By Chef-Farmer Marc Bernard

If you eat as much watermelon in the summer as we do, it must feel wasteful tossing out all that rind.

There’s a great way to turn it into a condiment: Pickle it.

It’s our summertime favorite to complement grilled bratwurst, such as the kind we make with our Red Wattle pigs. Or try it with fresh cut watermelon for that perfect juxtaposition of sweet and sour. You can also add sliced chile peppers and bits of crispy bacon for the ultimate flavor combination of salty, sweet, sour and spicy.

Rustic Road Farm is growing three types of watermelon this summer—red, orange and yellow. After you taste these, we bet you’ll agree that local watermelons are the best. They’re picked ripe while they’re high in sugar.

Sometimes we’re so excited about them that we’ll eat them warm in the field, cracked open with a rock.

 

Rustic Road Farm Pickled Watermelon Rind
2 cups white vinegar
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoons salt
1 jalapeno or fresno chiles, thinly sliced
2½ pounds watermelon rind, peeled and cut with some flesh

Bring vinegar, sugar and salt to boil and add chiles. Pour over rind. Refrigerate overnight. Makes about 2½ pounds. Keep refrigerated up to 5 days.