. A perfectly ripe avocado is dark green to purple-black in color and firm to the touch with just a little “give” when pressed at the stem end. If hard, under-ripe avocados are the only ones available, keep them at room temperature in a paper bag with a piece of cut apple for a day or two to ripen them. Be sure to chill your avocados before making them into guacamole.