Throw away perfectly edible watermelon rind? In this economy?! Not a chance. The best thing to do with watermelon rind is to pickle it, and we're taking it to the next level by making it into spicy, tangy Watermelon Rind Kimchi that tastes something between Korean radish and cucumber kimchis. Shall we?
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What Ingredients You Need for Watermelon Rind Kimchi
Watermelon Rind Kimchi fresh/refrigerator ingredients:
- Watermelon rinds - 4 cups peeled and cubed, about 1 pound of rinds
- Watermelon puree - ¼ cup
- Garlic - 3 cloves, finely minced
- Ginger - 1 ½-inch piece, grated
- Green onions - 1 stalk, thin sliced
Watermelon Rind Kimchi dry/pantry ingredients:
- Sea salt, 2 tablespoons
- Gochugaru, 2 tablespoons
- Rice vinegar, 2 tablesponos
- Fish sauce, 1 tablespoon
Watermelon Rind Kimchi Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups peeled and cubed watermelon rind about 1 pound, from a small watermelon
- 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt
Seasoning
- ¼ cup watermelon puree
- 2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
- 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 2 tablespoons gochugaru
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
Garnishes
- 1 bunch green onions, sliced
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
Prep Watermelon Rinds
- Remove thin, outermost green skin from watermelon rind, and cube rinds.
- Place cubed watermelon rinds into a bowl, sprinkle with sea salt, toss gently, and allow to sit for 30 minutes. Toss again gently and allow to sit for another 30 minutes (total salting time = 60 minutes)
Make Kimchi Seasoning
- While the watermelon rind is salting, make the Kimchi Seasoning by combining watermelon puree (if using), garlic, ginger, gochugaru, rice vinegar, and fish sauce in small bowl.
Make Watermelon Rind Kimchi
- Drain salty water from watermelon rinds, rinse a few times with fresh water, drain, squeeze out as much water as you can with your hands, then set aside.
- Pour the Kimchi Seasoning over the watermelon rinds then stir everything to combine. Make sure the rinds are evenly and well coated; using your hands to gently massage the seasoning into the rinds is highly encouraged, but wear gloves!
- To eat right away, garnish with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Within the first day, the Watermelon Rind Kimchi will taste like a highly seasoned, spicy salad.
- Place the Watermelon Rind Kimchi into large glass jars, pressing down to remove air pockets. Cover with a tightly fitting lid and store in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
How Much Rind Do You Get From a Watermelon?
An 8-pound whole watermelon will render about 2 pounds of rinds, or about 8 cups of cubes.
The exact amount you get from your watermelon might vary slightly based on how thick the actual white part of the rind is.
This recipe is kimchi though, not precision baking, so it's ok to come close enough with the amounts.
What's the Best Way to Cut and Peel Watermelon for Kimchi?
There are a few different ways to cut and peel a watermelon to make kimchi out of the rinds.
Use a Vegetable Peeler-Easiest Way (for Me)
The easiest way I've found to peel watermelon is by cutting the watermelon into ¾-inch wide slices, then holding onto each slice and peeling off the outermost green skin with a Y-peeler. Keeping the red part on each slice makes it easier to handle. You can cut out the red part after peeling.
Y-peeler works for any size watermelon.
Use a Chef's Knife
You can also use a very sharp chef's knife. Cut the watermelon in half, then turn the cut side over onto a cutting board. Slice the outermost green skin off from top toward the cutting board.
Using a knife works best with a larger watermelon.
Additional Ingredients Notes and Resources
This recipe for Watermelon Rind Kimchi is easily vegan/vegetarian-adaptable by substituting in vegan fish sauce (usually made with mushrooms) for the regular fish sauce.
Gochugaru: Gochugaru is a bright red Korean chili pepper powder made from a specific variety of Korean chili pepper. Its heat level ranges, but gochugaru is generally considered a medium spicy chili powder. Look for gochugaru that is made from Korean peppers that are sun-dried, and for this recipe specifically, a coarse grind, or flakes, not a fine powder. You can find gochugaru in Korean grocery stores like H-Mart and other Asian grocery stores. I have also seen some independent, new-ish spice companies like this and this at Whole Foods. This organic brand and the one in the photo above, purchased at HMart, are currently what I have in my pantry.
Fish sauce: This brand has been my favorite for years available at Whole Foods if you can't get to an Asian market, and this one I've tried recently and like, too!
Onions, garlic, and all other fresh herbs and produce from either the Santa Monica Farmers' Market on Wednesday, or Whole Foods Market.
