It's summer and it's getting hot here in New England. Like, heat dome hot. Yeah, that's the new meteorological buzzword on our weather reports. And I don't know about you, but when I think of heat dome I think of minty watermelon salad with cranberry goat cheese.🤣 In the summer heat, it's good to have a go-to salad to help cool you down. This dish is incredibly refreshing and it's totally addicting. So here we go!
Tips for selecting the best watermelon
Looking at a pile of watermelons at the grocery store can be overwhelming. Don't go crazy obsessing about getting a bad watermelon. Perhaps I'm painting with a broad brush here, but I don't think it's a huge issue in life. I mean, I've never actually heard someone say they got a bad watermelon and it ruined their recipe.
There are only a couple of things I look for when trying to find the best watermelon.
- It feels heavier than it should if that makes sense. Means it's nice & juicy!
- Look for yellowish spot on the outside. I read somewhere that the yellowish spot is good, but if the spot is white - run as fast as you can and don't you dare buy that watermelon. I said run! 🙂
- Knock on the watermelon. <insert knock, knock joke here> If it sounds a little hollow that means it's ripe and ready. If you have a good knock, knock joke, please share in the comments below.
Watermelon salad for hot summer days
This is a fantastic salad for your summer gatherings. Come summer in Massachusetts, watermelons are in abundance and weekend barbecues are frequent. You need a few good salads up your culinary sleeve and this one is so incredibly delicious there will not be one bite of it left - trust me!
Watermelon is one of the most popular fruits out there and I can't really think of another fruit that at least makes me *think* it's going to cool me off. Haha. I guess with the word "water" in it our minds are programmed to think hot, thirsty, water, watermelon. Anyway - watermelon rules and eating a big bowl of this on a hot day will make you feel better.
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And if you happen to be looking for some other summer salad treats you should try my Super Easy Sweet Potato Salad, Fresh and Crispy Summer Slaw (no mayo!) or my Butter Bean & Arugula Salad w/Asparagus and Pickled Red Onion
fresh herbs are best FOR watermelon salad
Mint and basil are the perfect companion for this watermelon salad. But hey, it's really up to you. You can use all mint, all basil or a little of both. Since I happen to love, love, love mint AND basil I went with both. If you have not incorporated fresh mint into your home cooking please give it a try. I love using it as a garnish for stir frys like my ginger pork stir fry with chili oil, cilantro & mint. Mint has a minimum of two food soul mates: cilantro and basil. When I make chicken biryani, I always chop a ton of cilantro and mint to top it with.
For this recipe, the balance of the sweet and juicy with the brightness of the cucumber and the freshness of the herbs is awesome!
Easy steps for making minty watermelon salad
Minty Watermelon Salad with Cranberry Goat Cheese
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 portions 1x
Description
Minty watermelon salad with cranberry goat cheese is sweet, juicy and delicious. Perfectly refreshing summer salad.
Ingredients
- 5 ½ pound watermelon (I used ½ a watermelon)
- 1 English cucumber (the long thin kind, de-seeded and cut in 1-inch pieces)
- ½ cup fresh chopped basil, plus extra for garnish
- ½ cup fresh chopped mint, plus extra for garnish
- 1 package baby or regular arugula lettuce (optional)
- 1 4-ounce container of cranberry goat cheese (or plain g.c. or feta)
For the dressing:
- ¼ cup fresh squeezed lime juice (approx. 3 limes)
- ¼ cup honey
- 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, more if needed
- Pinch of salt
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Instructions
- You’ll need a sharp knife to cut the rind (outer skin) from the watermelon. Gently slide your knife into the rind until it hits (but doesn’t cut through) the watermelon.
- Once you’ve removed the rind, make thick vertical cuts along the watermelon to cut it into sections. Then take each section and cut into thick strips, rotate the pile, and dice it into cubes from there. This is a salad so bite-sized pieces work best. Put the watermelon in a large mixing bowl. My instructional video shows all the steps very well.
- Cut the cucumber in half across the middle so you have two long halves. Then cut the halves in half vertically. Gently spoon out the soft seeds and discard. Then cut the cucumber into approximately 1” pieces. Put the cucumber in the bowl with the watermelon.
- For the dressing: cut the limes in half and squeeze the juice into a small bowl. Add the honey to a measuring cup and whisk in the lime juice. Then slowly whisk in the olive oil until you can feel it emulsifying a bit. Add a pinch of salt, mix again, and you’re done.
- I used fresh basil and mint for the herbs. You’ll need a total of ONE cup of fresh herbs. You can use all mint, or all basil or a little of both. I ended up chopping one cup of each so I had enough for tossing with the salad and extra for garnish. If you don’t think you’ll need to have extra just go with the one cup total. You can chop it down semi-fine like I did, or if you like it a little bigger you can do that too.
- If you’re using the arugula, toss a small amount of dressing with the arugula – just enough to coat the lettuce. Toss to coat and set aside a minute.
- Add mint, basil and dressing to watermelon bowl and toss with hands to coat well. I found tossing with your hands works better – I had gloves so used those.
- When you are ready to serve the salad: Spread the arugula out on a large platter. Start adding the watermelon salad to the top of the arugula. I found it was better to add by the handful. The watermelon generates a lot of water at the bottom of the mixing bowl. We don’t want to dump it on the arugula and oversaturate it. Final touch: sprinkle some cranberry goat cheese on top of the salad. Serve immediately.
- Do not start mixing and assembling the salad until you are about to serve it.
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