Easy Pickled Watermelon Rind

Nothing says summer more than watermelon pickles! These delicious zingy orbs are bright and beautiful, a rainbow of red flesh fading into the yellowed rind. Take one bite and the tangy flavor with a hint of clove and coriander will have you immediately reaching for another. This pickled watermelon rind recipe is the ideal summer preserving project: a great way to reduce food waste after making smoothies, juice, or watermelon salad!

What you need for pickled watermelon rind

This pickled watermelon rind recipe is for quick pickles, also known as refrigerator pickles. This type of pickle is fast to make and stored in the refrigerator, versus preserved with canning equipment and shelf stable. Because you don’t need canning equipment, quick pickles are our top style for at-home pickling. Here’s what you’ll need for this easy recipe:

1 wide-mouth pint canning jar Watermelon rinds Vinegar Sugar Salt Peppercorns, clove, and coriander seeds

Peel the rind, then slice it

It’s easiest to make pickled watermelon rind by peeling the skin before it’s off the melon. Here are a few tips about cutting it:

Use a vegetable peeler. The skin is a little tricky to remove, but we found a peeler makes quick work. Do this before the watermelon is cut into slices, if you can. Leave a little flesh on the rind for color. This is just for aesthetics! But it makes a nice looking rainbow to the slices.

What to do with the watermelon flesh? A few of our favorite watermelon recipes are salad, salsa, skewers, sorbet, smoothies, water, juice, margaritas, and more.

How to make watermelon pickles

Grabbing all the ingredients and chopping the rind are the hardest parts! Once you’ve got past these hurdles, making pickled watermelon rind is a breeze. Here are the basic steps:

Heat the brine and simmer the rind pieces until tender. For this pickles recipe, you’ll boil the rind in the brine for about 5 to 10 minutes. Test if it’s fork tender. Pour in the brine & cap the lid. Then pour in the brine, tap them on the counter to release any air bubbles, and cap the lid. Wait until it cools (about 1 hour). You can eat immediately, or store in the fridge! Speaking of…

Storage info

How long does homemade pickled watermelon rind last? You can store watermelon pickles refrigerated for up to 1 month. In our house, they never last that long: we eat them much too fast for that!

More pickle recipes

You can quick pickle just about anything in the summer! Here are our top pickle recipes to choose from:

Make classic Dill Pickles with summer cucumbers Try Easy Pickled Carrots, Pickled Peppers, Pickled Green Beans, Dilly Beans or Pickled Cauliflower Go spicy with Pickled Jalapeños or mild with Pickled Banana Peppers or Pickled Peppers Try delicious Pickled Garlic Opt for Quick Pickled Radishes, Pickled Zucchini or end of season Quick Pickled Green Tomatoes