Watermelon Rind Pickles

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My grandmother would make the most delicious watermelon rind pickles. After we ate the watermelon my grandmother would take the rinds and make a sweet and crunchy pickle from them.  We would eat the pickles like many kids would eat candy, to us it was a treat. This year I have decided to make my own sweet watermelon pickles. I was so pleased that these crunchy delights were as good as I remember from my childhood.

This is how I made my pickles

Hope in every season

After I removed the red part of the melon I cut the rind into strips

After removing all the red and green part from the rind I put them in a pickling lime solution.  This lime solution makes the pickles crispy.  I mixed one gallon of water with one half cup of pickling lime and let the rind soak for two hours.  I used Mrs. Wages Pickling Lime

Its okay to leave a small amount of pink on the rind but if you leave any of the green on it will be tough.

While the rind was soaking I collected the rest of my ingredients.  Four cinnamon sticks, approximately one tablespoon whole cloves, and a fresh ginger root from my garden. I cleaned the ginger and chopped into four pieces.  I put the cloves in a spice bag for easy removal after cooking.

After a couple of hours I removed the rinds from the lime water and rinsed the rinds three times in fresh water.  I let the rinds soak in fresh water until I mixed the remainder of the ingredients.

In a large nonreactive pan ( I used my enamel canning pot) I measured six cups of white vinegar and 6 cups of white sugar.  I added my spices and my rinds and cooked for about twenty minutes on med high heat.

While I waited for the rinds to cook I placed my jars in a large pot of hot water and let them sterilize by letting the water boil for ten minutes.  I then added my lids and rings to the water with the jars. 

After about twenty minutes the rind turned from white to a clear look.  I then took a hot jar from the pot and filled it with pickled rinds and the hot liquid. These go in a water bath canner for 10 minutes to process.   Not long after I removed the jars From the canner  I starting hearing the pop or ping as each jar sealed. The next day I checked to make sure all the jars had sealed. After the jars seal they can be stored in the cabinet.   I put several jars of my pickles in the fridge because they taste better cold. 

 Please be sure to follow the USDA guidelines for canning for food safety. This is how I can pickles but please checkout the guidelines if you are a first time canner.

I was pleased with my watermelon rind pickles and I hope you will try this recipe. 

Here is a list of ingredients I used

12 cups of sliced watermelon rinds
one gallon water
1/2 cup pickling lime
6 cups white vinegar
6 cups white sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
1 ginger root cleaned and sliced
1 tablespoon whole cloves placed in spice bag.


I know that each time I eat one of my pickles I will think of my grandmother and all the special times we had together.  


This post has been shared at Whatever goes Wednesday  Real Food Wednesday Inspire Me Wednesday   The Happy House