A H A P P Y A C C I D E N T
we were about to embark on a camping trip + i cut up this little watermelon to make things easy. it was so overripe that i decided to make it into a juice with some lime and a good amount of salt.
it ended up getting neglected in our cooler and started fermenting - at which point it became my baby.
vinegar is a misnomer - truly, this is lacto-fermented watermelon juice. + perhaps the easiest way to sink your teeth into fermentation outside of pickles.
as an ingredient, it is a wild + versatile substitute for lemon juice or vinegar.
it will change your summer.
LACTO-FERMENTED WATERMELON JUICE
1 gallon glass jar
1 3-4 lb very ripe watermelon peeled and chopped
1 lime juiced
1.5 tbsp kosher salt
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
chop that bad boy up, add the lime juice, salt, + toss it all in a blender.
puree until totally liquid.
put it in a jar or ideally a swing-lid beer bottle so you can burp that baby.
place in a temperate + dark place (65-75 degrees - maybe 80) for at least 2 weeks and check on it daily to burp your baby. total time is really about a month.
it should be making bubbles and fizzing at around a week in.
keep an eye on it. there shouldn’t be any mold forming.
by the time your ferment is pretty done producing bubbles, add the cider vinegar and let sit for another week or two before using.
the color should be bright, there shouldn’t be any floaties (outside of natural unfiltered watermelon bits), + absolutely no sounds coming from your juice.
this stuff is super bright, super tart, and is perhaps the ultimate summer secret ingredient.