What Goes With Avocado Toast is honestly one of those questions that sounds simple until you’re standing in the kitchen at 7am with half a ripe avocado and no real plan. Most people default to a fried egg and call it done. That works, but you’re leaving a lot on the table.

Avocado toast became a cultural flashpoint around 2015, though its roots go back further than the brunch crowd suggests. Australian cafes were serving smashed avocado on toast in the mid-1990s, and before that, Mexican households had been piling seasoned avocado onto bread for generations. The dish crossed into mainstream Western menus slowly, then all at once.

What makes it such a good base is the fat content. A standard half-avocado brings around 15 grams of monounsaturated fat, plus potassium, folate, and decent fiber. That fat is why bold, acidic, or spicy toppings land so well on it. They absorb into the avocado without disappearing under it.

What actually goes on top?

More than you think. Here are ten toppings worth keeping in regular rotation, split roughly by flavor profile.

• Poached or fried egg (classic protein boost)
• Everything bagel seasoning
• Cherry tomatoes, halved and lightly salted
• Smoked salmon and capers
• Crumbled feta or cotija cheese
• Thinly sliced radish
• Pickled red onion
• Red pepper flakes and lemon zest
• Microgreens or arugula
• A drizzle of chili crisp oil

Chili crisp became the one I’d reach for most in 2023. It adds heat, texture, and a savory depth that plain red flakes can’t match, and a small jar runs about $4-6 and lasts weeks. Smoked salmon is the pricier option (usually $1.50-2.50 per serving depending on where you shop), but it turns the whole thing into something you’d pay $16 for at a cafe.

Flavor combinations that hold up

Toppings are one thing. Flavor combinations are where it gets interesting. These five have worked every time I’ve made them for people who claim they don’t care about food.

Mediterranean: Feta, sliced cucumber, kalamata olives, and a pinch of dried oregano. Bright and salty. Japanese-inspired: Sesame oil, sliced scallions, furikake, and a soft-boiled egg. Surprisingly cohesive. Spicy-sweet: Mango salsa, jalapeño, and a squeeze of lime. Sounds chaotic, works beautifully. Classic deli: Smoked salmon, capers, thinly sliced red onion, and a little cream cheese underneath the avocado. Harvest: Roasted butternut squash, pumpkin seeds, and a drizzle of balsamic glaze. Good in fall, better the second day.

The deli version is the most crowd-pleasing, in my experience. But the harvest version is what people ask about afterward.

How you prep it matters

There are three main approaches, and they suit different situations. Smashed: Fork the avocado directly onto toasted bread, season with flaky salt, lemon juice, and black pepper. Takes two minutes, best for mornings when you just need to eat. Whipped: Blend the avocado with cream cheese or Greek yogurt until smooth. Spreads more evenly, holds up better under heavy toppings, and tastes richer. Adds maybe five minutes. Sliced: Fan thin avocado slices over the toast rather than smashing. Better texture, cleaner look, slightly more fussy. Worth it for the salmon combination.

Sourdough is the standard bread choice, and for good reason. The tang plays off the fat in the avocado nicely. Whole grain works too and adds fiber. I’d skip plain white sandwich bread if you can; it goes soggy faster than you’d expect.

What a serving actually costs

Per serving, a basic avocado toast runs roughly $1.80-2.50 if you’re buying ingredients yourself. A ripe avocado is $0.80-1.50 depending on season, one or two slices of good sourdough adds another $0.40-0.60, and salt, lemon, and olive oil are fractions of a cent. Adding an egg pushes it to around $2.50-3.00. The salmon version lands at $4-5 per serving, which still undercuts most cafes by $10 or more.

What’s worth trying right now

Knowing What Goes With Avocado Toast in the current moment means paying attention to what’s showing up on menus and in home kitchens. In 2023, two combinations got serious traction: cottage cheese as a base layer under the avocado (high protein, mild flavor, pairs well with everything bagel seasoning), and burrata on top of smashed avocado with roasted cherry tomatoes. The burrata version is rich to the point of being indulgent, which is probably why it spread so fast.

Both are worth trying. The cottage cheese version is more filling than it looks, and if you’re eating this as a full meal rather than a snack, that matters a lot.

Getting your pairings right

The real answer to What Goes With Avocado Toast is: something that adds contrast. Avocado is creamy, mild, and fatty, so it needs acid, crunch, salt, or heat to feel complete. That’s the logic behind every combination that works. Once you understand that, you can improvise without ending up with something flat.

Start with the smashed base, nail your seasoning, then build from there. Don’t pile on five toppings at once until you know how each one behaves. And buy slightly underripe avocados the day before you need them. Leaving them on the counter overnight is more reliable than anything else I’ve tried, though I’ll admit ripeness is still the part I misjudge most often.

FAQs

What are the best toppings for avocado toast?

Eggs, smoked salmon, pickled onion, and chili crisp oil are the most reliable. Everything bagel seasoning is a quick upgrade that works on almost any version.

How can I make avocado toast healthier?

Use whole grain bread, skip added oil, and add vegetables like radish, microgreens, or tomatoes. A poached egg adds protein without much saturated fat.

What is the history of avocado toast?

Australian cafes popularized it in the 1990s, though Mexican cuisine had used seasoned avocado on bread long before. It went mainstream globally around 2015.