Yellow Doll, Midnight Delight, Crimson Sweet and Jubilee sound more like a team of Thoroughbred horses, but they’re varieties of just some of the watermelons filling big bins in produce stands and farmers markets this time of year.
Watermelons, says Trey Deck, owner of The Melon Patch farmers market in Chickamauga, Georgia, are the best thirst quencher when the days are long, the temperatures skyrocket and sweat pours from your brow.
“My favorite way to eat them will always be fresh-cut in the field under a hot sunny day in Georgia,” he says. “There’s nothing better than fresh-cut.”
The Melon Patch is stocked with all sorts of produce – summer tomatoes, blueberries, blackberries, peaches – but it’s the watermelons that have helped keep his family in business, Deck says. “We built our business on watermelons,” he says.
His interest in melons began one summer day years ago on a ride to help a friend haul a load of cantaloupes back home to sell. That trip planted a seed. They sold so well, Deck ended up making a business of it, expanding to include all kinds of melons at his roadside market along Lee and Gordon Mill Road in Chickamauga. He also sells them at the Chattanooga Market, chain stores, the public – “Anyone who wants to buy them, we are all in,” Deck says.
The largest watermelon he’s grown in his fields in South Georgia has been an 80-pound Carolina Cross. It wasn’t the largest on record, though. That goes to a 350-pounder grown in Sevierville, Tennessee.
“When I slow down, I’m going to beat that record,” Deck says.
Watermelons, when ripe and ready, typically weigh around 8 pounds for Yellow Dolls, a petite little melon compared to hefty Jubilees, which weigh in around 30 pounds.
How to tell if a watermelon is ripe?
How to tell if a watermelon is ripe?
There’s really nothing worse than an unripe watermelon. It’s not sweet at all and a total disappointment. To make sure you get ruby red, sweet flesh inside, here’s what to do:
Check the lighter spot where the watermelon rested in the field. It’s called a field spot. If the field spot is white, it’s unripe. If the spot is yellow, it’s ripe.
The melon should feel heavy. That translates to lots of juice inside, and that’s exactly what you want.
Once was, the only watermelons you could find were packed with seeds. Today’s melons come seedless, but Deck prefers those with seeds.
“They really have the best flavor,” he says.
Whether with seeds or without, watermelons and summer go hand in hand in the South. These unexpected dishes will help quench your hankering.
Watermelon Salad
What you need:
8 cups cubed watermelon
1 cup sliced cucumber
2 ounces feta cheese
Zest of 1/2 lemon
4 basil leaves, chopped or chiffonade
Sea salt, for garnish
What you do:
Arrange watermelon and cucumber on a platter. Sprinkle with feta crumbles, lemon zest, basil, and garnish with sea salt. Taste and adjust flavors as desired. If you’d like, you can add freshly ground black pepper or a drizzle of olive oil. Serve immediately.
* Note: Watermelon is just that: watery. If making ahead, refrigerate cubed watermelon separately as it will release a lot of water after it is cut. Assemble salad just before serving.
Watermelon Rind Bruschetta
What you need:
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cups watermelon rind, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2/3 cup red-wine vinegar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh basil, plus more for garnish
12 baguette slices, toasted
1 (4-ounce) package spreadable goat cheese
What you do:
1. Heat olive oil in medium-large pot over medium heat. Add watermelon rind and onion. Cook 10-12 minutes or until softened, stirring regularly.
2. Add garlic, salt and pepper. Stir and cook 3-5 minutes more.
3. Add vinegar, brown sugar and 1 tablespoon basil. Stir to combine. Cook mixture over medium heat 15-20 minutes more, or until almost all of the liquid is absorbed.
2. Spread each toasted baguette slice with equal amount of goat cheese. Divide and spoon warm watermelon rind mixture over goat cheese on each baguette slice. Top evenly with extra chopped basil, if desired.
Watermelon Shrimp
What you need:
2 whole-wheat pitas (8 inches each), each cut into 8 triangles
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
12 ounces medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
1/2 cup sliced shallots
4 cups cubed seedless watermelon
1/4 teaspoon salt (preferably kosher)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 large cucumber, peeled and chopped
2 ounces crumbled feta
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 limes, cut into wedges
What you do:
1. Heat oven to 450 Fahrenheit. On a baking sheet, toast pita triangles, turning once, until crisp and brown, 3-5 minutes each side.
2. In a large skillet, heat oil over high heat. Cook shrimp and shallots, stirring, until shrimp is pink and shallots are crisp, 2-4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
3. In same skillet, cook watermelon and 1/4 cup water over high heat, stirring, until liquid becomes syrupy, about 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat. Add shrimp mixture, salt and pepper. Stir.
4. Divide shrimp-watermelon mixture (warm or chilled) among four plates. Add cucumber and feta. Sprinkle with dill and mint. Serve with four pita pieces each and lime wedges.
Watermelon Mojito
Think of this as a grown-up slushy. Allow plenty of time before serving, as this needs to freeze for hours. Make it in the morning and it will be ready in time for a late-afternoon thirst quencher.
What you need:
7 cups chopped seedless watermelon
1/3 cup white rum
1/3 cup mint jelly
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 2 limes)
What you do:
1. Process all ingredients in a blender until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pour mixture into a 13-by 9-inch baking dish, cover and freeze 3 1/2 hours.
2. Uncover, then scrape mixture surface with a fork until it resembles a slushy. Cover and freeze for 3 more hours.
3. Uncover, then scrape mixture surface again and serve in cups garnished with a basil sprig, if desired.