I first encountered pickled watermelon rind in one of my favorite cookbooks, The Gefilte Manifesto, which is all about Ashkenazi cooking and therefore has a whole chapter of pickles; many of which are really creative and all of which (that I’ve made) are delicious. It warms my sustainable home cook’s heart to see watermelon rind used at all, let alone in such a beautiful way. I mean, just look at those ombre pickles. Swoon!
That recipe inspired this pico de gallo, which is everything you want in a condiment. It’s spicy, salty, sweet, bright, and addictive.
You’ll notice I didn’t include a number of servings in the recipe below because it’s complicated. Bear with me. The pickled watermelon recipe yields 5 cups. The pico de gallo recipe uses only 1 of those cups, and yields 2 cups of salsa. You can of course make as much or as little as you like of either as long as you stick to the proportions, but I do it this way for a reason. I want to pickle as much of the watermelon rind as I have, since it will last in the fridge for a couple of months. Fresh watermelon on the other hand, once it’s cut up, will only last a couple of days. So the pico de gallo is not a recipe to make in bulk. Make what you intend to consume within a day or two, and make it again in a few weeks when the craving strikes again. I’m pretty sure it will.
NOTE: The pickling spice I use is from McCormick and you can grab it in grocery store.
EQUIPMENT: Cutting Board, Large Chef’s Knife, Paring Knife, Vegetable Peeler, Large Pot, Colander or Strainer, Mason Jars, Small Bowl
Pickled Watermelon Pico de Gallo
Ingredients
- PICKLED WATERMELON RIND (adapted from The Gefilte Manifesto)
- 2 lbs Watermelon Rind
- 6 1/2 cups Water
- 4 1/2 tbsp Kosher Salt
- 1 1/2 cups Distilled White Vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups Sugar
- 1 tbsp Pickling Spice
- PICO DE GALLO
- 1 cup Pickled Watermelon Rind, diced
- 1 cup Watermelon, diced
- 1 tbsp fresh Jalapeño, diced
- 2 tsp fresh Cilantro, chopped
- 2 tsp fresh Mint, chopped
- 1 Lime
Directions
- Step 1 Using a vegetable peeler, remove the outer skin from the watermelon. Then separate the fruit from the rind. I find it easiest to cut it into inch-wide slices, then use a paring knife to cut the away the fruit from each slice (which can be snacked on, or tossed in the blender for juice). TIP: Leave a tiny bit of pink flesh on the rind for aesthetics, but don’t leave too much or it will get soggy. Cut your rind into 2 inch by 1/2 inch rectangles.
- Step 2 Bring the water and salt to a boil and add the watermelon rind. Boil for about 5 minutes. They will get slightly softer and paler. Drain and set aside.
- Step 3 To the empty pot, add the vinegar, sugar, and pickling spice to make a brine. Bring to a boil. Once the sugar is fully dissolved, add the rinds and cook for 5 to 8 minutes.
- Step 4 Transfer the rinds to clean mason jars and carefully pour the brine over the top until they’re fully submerged. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate overnight.
- Step 5 Chop a cup’s worth of pickled rind into a very small dice (the fancy name is Brunoise), and combine with a cup of fresh watermelon (diced to the same size), the jalapeño, herbs, and lime juice. Serve with chips, or on anything that could use a fun, creative condiment.
Using a vegetable peeler, remove the outer skin from the watermelon. 
Cut into slices, and remove the fruit from the rind. 
Cut the rind into 2 inch by 1/2 inch rectangles.
