Pickled Watermelon Recipe

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Pickled watermelon is truly delicious and I do not mean just watermelon rind pickle, I mean the whole thing, rind and the flesh of the watermelon. Simply sliced and put in a jar for pickling. It's divine and best served with ... almost anything apart from soups and desserts. Haha, just try me.

Pickled watermelon slices with pickled carrot in a white serving dish and a few more slices at the back top left side in an oval white plate

The texture of this pickled watermelon is something you will definitely enjoy and the reason for that is because it is so unique! The flavor too! Just try it and if you are a pickle-head like myself, you will definitely enjoy this with any pilaf or any fried meat or BBQ.

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🧂Fermented food
📖 Pickled watermelon origins
🍉What are the health benefits of salt pickling?
🥘 Ingredients
What is pickling?
💭 FAQs:
What else could be salt pickled?
Pickled Watermelon Recipe

🧂Fermented food

Eastern Europeans (Russian, Romanians, and all the Slavic countries) love their pickles. Fermented foods can aid digestion and help with good gut bacteria, particularly good when eating rich and hearty foods to complement staple bland foods like bread, rice, and potatoes.

Like many great culinary traditions, pickling practice and preserving were a necessity. The fresh fruit and vegetable season is relatively short-lived so preserving as much as possible produce (pickles, jams, casseroles (like 'zacusca') became essential to preserve freshly harvested produce for the dark, ugly, and cold winter season.

Historically, most food preservation was made using salt to pickle using a natural fermentation process as opposed to vinegar-based pickling resulting in pickles that were less sour or acidic.

You may also want to try my raw sauerkraut with turmeric recipe, a phenomenally beneficial recipe.

📖 Pickled watermelon origins

Pickled watermelon is pretty unique and has a distinctive flavor. Historically was a winter season product made by German immigrants in Russia. They used to pickle whole watermelons in wooden barrels. When the jars were invented, they were pickling just the red part (the flesh) of the watermelon which is quite different from other ethnic groups who were and still are just pickling the rind. Pickled watermelon rind is, therefore, more common, especially in Asia.

During the late 1800s and early 1900s, European Jews introduced dill pickles to America when they started to arrive in New York but I am not sure whether pickled watermelon is a thing in the US at all. One more reason why this should become famous.

I am unsure how you feel about it but I definitely cannot live without pickles. I particularly like and prefer the salt pickles over the vinegar ones for three reasons:
1) health benefits (I will tell you a little later all about this);
2) they are pleasant and a lot tastier than any vinegar-pickled stuff;
3) they are so easy to prepare - when I say easy, trust me I mean that!

🍉What are the health benefits of salt pickling?

Pickling is a very old food preservation technique. People can make pickles from almost any food but, for many, pickles mean just pickled cucumbers. Where I come from, this is definitely not the case and pickles mean a general word for everything that is salt pickled.

Salt pickles, unlike vinegar pickles, are a strong probiotic source. Probably the cheapest too. They make a superb source of natural supplements protecting our body’s microbiome (gut environment) and supporting the growth of healthful bacteria in the gut.

Salt pickles, in general, need to be consumed in moderation by those that have cardiovascular issues due to the higher salt content. However, my recipe only uses 1 tablespoon of salt for each liter of water which is higher but not that high compared with some recipes that I have seen posted.

🥘 Ingredients

Not many, as you can see you will only need 6 main ingredients apart from salt and water. Here is the list of what you need:

watermelon - the best ones are the smaller ones and particularly the ones that are not overripe or the ones that you buy and aren't the sweetest/tastiest
carrots - it is not a must to add carrots but I love pickled carrots and they look nice too
dill seeds - these are great flavor enhancers but if you do not have seeds you may use dried dill branches - they are as good. I do not recommend using fresh dill as this will get mushy.
celery - is an important ingredient for flavor but also helps pickles remain firm
garlic - use nice organic garlic - no need to crush it - you may even leave it unpeeled
horseradish root - helps pickles stay firm
salt - the salt type you add to pickles is crucial. It must be untreated salt type - cave or kosher salt is the best choice. In some places, it is known as pickling salt.
water - measure it before so you know how much salt to add so you are not left with any salty water that you may have to throw away.

