Watermelon Rind Pickles

I know, you're thinking "What are those?" Not the juicy red part, not the hard dark green part, it's the white part in between! And it's pickled!

I think of pickled watermelon rinds as a food eaten in the South. That's where watermelons grow, right? And, growing up in Northwestern Montana didn't expose me to many Southern delicacies. Now, however, I live as far south as I ever have in my life (and as far east as I ever have). Iowa! The greatest thing about leaving the mountains, the fresh air, the clear rivers and cold lakes of Montana behind to move to Iowa?

Watermelons are in season here at the end of August!

I think this is the first time I've had a local watermelon that hasn't been shipped to me from somewhere "down south." So, why not make watermelon rind pickles to celebrate my move south-east? (I know, Iowa's not exactly what you would refer to as south-east, but compared to growing up in Montana, living in Oregon and then Alaska, Iowa is south-east to me!)

I got the recipe for watermelon rind pickles from the local cookbook, published by the Local Foods Connection, a nonprofit with a mission to deliver local foods to low-income residents of Iowa City. The recipe is kind of vague, likely written down from memory by someone who grew up making these pickles every summer. It's hard to explain to a newbie in watermelon pickle making every small step along the way. So, I just jumped in and gave these pickles a try.

I started by separating the watermelon rinds from the fleshy center and the hard outer rind. There is a little bit of red flesh on some pieces, but I think this gives the rinds some character. So you don't forget where they came from!

The next step is to let them soak for a long time! First in alum and water (I think to help them retain a crisp bite), then boiling them, then soaking in ice water (Not sure why they need to soak in the ice water, but I'm not taking any chances here).

Next, the fun part. Boiling lemons until they are very tender. This smells amazing!

(I know, my pot is dented. It's a casualty from the move to Iowa!) The lemon juice reduced down to a thick lemon-y syrup.

Finally, I mixed lemons + rinds + sweet vinegar syrup and cooked until the rinds seemed appropriately tender (this was a complete guess on my part).

At this point, most people fill jars and heat process them to preserve them. You can process them in a hot water bath for 15 minutes and then store them to use as a special treat during the winter. But, I decided I'm eating these pickles right now! My jar went straight into the fridge to be used later this week. Maybe with barbecued chicken. Or a veggie burger. Or, straight from the jar!

What about you? How do you eat your water melon rinds?

Watermelon Rind Pickles

Adapted from the cookbook Food Roots, compiled by the Local Foods Connection

1 large watermelon, with rinds separated from melon and hard green skin, chopped into pieces about 1 in x 3 in

5 tsp alum

Ice water, enough to cover all the rinds

2 lbs lemons, sliced very thin and with seeds removed

Syrup:

1/2 c water

1/2 c white vinegar

2 c sugar

1 tsp ground allspice

2 cinnamon sticks

Directions:

In large cooking pot, cover watermelon rinds with alum diluted in cold water. 2 tsp alum to 1 qt water. I used 2 1/2 qts, so needed 5 tsp of alum. Let sit for 2 1/2 hrs.

When time is up, bring rinds to boiling and boil for 10 minutes. Drain the rinds and cover with ice water. Let sit for 2 hrs.

When the 2 hrs is almost up, place lemons in saucepan with enough water to nearly cover them. Bring to boil and cook until lemons are very tender and juice has reduced to one-third of it's original volume.

Wisk all the syrup ingredients together. It will seem like there is too much sugar for the amount of liquid, but keep wisking. It will thin out a bit once the lemon-water is added.

Mix the rinds, lemons with their juice, and the syrup together in the same large pot. Cook until rinds are tender. (I cooked them about 10 minutes).

At this point, you're done! If you want to preserve them in jars, fill sterilized jars (leaving 1/2 inch of headspace), close jars with sterilized lids and rings and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Then let sit undisturbed for 24 hrs. Make sure all the jars have sealed. If jars are not sealed, enjoy right away!