Not only are these watermelon rind pickles a way to reduce your food waster and stretch your food dollar a little more, they are beautiful. The vibrant color is a perfect addition to a charcuterie board, grain bowl, or sandwich. I will often take a single large watermelon and make my Basil Watermelon Salad, Watermelon Lime Refresher, and then these delightful Watermelon Rind Pickles to use up the whole thing. No more squishy, forgotten watermelon in the back of the fridge!

Watermelon Rind Pickles

Ingredients

2 pounds watermelon rind

1 ¼ cups apple cider vinegar

1 ¼ cup sugar

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Instructions

1. Remove green skin from watermelon. 
2. Use spoon to remove any pink flesh from watermelon. 
3. Cut rind into 2 inch pieces. 
4. In a small pot, heat 1 ¼ cups apple cider vinegar, 1 ¼ cups sugar, 1 ½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon peppercorns, and 1 teaspoon mustard seeds over medium high heat until boiling. 
5. Warm a 1 quart jar in hot running water. Empty jar. Fill with watermelon rinds. Cover with hot brine. Let jar cool for 30 minutes or until cool. 
6. Chill in your refrigerator for 2 hours or more before serving. 

Notes: 

• Pickles stay fresh for 2 weeks in fridge. Do not store at room temperature.
• Feel free to add any traditional pickling spices, herbs, or alliums such as shallots, onions, garlic, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, dill seeds, allspice berries, bay leaves, clove, crushed red pepper, ground ginger, fennel seeds, caraway seeds, cardamom, star anise, juniper berries, or a cinnamon sticks. Make sure to smell them first and imagine how they will taste with vinegar.
• Try different kinds of vinegar! There are a variety of yummy vinegars available at grocery stores now.