Festive Pomegranate Guacamole
Homemade pomegranate guacamole makes a beautiful holiday appetizer! This festive recipe is a gluten-free snack that everyone will enjoy.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on November 19, 2024
How about a Christmas spin on classic guacamole? Try stirring in fresh pomegranate. It’s festive, right?! And delicious, too—creamy, classic guacamole contrasts surprisingly well with sweet, juicy, ruby red pomegranate arils.
If you really want to mess with a classic, add some feta to this pomegranate guac. It offers irresistible pops of salty, tangy flavor. I’m a big fan.
Without the feta, however, this dip is the perfect holiday party option when your guests are following various special diets. It’s gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, tomato-free, and dairy-free/vegan without the feta. I suppose it could be cilantro-free if you have any cilantro haters in the house. I’m not one of them.
Pomegranate Guacamole Tips
Since this recipe is so simple, the quality of your produce is critical.
Use perfectly ripe avocados. They should yield to a gentle squeeze but not feel mushy. If your avocados are hard, store them in a paper bag with a banana or apple to speed up the ripening process. If they’re nearly perfect but you won’t use them for a couple of days, store them in the vegetable drawer in the refrigerator until you’re ready.
Choose fresh pomegranates. The best pomegranates are heavy for their size and ruby red. If they’re brown in places and looking dehydrated or wrinkly, don’t bother. You’ll need one medium pomegranate’s worth of arils for this recipe. Sometimes, I buy two just in case the first is bad, then save the other for snacking.
If you’re in a hurry, buy pomegranate arils in the grocery store’s refrigerated prepared fruit section. They’re more expensive than whole pomegranates. Arils are typically stored in clear plastic so you can gauge their freshness. Do not buy them if they look shriveled, slimy, or brown.
The jalapeño determines the spice level. Before chopping, remove the membranes and seeds to moderate the spice level. For lightly spicy guacamole, use one small jalapeño. Taste the finished guacamole to decide if you’d like to add another chopped jalapeño for more heat. Or, for mild guacamole, omit the jalapeño altogether.
More Fun & Festive Holiday Recipes
Here are a few more Christmas recipes that offer bold flavors. They’ll brighten your holidays!
- Christmas Enchiladas
- Fresh Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Pomegranate Salsa
- Sesame Caramel Corn
- Sweet & Spicy Roasted Party Nuts
- Thumbprint Cookies
Please let me know how your pomegranate guacamole turns out in the comments. I love hearing from you.
Festive Pomegranate Guacamole
Homemade guacamole with fresh pomegranate makes a beautiful holiday appetizer! It’s a vegetarian, gluten-free snack that everyone will enjoy. This guacamole goes great with tortilla chips and prepared raw vegetables, like carrots and broccoli. Recipe yields about 3 cups of guacamole (enough for a small gathering) and could easily be halved.
Ingredients
- 4 medium ripe avocados, pitted and diced
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ medium red onion, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, mostly leaves, chopped
- 1 to 2 small jalapeños (or 1 serrano pepper), seeded and chopped
- 1 medium pomegranate, deseeded (about 1 cup worth of pomegranate arils)
- Optional: ½ cup crumbled feta
Instructions
- With a spoon, scoop the avocado flesh into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add the lime juice, garlic and salt. Mash the ingredients together with a large fork or potato masher until the avocado is nice and creamy.
- To ensure that the onion flavor doesn’t overpower the guacamole, rinse the chopped onion under running water (I used a fine mesh colander). Pat the onion dry with a paper towel.
- Add the onion, chopped cilantro and jalapeño to the bowl and mix well. Gently stir in ½ of the pomegranate arils.
- For extra presentation points, transfer the guacamole to an appropriately sized serving bowl now. Sprinkle remaining pomegranate arils over guacamole, along with some additional chopped cilantro and optional feta, if you’d like. Serve immediately. If you have leftover guacamole, cover the top with plastic wrap, pressing it against the surface to minimize oxidation. Guacamole is best fresh but will keep in the refrigerator for up to two days.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Don’t add feta.
Make it gluten free: This dip is gluten free. Choose your accompaniments wisely.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Wow! I love guacamole, but those pomegranate jewels and feta crumble really add spark to this already favourite dish. Thanks for sharing this. It looks fabulous. Merry Christmas. :)
Festive indeed!! This guac looks awesome!
I love guacamole!! Looks wonderful!
This looks fantastic. Do you have any tips on how to neatly and efficiently de-seed pomegranates? I love them, but usually refrain because they are so labor-intensive!
I’ve found the best way to prepare pomegranates is in a bowl of water. All of the little white pieces float to the top, and it minimizes the chances of the juice getting all over the place. A win-win for sure!
Good call, I like that method, too! I’ve skipped the bowl lately but that means I get little splatters everywhere.
I found this helpful (and clean!) technique on another food blog I read:
http://www.thefauxmartha.com/2014/01/27/how-to-deseed-a-pomegranate/
Good luck!
