I don't know what it is about the taste of sweet down south. Maybe sweet things just help to take our minds off of the heat, who knows. We sure like our desserts in The Deep South, no doubt about that, and some of us like our mayonnaise sweet, our sauces sweet, our cornbread sweet, and we sure like our watermelon rind pickles sweet!
Many southerners have very fond memories of sittin' on the back porch, or more likely a picnic table in the middle of the yard {the better to hose us down with}, parked in front of big slices of sticky, sweet watermelon, holding a knife in one hand to cut the juicy pulp off the rind, and very often a salt shaker in the other, and havin' seed spittin' contests with or at our siblings.
Some of us also remember our Mamas or a Grandmas taking up those leftover watermelon rinds and creating batches of pickles out of them. I'm not so sure it's a widely held practice anymore and that's kinda sad really. Yes, it's true ... it's a little bit of work for what the output is, but imagine the delight in your child's eye when you take the rind of a watermelon that is often just thrown out in the trash, and you turn it into these delectable, super sweet pickles that can be used on sandwiches, in salads, or just eaten straight out of the Mason jar! And imagine if you will, years from now, that child now an adult, reminiscing of those fond memories of his or her Mama makin' pickles out of watermelon.
Well, we had plenty of watermelon growing up - that's for sure - but I don't remember my Mama or my Grandma making one single batch of pickles from that rind! Such deprivation!! Well, I decided that I was gonna finally get around to makin' some myself, for my own little lonesome, since neither The Hubs nor The Son care for pickles much, sweet or otherwise. Perhaps that would have been different had I had the privilege of growin' up with these little delectable sweet things.
I used a medium sized seedless watermelon that my Mother-in-Law had given to us and it had a fairly thin rind on it. A regular watermelon has a thicker rind so if you use that type, you'll have thicker pickles.
True, this is a process that takes time and a goodly bit of work. And they're not quite what you expect from a sweet cucumber pickle though I would go so far as to say that they are somewhat similar to bread & butter pickles - those delectable sweet things! I think it was worth the effort! Give 'em a try sometime and see what you think.
Watermelon Rind Pickles
Adapted from a Southern Living Recipe
From the Kitchen of Deep South Dish
1 large watermelon
3 quarts of water
3/4 cup of table salt
2 quarts of ice cubes
Fresh water, just to cover rinds
Square of cheesecloth & piece of string
1 tablespoon of whole cloves
1 tablespoon of whole allspice
3 cups of fresh water
3 cups of white vinegar
9 cups of sugar
1 lemon, sliced thin
4 to 5 prepared pint sized Mason jars
Peel the watermelon, remove & reserve pulp. Cut the rind into 1-inch sized cubes until you have about 12 cups of cubes.
In a large pot, stir the water and salt together until salt is dissolved. Add the rind to the salt mixture and top with the ice; cover and let stand for 8 hours.
Drain, rinse the pot and rinse the rinds well, returning them to the pot. Add enough water to just cover the rinds, bring to a boil and boil until rinds are tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Make a packet with the cloves and allspice by placing them into a square of cheesecloth and tying it with a string. In that same pot you've been using, add 3 cups of fresh water, and stir in the vinegar and sugar. Place the spice packet into the water and bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, turn off heat, and add the rind to the sugar mixture. Stir in the slices of lemon, cover and let stand for at least 8 hours.
Bring the rind mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, prepare the lids & jars and keep them warm. Pack the mixture into the hot jars, to 1/2 inch from the top. Remove any air bubbles and wipe off the jar rim with a clean dishcloth dipped into the hot water. Cover with the lids and tighten a band on the jar. Process the jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
Makes about 4 pint jars, depending on the size of your rinds.
Source: http://www.deepsouthdish.com
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15 comments:
Oh Mary, this reminds me of the ones my mother made during the summer when we were kids growing up in Idaho. We ate a LOT of watermelon during the summer and she would make these. She also made them with red cinnamon candies so they were red and really sweet. I can almost taste them now. Might have to make some this summer.
Hey Bev! Well, it was my first round so next time I just might have to add those red candies and give that a try!! Sounds good. Be sure to let me know if you blog about 'em!!
Well, I do remember the backyard scene, but never had rind pickles...they look really good!!!!
I've always wanted to try pickled watermelon rinds. They intrigue me...thank you for the recipe!! And oh, cinnamon candies...good addition!
I saw a link to this on Tootsie Blog, my Mom used to make these. She died 22 years ago and I had given up that I would ever find a recipe, thank you for including this. My mom use to put red or green food coloring in hers. I can't wait to try making some.
What a wonderful recipe. Have you ever tried wrapping cubes of watermelon pickle with bacon? It was served as party finger food years ago and it was wonderful:-).
These are so good. I made them one year and haven't thought about them since. I'll have to get my canning thinking cap on!
Hi Mary, I was just going to ask if you had a recipe for the watermelon pickles made with redhot candies. My Ma-Maw made those for us every year. Those were my favorites. I just planted watermelon yesterday--I thought I had planted some earlier but I can't seem to find them!! Hopefully I have enough so I can make these for my kids. Sheila in NC
Mary, my grandmother made a Boiled Cucumber Salad. I recently obtained her recipe file and it was in there:
Boil cucumbers in salted water for fifteen minutes then mash; add cream and dash paprika. Hmmmm, I remember this but didn't remember it being cucumbers. Have you ever seen this?
now this is one thing I have never even heard of ! they sound very interesting..I might just have to try it!
It was fun making these Joyce and recalling those backyard memories!
Heather, they aren't hard at all, just time consuming since there are a couple of long soaks.
Awwww Betty. I lost my Mama too back in 1997 and I sorely miss her to this day.
Mary I haven't - but bacon? Hey, can't be bad, right?
Karen, better get busy making a batch LOL!
Sheila, I planted watermelon too - so far I have a few, that is if they stay safe from the critters!
Bev, not familiar with that one, but I'll try to remember to look into it for ya!
Tootsie, it was fun "creating" pickles out of watermelon rind!
ooh. . .I just got a canner for my birthday :) I'll need to try this!
I've always wondered how these were made. Thank you for posting this. What sweet memories!
My problem is when it comes to sweet pickles, well I love 'em right out of the jar. Easy to get carried away...
My grandmother use to make watermelon rind pickles and I loved them sooooooo much! I can't wait to try this recipe. Sophia
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