Watermelon rinds you say? What blasphemy is this, Priyanka?! It’s true! They’re edible and the star of Episode 3 of My Ecokitchen self-produced series, where I showcase low-waste recipes in April for Earth Month! See Episode 1 & Episode 2 here!

Americans LOVE their watermelon – it IS the favorite melon in the US according to the USDA. So much so, each American eats on average 14.1 pounds of watermelon a YEAR (I probably eat 20 pounds). That is a LOT. But that also means a ton of watermelon WASTE!

Every culture has some form of “pickling,” mainly to help preserve fruits and vegetables over a long period of time. Indians have been pickling veggies and fruits for thousands of years and are known to be one of the oldest cultures to be pickling. There are dozens, if not, hundreds of varieties of pickles within Indian cuisine. From raw mango, lime, lotus, garlic chili to even watermelon rinds. And Indian pickling especially is an awesome way to minimize food waste, because the spices, oil and sugars really allow to break down the harder shells/peels, making them completely edible and digestible. Let’s also recognize that many ancient cultures have been the OG waste minimizers, because they had to make the most with very little available. Global Warming creating all time catastrophes, we can start learning from our ancestors to make this world a better and more sustainable please.

Into videos? Check out my YouTube, Instagram and TikTok!

So, here we are. We have a large watermelon (which I finished, and in order to minimize the food wastage, I turned the rind into…. upinkhai! Which is ‘pickle’ in my native language of Kannada.

This by no means is an original creation of mine. These are methods used in my family and likely for generations in a lot of Indian families. In fact, I made this recipe alongside my Momma and followed her suggestions, because obviously Momma knows best! Pickles (upinkhai in Kannada or achar in Hindi) were made to preserve veggies and used as a condiment with meals. It’s a combo of sweet, spicy, savory and tangy. Remember, all Indian food is a balance of flavors. Ancient cultures are the original zero-waste, sustainable folks.

WATERMELON RIND INDIAN PICKLE:

• 3 cups rind, cubed & dried for 3 hours
• 1 tbsp each mustard powder, cumin, salt, spicy chili powder, Kashmiri chili powder
• 1 tsp turmeric & hing
• 2-4 beads citric acid
• 1/3 cup soft jaggery

Tempered Spices:

• 1/4 cup neutral oil
• 1 tsp black mustard seed
• 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 1/2 tsp hing

1. Mix all dry spices and jaggery with rind in a bowl making sure to massage everything in.

2. Heat oil in a small pan over medium. Once hot quickly add in mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds & hing. Once bubbling carefully and swiftly pour over rinds. Mix with a spoon. Let sit in bowl for 2-3 hours wrapped lightly with plastic.

3. Pour into an airtight jar. Close & wrap in kitchen towel. Place in cool, dark pantry for 2-3 days. Open, mix and wrap in cloth again. Place in pantry for another 3-4 days. Then it’s ready to eat!

Stay tuned for Episode 4 of My Ecokitchen!