Chilled Watermelon Arugula Salad

5 from 4 votes

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Watermelon arugula salad is light and healthy, full of pickled onion and goat cheese. Make this healthy chilled salad recipe for a refreshing summer lunch!

This Watermelon Salad has arugula, pickled red onions, creamy goat cheese, balsamic syrup and roasted pumpkin seeds. It's a perfect starter or side salad. www.keviniscooking.com


I’ve been making this watermelon arugula salad with goat cheese and pickled onions for some time now and thought it needed a little attention. It’s refreshing, easy to make and is perfect for this Spring/Summer salad time season. Who am I kidding, it’s great anytime, with or without mixed greens!

Watermelon arugula salad

Honestly, I serve this with or without salad greens. Mixed baby greens or the peppery arugula are great as a bed to lay this on, but feel free to serve like I did last night without any greens. It holds up well on it’s own just fine.

The lemony olive oil and the sweet watermelon get a kick from the quick pickled red onions and creamy goat cheese. With a drizzle of balsamic syrup this is a perfect starter salad or refreshing side to some grilled meats like chicken. To add a little crunch appeal roasted pumpkin seeds hit the spot on top.

How to choose watermelon

There always seems to be different methods in picking out a watermelon, but I use the thumping method. When thumped by flicking my middle finger off the thumb against the melon, you should hear a deep thudding sound. I go for the seedless ones, less trouble trying to be all proper.

How does one spit out a seed without looking like you have bad table manners? And when I say seedless I do mean no black seeds, because there is always some of the small, thin almost transparent white ones. How do you choose your watermelon?

This Watermelon Salad has arugula, pickled red onions, creamy goat cheese, balsamic syrup and roasted pumpkin seeds. It's a perfect starter or side salad. www.keviniscooking.com

Did you know that the watermelon dates back to Egyptian recorded harvests over 5,000 years ago? Did you know that watermelon is usually about 92% water and its cousins are cucumbers, pumpkins and squash?

Also, seedless watermelons were invented over 50 years ago. Watermelon growers discovered that by cross breeding certain varieties and the result was a fruit that produced a triploid seed, that’s three sets of chromosomes! This triploid seed is the seed that produces seedless watermelons. Interesting right? I thought anyways!

I use the PONTI – Glassa Gastronomica brand of balsamic syrup that is found in most supermarkets these days, but you can just as easily just use a drizzle of regular balsamic vinegar.

Balsamic reduction for watermelon arugula salad

Another option is, pour 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar in a saucepan and reduce by half, then let cool prior to using. I love the thickened balsamic syrup on fruit, roasted vegetables and chilled dishes like this watermelon arugula salad.

This Watermelon Salad has arugula, pickled red onions, creamy goat cheese, balsamic syrup and roasted pumpkin seeds. It's a perfect starter or side salad. www.keviniscooking.com

Enough of the interesting facts, let’s eat!

This Watermelon Salad has arugula, pickled red onions, creamy goat cheese, balsamic syrup and roasted pumpkin seeds. It's a perfect starter or side salad. www.keviniscooking.com
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Chilled Watermelon and Goat Cheese Salad. www.keviniscooking.com

Chilled Watermelon Arugula Salad

5 from 4 votes
Watermelon arugula salad is a refreshing meal with pickled onion and goat cheese. Make this healthy chilled salad recipe for a light lunch!
Servings: 4 servings
Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 15 minutes

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • First thinly slice a red onion and cover completely with rice wine vinegar. Let sit for at least 1 hour or overnight.
  • Next, I actually cut the round watermelon into a square/rectangle, trimming off the outer rind and then the white rind corners if necessary. Slice the watermelon flesh into 4 thick slices and then each slice in half, then each half cut on the diagonal. You should have 16 triangles when finished.
  • In a small bowl toss the arugula with the olive oil, salt and black pepper.
  • To plate, add some dressed arugula salad greens, lay four watermelon triangles as shown or as you like.
  • Sprinkle some of the pickled red onions, a drizzle of balsamic syrup and crumbles of goat cheese. Top it all off with some freshly cracked black pepper and fresh thyme leaves. Serve chilled.

Nutrition

Calories: 6kcal | Carbohydrates: 1.2g | Protein: 0.5g | Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 10.2mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 0.4g

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Course: salads
Cuisine: American
Have You Made This Recipe? Let Me Know on InstagramTag @keviniscooking or tag me #keviniscooking!

Kevin

Whether in the kitchen or on the grill, you’ll find me cooking American favorites with a love for BBQ, Mexican and Tex Mex. I’m passionate about making tasty food because life’s too short to be bland!

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29 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Oh my goodness, I so much look forward to a watermelon season (right now they aren’t that good like in August)! I do love watermelon salads. Here you’ve got perhaps my favourite combo – simple and classy (Well, I usually avoid onions). Well done, Kevin!

