Summer is here, and so is watermelon, my favourite summer fruit. I am always looking for fresh and delicious ways to use it. I give you my watermelon salsa recipe, inspired by the Mexican salsa, pico de Gallo. Hey, but it's not pico de Gallo if it contains watermelon and cucumber, you may say, but wait till you try this recipe; it's an exciting variation of a classic side dish. It's fruity, sweet, and spicy, all at once. Light, refreshing and healthy. Enjoy with tortilla chips, on top of your tacos or even as a salad on its own. Perfect for parties and BBQs.
Pico de Gallo is a Mexican salsa traditionally made from tomato, onion and serrano peppers. It's a "dry" salsa containing little liquid; this version is more chunky.
For a less spicy salsa, try my simple watermelon salsa recipe.
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Ingredients For Pico De Gallo Watermelon Salsa Recipe
- Watermelon
- Cucumber
- Serrano chillis
- Sea Salt
- Lime
- Fresh coriander
- Red onion
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Remove the skin/rind from the watermelon and save it for another recipe (try my tarbooz ki sabzi recipe). Cut the red flesh into small dice.
Cut the cucumber, remove the seeds and cut into small dice.
Peel and finely chop the red onion, again, into fine dice.
Cut the chillies in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Finely dice the chillies.
Wash and dry the coriander. Finely chop the stems and roughly chop the leaves.
Add all ingredients except the coriander into a bowl and season with the salt.
Zest the lime into the bowl (I use a microplane) and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Mix to combine all of the ingredients.
Finally, add the chopped coriander and mix well.
Serve immediately with tortilla chips or as you desire.
How-To Video
Here is a video guide to making Pico de Gallo with watermelon and cucumber.
Variations
You can use jalapeno peppers instead of serrano; it gives an extra kick to the recipe.
Equipment
A microplane is ideal for zesting the lime.
Storage
Once the salt and lime juice is mixed, this dip doesn't keep well, as it releases a lot of water, so it's best to consume it immediately.
However, you can chop all the ingredients, store them separately in airtight containers, and mix them before serving.
Top Tip
Cut the watermelon and let it sit to release the melon juice. Letting it sit will reduce the amount of water content once you make the dip. You can, of course, drink the juice.
📖 Recipe
Watermelon & Cucumber Pico De Gallo
Equipment
- Digital scales
- Microplane
Ingredients
- 845 gms Watermelon 400 gms after removing skin and rind
- 250 gms Cucumber
- 50 gms Red onion
- 50 gms Serrano chillies
- 1 Lime
- 1 teaspoon Sea salt
- 20 gms Fresh coriander
Instructions
- Remove the skin/rind from the watermelon and save it for another recipe. Dice the red flesh into small dice.
- Cut the cucumber into half horizontally and then half lengthwise, then cut each side lengthwise in half again. Remove the seeds. Cut into small dice.
- Finely dice the red onion.
- Cut the chillies in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Finely dice the chillies.
- Wash and pat dry the coriander, finely chop the stems, and roughly chop the leaves.
- Add all the ingredients except the coriander into a bowl—season with salt.
- Zest the lime into the bowl and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Mix well to combine.
- Finally, add the chopped coriander and mix well again.
- Serve immediately with tortilla chips or as you desire.
Food Safety
In a professional kitchen, food hygiene and safety are a top priority, and from the beginning of training, I practised good habits and routines. Of course, practising good food hygiene and safety at home is also essential. Here are some fundamental practices to adopt in the kitchen.
- Wash your hands regularly while preparing, handling and cooking food.
- Wipe down countertops and high-contact points regularly.
- If you cook meat and fish, do not use the same utensils on cooked food that previously touched raw meat. Use separate chopping boards for meat and fish. Wash your chopping boards immediately after use.
- Thoroughly cook food to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C).
- Don't leave food at room temperature for extended periods (more than 2 hours).
- Store food correctly.
For more details regarding food hygiene and safety in the home, visit the UK Government's Food Standards Agency webpage.
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