Watermelon: A Fruit for the Gods (and the Dry Desert)
"Watermelon is the chief of this world's luxuries, king by the grace of God over all the fruits of the earth. When one has tasted it, he knows what the angels eat." – 马克吐温
有一种水果我只留到夏天吃. I might indulge in banana on a gray fall day or an orange coming out of winter. 当然，我们整个春天都吃浆果. 但西瓜. 西瓜是一种看起来不会的水果, 至少对我来说是这样, to cross beyond the cooling boundaries of a hot summer day.
你有西瓜瞬间记忆高峰吗? 我的是20岁出头的时候, 偏偏在汽车旅馆里, 当我哥哥, 父亲, 我去了佛罗里达. How we ended up with a giant watermelon in our room, with the door open and hot Florida air blowing through, 我不记得了. 我清楚地记得那个裂开的瓜, a huge bowl of juicy red framed with bright green, and that my brother and I had spoon after spoon of unlimited cold, 清凉的西瓜. It was like a trough of ice water but in food form.
The ancient Kalahari people were on to something. 一些5,000 years before that hot day indulging in an icy cold Florida-grown watermelon, the ancestor to today’s watermelon grew wild—and still grows wild—on a vine in southern Africa. 本土的喀拉哈里沙漠, living in the interior plains that stretch across today’s Botswana, 纳米比亚, 和南非, used this tough drought-tolerant watermelon as a source of water.
西瓜是名副其实的西瓜，92%是水. 西瓜(Citrullus lanatus) is a member of the Cucurbitaceae plant family—making it relatives with cucumber, 南瓜, 和南瓜. 花了1个小时,000 years for watermelon to wind its way north, 也许是在育种者手中, 变成我们今天知道的更甜的版本.
Both seeds and paintings of watermelon have been found in Egyptian burial tombs more than 4,一千年前. Watermelons were often placed in the tombs of kings to nourish them in the afterlife.
来自北非, watermelons were brought to countries along the Mediterranean Sea by way of merchant ships. 到了10世纪, 西瓜找到了进入中国的途径, which is now the world’s top producer of watermelons. The 13th century found watermelons spreading through the rest of Europe via the Moors.
Watermelon was found growing in Florida as early as 1576 and in Massachusetts by 1629 and, 在美国历史的早期, it was being grown by First Peoples from the Mississippi Valley south to Florida. I love to picture this wild vine threading itself through time, across oceans, cultures. 今天，佛罗里达，乔治亚，德克萨斯，加利福尼亚. And my green thumb neighbor Paul grows a 迷你-variety watermelon every summer in his greenhouse across the street from us in our temperate Northwest climate. 这是可以做到的!
Culturally, here in the US we tend to only eat the red interior flesh. But did you know that 100% of a watermelon is edible, including the seeds. 事实上, the first cookbook published in the US in 1796, 阿米莉亚·西蒙斯的《皇冠网址》, details a recipe for 西瓜皮腌菜.
If you want to foray into the world of watermelon rind dishes, as consumed in many Asian and European countries, the US Watermelon Board provides an array of recipes: watermelon rind curry, 西班牙凉菜汤, 意式烤面包, 凉拌卷心菜, 西瓜皮酸奶, 酸辣酱, 用大火炒, Kimchee，是的, 西瓜皮腌菜.
Here’s to a refreshing summer, no matter how you slice it.
西瓜琐事
In Japan, a technique for growing square watermelons has been perfected. There, square melons sell for between US $75 and $100 each.
According to Guinness World Records, the world's heaviest watermelon ever produced weighed 350.5 pounds and was grown in Sevierville, Tennessee.
/ (1,200 varieties of watermelon are grown across 96 countries worldwide—including seeded, 无核, 迷你, 橙色和黄色的肉. China ranks first in overall production; the US ranks 7th worldwide.
Seedless watermelon cultivars are not the result of genetic engineering, but rather hybridization—the crossing of two different types of watermelons. 需要蜜蜂!
The world record for watermelon seed spitting is an astounding 75 feet 2 inches and was set in 1995 at a festival in Georgetown, 德州.
Research shows that room temperature watermelon has higher nutrient levels, 但它不可能被冷藏过. But if a watermelon was bought cold, you should continue to keep it cold.
Skagit writer and eater Sarah Stoner is hungry for more adventures with her family—food, 旅行, 以及同情心的新视野. sarahjstoner@hotmail.com
Watermelon-Feta-Mint沙拉
有效/总时间:5分钟. 做4-6份
This classic summer side dish combines sweet watermelon, salty feta, and minty mint. A good dose of lemon zest brings out the melon flavor.
成分
3磅. 无核 watermelon (about 1 small or 1/4 large), rind removed, cut into 1-inch chunks (about 2 lbs. 的块在皮被丢弃后)
1 Tbsp juice from 1 lemon, plus 4 (2-inch) strips zest using a sharp vegetable peeler
3汤匙橄榄油，再加一点淋淋
1/4杯切碎的新鲜薄荷叶
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4盎司(110克)菲达奶酪(见注释)
方向
把西瓜块放在一个大碗里. 柠檬皮切碎.
Add lemon juice and half of zest to bowl with watermelon.
Add oil and mint (and extras, if using) and toss until watermelon is evenly dressed.
The cheese adds saltiness, so season lightly to taste with salt and pepper.
Transfer salad to a wide, shallow bowl or a large plate and spread out evenly.
把羊乳酪碎在上面. 撒上剩余的柠檬皮.
Drizzle with more olive oil and a few grinds of black pepper. 即可食用.
笔记
This dish greatly depends on the quality of the feta. Look for true Greek or Bulgarian sheep's milk feta, which tends to be creamier and tangier than domestic cow's milk versions.
散装 up the meal with other chopped ingredients: try some fresh arugula leaves or cubed cucumbers, 对半切的圣女果, 切成薄片的红洋葱, 还有几片黑橄榄.
Or how about some thinly sliced chili peppers for heat? I heard internet rumors of a version with grilled (and chilled) corn, 连同香菜一起切成薄荷状. 好吃。!