Watermelon — season, tips, and recipes in Australia
Watermelon is a fruit available in Queensland during December, January, February, March, peaking in January, February. This page is a practical guide for home cooks: when to buy watermelon, how to pick a good one, how to store it, what it goes well with, three original recipes, and detailed nutrition information.
Queensland and the NT produce most of Australia's watermelons. Chinchilla in Queensland hosts the annual Melon Festival. Look for seedless varieties if you prefer less mess.
How to pick a good one
Knock on it. Deep hollow sound = ripe. Dull thud = underripe. Ground spot should be creamy yellow, not white.
How to store it
Whole: room temp for a week. Cut: fridge, covered, 3-5 days.
Goes well with
feta: Salt and sweetness is a reliable flavour contrast, and feta's crumbling texture and acidity add another dimension to what would otherwise be a one-note fruit. A Mediterranean summer salad that requires no recipe.
mint: Mint's coolness amplifies watermelon's refreshing quality. Both are high in water content; the combination tastes colder than it is.
lime: Lime acid sharpens watermelon's sweetness and makes it taste more distinctly of itself. The combination is more interesting than watermelon alone and is the basis of most agua fresca.
chilli: The combination of watermelon's sweetness and chilli's heat is popular across Mexico, Thailand, and India for the same reason: contrasting extremes create more sensation than either alone. A pinch of Tajin does this in seconds.
prosciutto: The same logic as melon with prosciutto. Salty, fatty cured meat against very sweet, watery fruit creates a back-and-forth that makes both taste more intense.
Recipes
Watermelon, Feta & Mint Salad
The summer salad.
Ingredients: quarter watermelon, 100g feta, handful mint, 1 lime, 1 tbsp olive oil, pinch chilli flakes
Method: Cut watermelon into chunks. Arrange on plate. Crumble feta. Tear mint. Squeeze lime, drizzle oil, scatter chilli.
Watermelon & Lime Granita
Frozen. 3 ingredients.
Ingredients: 500g watermelon (cubed), 2 limes (juice), 2 tbsp sugar
Method: Blend watermelon, lime juice, sugar. Pour into shallow dish. Freeze, scraping with fork every 30 min for 3 hours until icy crystals form.
Watermelon Gazpacho
Cold soup. Sounds weird. Tastes incredible.
Ingredients: 500g watermelon, 1 cucumber, 1 tomato, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, salt, basil
Method: Blend everything except basil until smooth. Season. Chill 1 hour. Serve with torn basil and a drizzle of oil.
Nutrition
A 280g wedge provides 30% of your daily vitamin C and 25% of your vitamin A. Contains more lycopene per gram than raw tomatoes. Lycopene is the antioxidant that gives it the red colour, linked to heart and skin health. 92% water, so it's brilliantly hydrating. About 85 calories per wedge. One of the best post-exercise foods.