    1. Thanks Ben. I do hope you try it with the pickled onions, they give just such a lovely layer of flavor and crunch, too. They continue to get sweeter here as the weeks progress!

  2. Kevin! I love what a food nerd you are 🙂 And you go into all the details of the history of the food and its cousins 🙂 A man after my own heart! The pickled onions in this is brilliant my man! I make a killer watermelon salad for the summer too…it’s always looked at as if I am crazy and then they all devour it. Humph amateurs 🙂

    1. Thanks Mila. Some days I feel inclined to share whatever tips I may have stored up there in my head! You need to post your recipe (if you haven’t already, need to check). #FoodNerd

  3. Never tried watermelon in savoury dishes – I have seen it a few times and I think I am ready now to give it a try. It looks like the perfect spring/summer salad ♡

    1. Oh my it is so good, especially super chilled like in this salad Miriam. Hope you give it a go over there in London this Summer! Thanks and have a great day.

  4. 5 stars
    OMG I wanted to make salad like this one! But pickled onions, Kevin you are genius! And sure you are a watermelon enthusiastic, thanks for sahring 🙂 The photos in this post are absolutely gorgeous!

    1. Thanks So much Farida. Sweet, tangy, creamy, crunchy and salty all one bite after another in this one. Keep that watermelon super chilled first too, it’s so good!
      BTW, I found this comment in SPAM for whatever reason and made sure and approved you for further comments. Always happy to hear and read from you. 🙂

  5. 5 stars
    Hahahaha! SO true… you can’t really look like you have manners when you are spitting out a watermelon seed. But I was raised in a barn, so I never give it much thought. Kidding! Well… kinda? 😉 I pick out a watermelon the same as you, Kevin. And I go for the seedless variety too. Anywhos, LOVE this salad!! This is serious summertime perfection, buddy! LOVE LOVE LOVE the ingredients you used in here! So fresh. So fabulous. And totally needs to be up in my belly. On repeat! Your photos are stunning!! I want to reach through my screen and steal a few plates of this watermelon-y deliciousness! Pinned! Cheers, buddy!

    1. Thanks Chey, looking forward to seeing your ribs in today’s post, I bet they would go great with this watermelon salad, too. Which I’d happily make again it’s so good. 🙂

  6. I adore watermelon and in the summer months, my daughter and I can easily eat our way through 2 or 3 of them a week – this year that might increase to 3-4 when we add this salad to our menu! Kevin, I so love the textural and flavor combos of “lemony olive oil” with sweet watermelon and pickled red onions and creamy goat cheese and roasted pumpkin seeds with balsamic! And your photos are so drool inducing!
    BTW – I was telling my daughter about the tip you shared about how butter soothes a spicy kick (in you tabasco post) and we ended up trying avocado (it’s fatty too) and what do you know – it worked better than guzzling 2 cups of ice water! Thanks and Happy Monday!

    1. Thanks Shashi, this is such a refreshing salad and Summer is approaching so even sweeter watermelon are on our horizon! Love the avocado tip, good to know, thanks!

  7. Hey Kevin! I have never tried watermelon with balsamic, but after reading this post I feel the need to go and get a watermelon! Gary is the one who picks out the watermelon…it has to be heavy and have that “spot” it gets from laying in the field while ripening. Everyone has their own way!

    1. It’s a must Dorothy and with the creamy goat cheese and fresh thyme, it so tasty. Quite refreshing.

  8. 5 stars
    I almost fell off my chair when I saw what you were cooking up for today! I have a watermelon salad ready to go for Wednesday! I love it! I cannot get enough watermelon in the summer months… This salad is stunning, Kevin!

    1. Thanks so much Annie! Looking forward to yours. Ice cold and sweet, it’s so refreshing. I like to pair things that don’t normally mix and tweak them a bit. This salad really is a good one.

  9. You are a watermelon guru, my friend! We have some leftover feta in the kitchen (I know, I know…leftover feta. How is that even possible??), and I’m thinking this salad needs to make an appearance. As far as picking out watermelons, I pick one that is heavy for it’s size and I try to find one with the withered stem still attached. #WolfpackWatermelonTricks

    1. I’ve made this with Cotija (a Mexican feta-like cheese), feta and goat cheese – all are quite delicious with it. I rarely see any watermelons with their stems still on them, need to look for them. Thanks for the heads up on that one!

  10. Thanks for the little factoids, Kevin! Good to know…starting my week off right 😉 Plus. little factoids like that always make for great conversation over dinner. This salad looks so clean and fresh! I love watermelon…such a Summertime ingredient and I bet paired with the creamy goat cheese it’s out of this world. Looking forward to trying soon. It’s a long upcoming weekend for us so this one is gonna be on the list to try 🙂

    1. Any time I can help! I like to add something a little extra every now and then in the posts to keep it interesting. This is one of my favorite and easiest that is just so refreshing and tasty. Happy Monday!