Well, that is brilliant! I must have missed that one on Melissa’s blog. Thank you for sharing, Claudia!
Hey Daisy, pomegranates do take some work. I just heard about deseeded frozen pomegranate at Costco. I usually slice off the very top, then slice slightly into the seams so I can pull the pomegranate apart in pieces. Then I just use my fingers to gently pull off the arils. Here’s another method that sounds promising: http://www.thefauxmartha.com/2014/01/27/how-to-deseed-a-pomegranate/
Thanks Kate!! Duly noted!!
This looks ace, I would love to serve it on Christmas Eve!
Beautiful! I hope this is going to make an appearance at the Christmas party… :)
Festive indeed, love that pretty pom topping!
I’m always so optimistic trying to deseed a pomegranate…! I always make a mess! I’ll give it a go and follow your recipe. For sure though, I will not be cleaning the kitchen! :)
Thanks, Joanna! Another reader just shared this splatter-free method, might be worth a shot! http://www.thefauxmartha.com/2014/01/27/how-to-deseed-a-pomegranate/
How festive! I love the green and red together, what a creative dip!
These photos are GORGEOUS!
Thanks, Morgan! :)
I loooove all of your recipes Kate! I make them all the time and they have yet to disappoint :) I’m throwing a vegetarian dinner party over the holidays and would love any suggestions/recipes for a big veg main that’s party friendly
Hey Mackenzie! Good grief, I’m so sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner. I think this mushroom brown rice risotto would be a hit and it’s so easy! I think it would scale well, too. This butternut pasta would be a show stopper. This broccoli pasta always goes over well. If you want to go with a Mexican theme, these tacos are fun and so is this tortilla soup. I’m also a big fan of this hearty soup. Your question made me realize that I need more party dishes, I’ll work on those!
Soooooo good. (And gorgeous!)
This is gorgeous Kate! I’m obsessed with pomegranates lately, too. So good for you–plus they make everything pretty. :)
I’m sure the Guac-Gods would forgive you this one. The tartness of the pom would definitely brighten the creaminess of the avocado. Love this Kate!
I love pomegranate guac! And, it’s so pretty!!
i want to dive right into this bowl.
I could eat that whole bowl. Looks delicious and very Christmasy without being overly Christmasy…if that makes sense!
Yep, makes sense to me! :)
Ooh! Such a great idea, and a beautiful color contrast too! I bet the pomegranate seeds give that perfect little acid kick to each bite of guacamole.
I am obsessed with pomegranates, so much that Aaron made me a little 3D pomegranate avatar for my blog (which I no longer use as the pomegranate teeth looked a little evil… haha). They are so spectacular to look at and the flavour melds so well with both sweet and savoury. I love the idea of this twist on guacamole. I can imagine how good the little pops of pomegranate sweetness would be with the gorgeous creamy avocado. Yum xxx
OBSESSED with green and pink. LIKE LITERALLY. I need this in my life, like every day.
Love it! There’s a restaurant in Philly I’ve been to that does a pomegranate guacamole. I think theirs also has goat cheese and a balsamic reduction… Definitely different, but tasty. Either way, I always love having fruit in my guac for that sweet/tart contrast. This would be a great winter spin on guacamole for a holiday party for sure.
I mean, this just looks like a party waiting to happen!
I have been looking for a healthy starter recipe…I know this is what i wanted..It looks yumm!!
I just love this version of the classic quacamole! Perfect, especially if you’re as obsessed with the beauty and deliciousness of pomegranates as I am :) Last Christmas, I even made a pomegranate infused vodka…
Thanks, Sini! I’m so smitten with pomegranates right now. Just enjoyed some on my morning granola. Your pomegranate vodka sounds marvelous. Happy holidays!
Oh wow, this combination looks so amazing. Cant wait to try!
Hey Kate, I was wondering if you can help, I love cooking vegetarian weekdays for my husband and I but whenever I have company over I feel like I need to make something with meat, plus I stress over what to make. Any suggestions? :)
Hey Candice! That’s a really good question. I find that people are happy eating really hearty dishes (like my butternut chili) and umami-rich recipes, like my veggie fajitas with mushrooms or mushroom risotto. Hope that helps a little!
Mmm I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a HIT! The presentation is gorgeous.. we skipped the feta and added a drizzle of honey. Perfect!
I’ve used this recipe countless times – a definite palate and crowd pleaser. I love the added tartness and crunch from the pomegranate seeds to the familiar guacamole flavour.
That is great, Dorothy! It is a nice compliment. I appreciate your comment and review!
Made this recipe today for an office guacamole contest…and won!
Congrats, Jenna! That’s great.
Was delicious! Big hit with my teenage son! He said it was the best Guac he has ever had. Thank you for sharing! I added grated cotija instead of feta and skipped the step of washing the onion since I was in a hurry.
That’s great to hear, VS! I appreciate your review.