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August 3rd is National Watermelon Day, and we just made our first batch of dehydrated watermelon.
We don’t have a dehydrator; we just used our oven and two ingredients, watermelon and lime juice.
The result is sweet and chewy with a pleasant vegetal undertones, a bit crispy and chip-like at the edges, and a fruit leather-ish texture in the middle.
Below:
> Dehydrated watermelon recipe.
> Beyond snacking: savory and sweet ways to use dehydrated watermelon.
> 30+ more watermelon recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, drinks, plus non-alcoholic beverages.
Elsewhere on The Nibble:
> The history of watermelon.
> Watermelon nutrition.
> Watermelon tips: buying and storing.
RECIPE: DEHYDRATED WATERMELON
Thanks to Gelson’s, one of America’s great high-end supermarkets, for the recipe.
Ingredients For 8 Servings
- 1 mini seedless watermelon
- Juice of 1 lime
- Cooking spray
- Optional garnish: a light dusting of chili-lime seasoning or sugar
Preparation
- PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Place 3 wire racks onto 3 rimmed baking sheets. Spray each wire rack with cooking spray.
- CUT the rind off the watermelon and slice the watermelon into ¼”-thick triangles. Place the slices on the wire racks, leaving ¼” between each slice. Drizzle the slices with lime juice.
- BAKE for 5 to 5½ hours, or until the slices have dried out and are quite thin, like chips. Immediately remove the slices from the wire racks and place on a piece of parchment to cool.
- EAT or store in an airtight container for up to 10 days.
While garnishing is not part of the original recipe, we had a jar of Tajín, tried it, liked it, and then tried another piece with a sprinkle of sugar. So you can appeal to the chile lovers as well as those with a sweet tooth.
13 MORE USES FOR DEHYDRATED WATERMELON
When you’re not snacking on whole pieces, cut them into curls, ribbons, shards, or small dice and use them in the following ways. The irregular leathery texture can look “premium.”
Sweet Uses
- Breakfast topping: Snip over oatmeal, granola, chia pudding, or smoothie bowls.
- Chocolate bark: Press pieces into dark or white chocolate with flaky salt or chile flakes.
- Cocktail garnish: Cut into strips for a skewer or float a small piece on a drink.
- Dessert garnish: Cut into shards or ribbons for cheesecake, fruit salad, ice cream, panna cotta, etc.
- Ice cream: Chop into small pieces and fold into chocolate or vanilla ice cream, coconut or lime sorbet.
- Pastry filling: Dice and layer into hand pies, rugelach, thumbprint cookies, or turnovers.
- Trail mix: Combine with roasted pistachios, cashews, coconut, cacao nibs, and dried berries.
Savory Uses
- Charcuterie board: Pair with any cured meats.
- Cheese board: Serve alongside fresh fruits with semisoft cheeses like Brie/Camembert, Cambozola, triple-crèmes, and Taleggio; or with salty, tangy cheeses like cotija, feta, goat cheese, halloumi, and queso fresco.
- Grain bowls: Add small chopped pieces to couscous, farro, or rice with herbs and toasted nuts.
- Salad: Slice thinly into a watermelon, feta, mint, and arugula salad.
- Salsa/relish: Dice with jalapeño, lime, cilantro, and red onion for a sweet-spicy salsa or relish.
- Sandwich/wrap: Use thin strips with fresh mozzarella and basil, prosciutto, or turkey.
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[1] Dehydrated watermelon is a snap to make (photo © Gelson’s).
[2] We immediately crowd our ice cream with the dehydrated melon (photo © The Nibble).
[3] Use a mini seedless watermelon (photo © The Nibble).
[4] Drizzle with lime for a bit of tang (photo © The Nibble).
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