Tips

Measure the water for pickles correctly by arranging the ingredients in the jars. Add the water to each jar and then pour it all out in a measuring jug so you add the correct amount of salt. More salt will mean your pickles will end up too salty (unnecessary)

Fresh watermelon sliced and quartered for pickling, salt in a tiny dish, dill seeds and carrot, garlic cloves, celery leaves, on a white plate

What is pickling?

💭 FAQs:

How long does it take to make pickled watermelon?

Pickling watermelon does not take long at all. It can take from 3-5 days all depending on the ambient and the temperatures. During summer, it will take approximately 3 days whereas during winter will take longer. It also depends on how sour you like them, meaning that the sourer you'd want them, the longer you will need to let them pickle.

How to store this pickled watermelon?

During the pickling process, you will need to keep them out at room temperature (sitting in the sun for a few hours a day will speed up the pickling process.

Once you are happy with the level of sourness, store them in the refrigerator in the original jar (lid on) for up to 2-3 months (if they will last). They will never last this long in my household, but I make one small-medium melon at one time and I make it throughout the year.

Is salt important in this pickled watermelon recipe?

Salt type and the amount are paramount in this recipe and any salt pickles recipe.
Using the correct salt amount is very important as this will make or break the recipe. If you use regular processed salt, your pickled watermelon will get get mushy and the brine will be slimey. Just make sure you do have the correct salt type before you are getting started with the recipe.
The salt amount is also important in this salt-pickled watermelon recipe as too much salt is not pleasant nor healthy and insuficient salt amount will have an impact on texture and definitely the quality.
You will need to up the amount of salt if you wish to make this recipe for a longer period of time.

Does pickling always mean adding vinegar?

No, pickling has not always involved adding vinegar. Historically, pickling was primarily done through fermentation, with no use of vinegar. Vinegar was not even available initially so people used salt and brine (saltwater solution) to pickle. The salt in the brine helps with creating an environment that inhibited the growth of harmful bacteria and supports the growth of beneficial bacteria. These beneficial bacteria converts the natural sugars in the food into lactic acid through the process of lacto-fermentation and it is what is giving the pickles their tangy flavor. Yummy!

Pickled watermelon quarter slices with pickled carrot in a white serving dish

Pickled watermelon goes well with :

More ways to eat watermelon:

Watermelon and feta salad
Three ways to eat watermelon by Watermelon.org

What else could be salt pickled?

I pickle almost everything and I do this several times per year. Salt pickles or brine pickles are a fantastic source of probiotics. I use all sorts of fruits (yes, fruits like apples, and quince) and vegetables to pickle (see a whole list of what I dare to pickle) - almost anything you can think of, haha.

I grew up knowing eating pickled watermelon - it was done as a whole in a large barrel. Sometimes it was just watermelons, sometimes mixed with green tomatoes, carrots, celeriac, and other fruits ( applesor vegetables. My mum also used to pickle whole cabbage too.

I now pickle in small quantities and thus the watermelon gets chopped and I love adding courgette (zucchini) chunks, carrots, celeriac, and any root veggies that you may fancy.

Other fruit and veggies that we could salt pickle:

green beans (blanched to preserve a nice vibrant color);
cauliflower;
courgettes/zucchinis;
garlic;
red onion /brown onion;
swede;
peppers;
chilies;
cabbage (red or white) - chopped or whole
cucumbers (whole baby ones, slices, or chunks)
green mirabelle plums

Here is an example of mixed pickled watermelon, celeriac, courgette, or zucchini and carrot)

Watermelon slices in jars pickling — Pickling watermelon in jars

Let's get a few jars out and get on with some easy pickling!!

Have you made this pickled watermelon recipe?

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