Save your watermelon rinds for pickling and enjoy them as an accompaniment to any meal. This recipe yields 5 half-pints.
Yield: 5 half-pints.
Ingredients
- 10 cups cubed peeled watermelon rind
- 6 cups water
- ¾ cup salt
- 5 2/3 cups sugar
- 3 1/3 cups cider vinegar
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 3 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks
- 1 tablespoon whole cloves
- 1 tablespoon whole all spice
Instructions
Combine the watermelon rind, water and salt in a large crock or enamel pan. Let stand in the refrigerator overnight; drain. Cover the rind with fresh water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the rind is tender; drain. Combine the sugar, vinegar, lemon slices, cinnamon, cloves and allspice in a large pan. Cook for 30 minutes or until syrupy. Add the watermelon rind. Cook for 20 minutes or until the rind is transparent. Pack the rind into hot sterilized jars. Add the syrup, leaving ½-inch headspace; seal with 2-piece lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
Recipe adapted from Southern and Then Some, a cookbook of the Alabama Farmers Cooperative, Inc.
