Ask any millennial, and they’ll tell you the secret to buying the perfect avocado: get it just before it’s fully ripe.

Years of practice, especially since those Buzzfeed articles in 2015, have perfected their timing. Keep your avocado on the kitchen counter while it ripens, and avoid refrigerating it until it’s ready. But once you cut it open, be prepared for a very short shelf life—it’s a race to eat it before it goes brown!