How to Make Watermelon Rind Kimchi
Remove thin, outermost green skin from watermelon rind. The easiest way to do this (for me) is to cut the watermelon into ¾-inch slices, then use a Y-shaped vegetable peeler.
You can also cut the watermelon in half, place on a cutting board with the cut-side down to stabilize it, and use a chef's knife to slice off the outermost green peel.
Remove the pink part of the watermelon from the rind, leaving a thin sliver of pink on the rind if you want some color. Cut the peeled watermelon rinds into ¾-inch pieces.
Place cubed watermelon rinds into a bowl, sprinkle with sea salt, toss gently, and allow to sit for 30 minutes.
Toss again gently and allow to sit for another 30 minutes (total salting time = 60 minutes)
While the watermelon rind is salting, make the Kimchi Seasoning by combining watermelon puree (if using), garlic, ginger, gochugaru, rice vinegar, and fish sauce in small bowl.
Drain salty water from watermelon rinds, rinse a few times with fresh water, drain, squeeze out as much water as you can with your hands, then set aside.
Pour the Kimchi Seasoning over the watermelon rinds then stir everything to combine. Make sure the rinds are evenly and well coated; using your hands to gently massage the seasoning into the rinds is highly encouraged, but wear gloves!
To Eat Watermelon Rind Kimchi
To eat Watermelon Rind Kimchi right away: garnish with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Within the first day, the Watermelon Rind Kimchi will taste like a highly seasoned, spicy salad.
To store Watermelon Rind Kimchi: place into large glass jars, pressing down to remove air pockets. Cover with a tightly fitting lid and store in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
Pro Tips, Tricks, and Techniques
Wash the Watermelon. Make sure to thoroughly wash the outside of the watermelon before you cut into it, even though you are going to discard the peel. Who knows how many dirty hands have touched that watermelon!
Oblong watermelons are huge, but their long center section makes straight flat rinds that are easiest to cut into perfect cubes!
Wear gloves. Your hands are the best way to squeeze the salted watermelon and to mix in the kimchi seasoning, but because the red pepper powder can stain, gloves will protect your hands!
Wear dark clothes or an apron. The gochugaru in the kimchi seasoning can stain, so wear dark clothes or an apron!
Is Watermelon Rind Kimchi Healthy?
Yes! Watermelon Rind Kimchi is super healthy! Depending on your health needs and dietary considerations, of course. To be honest, I can't really think of a case in which Watermelon Rind Kimchi would not be healthy, unless maybe spice or acid from the fermentation causes heartburn or other gastric issue for you.
Dietary Considerations of Watermelon Rind Kimchi
As published, this recipe for Watermelon Rind Kimchi is:
- pescatarian (uses fish sauce)
- dairy-free
- gluten-free/wheat-free
- grain-free
- refined sugar-free
- anti-inflammatory
Tools and Equipment
There isn't any special tool or piece of equipment that is absolutely required for this Watermelon Rind Kimchi. You can make it using a sharp chef's knife on a sturdy cutting board to prep the cabbage and vegetables! However, that isn't to say there are a few tools that might make it slightly easier to get from napa cabbage on your counter to jar in the fridge!
- Chef's knife, my personal workhorse
- Y-peeler, for removing the outermost green layer of the rind
- Wooden cutting board, oversized for all those carrots
- Glass mixing bowls
- Mini ¼-cup liquid measuring cup
- Glass storage container with airtight lids, perfect size for storing Spicy Carrots you make it in advance
- Glass mason jars, wide mouth because they're easier to use and wash
- Mason jar lids that are better than those horrible 2-piece metal lids
Best Kimchi Recipes
- Easy Homemade Kimchi
- Kimchi Tofu
- Kimchi Jjigae with Tuna and Tofu
- Kimchi Deviled Eggs
Best Spicy Banchan and Korean-ish Side Dishes
- Oi Muchim, Korean Spicy Cucumbers
- Spicy Korean Radish Salad, Mu-saeng-chae
- Radish Kimchi, Kkak-du-gi
- Korean Carrot Salad, a carrot banchan
Korean Vegetable Side Dishes
- Din Tai Fung Spicy Cucumbers copycat, similar but different
- Spicy Cucumber and Avocado Salad
- Garlicky Spinach, Shigeumchi Namul
- Soy Sauce Pickles
Trang says
ok so i had the same thought... wtf is salad oil! I wonder if I go to the store right now whether I can find a bottle labelled "SALAD OIL"... Highly doubtful, good call on the olive oil!
Ahu @ AhuEats says
I love your writing... oil and 'because I don't know' both cracked me up. Looks delicious!
Bruce says
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