Pickled Watermelon Recipe

Pickled watermelon is truly delicious and I do not mean just watermelon rind pickle, I mean the whole thing, the 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.

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.

Jump to:

• 🧐Does pickling always mean adding vinegar?
• 🧂Fermented food
• 📖 Pickled watermelon origins
• 🍉What are the health benefits of salt pickling?
• 🥘 Ingredients
• 📌Tips
• 💭 Recipe FAQs:
• 🤹What else could be salt pickled?
• 🍽️ Pickled watermelon goes well with
• 👩🏻‍🍳More ways to eat watermelon
• Pickled Watermelon Recipe

🧐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 (salt water solution) to pickle. The salt in the brine helps with creating an environment that inhibits the growth of harmful bacteria and supports the growth of beneficial bacteria. These beneficial bacteria convert 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!

🧂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 which is totally unnecessary.

💭 Recipe FAQs:

🤹What else could be salt pickled?

I pickle almost everything - see this pickled garlic recipe 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 (apples or 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)

🍽️ Pickled watermelon goes well with

• Kidney and Pinto Bean Hummus
• Smoked pork joint, sausages and butter beans stew
• Best ever quail eggs, potato and mushrooms brunch
• Easy Spanish Omelette (Spanish Tortilla)
• English breakfast in a flash
• Delightful breakfast stack
• Healthy Potato Salad
• Giant Potato And Cauliflower Filo Samosa

👩🏻‍🍳More ways to eat watermelon

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

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

Have you made this salt-pickled watermelon recipe?

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