Watermelon Around the World

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Text to type: Watermelon's story began in Africa. A pale melon from Sudan called the Kordofan melon is the closest known relative of today's watermelon. It may be one of its ancestors. Pictures in ancient Egyptian tombs suggest that people ate a watermelon-like fruit more than 4,000 years ago. Those early fruits were not always bright red or very sweet. Farmers saved seeds from fruit with qualities they liked. Over many generations, watermelon became sweeter, and red flesh became common. This change took a very long time.

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Text to type: In China, people do not only enjoy the red flesh. Roasted watermelon seeds are also a popular snack. Some farmers grow special seeded watermelons mainly for their seeds. After the fruit is ready, the seeds are collected and roasted. People open the hard shell and eat the small part inside. This takes time, so the snack can be enjoyed slowly while people talk or rest. One plant can therefore give people two very different foods: juicy fruit and dry, crunchy seeds.

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Text to type: Some people in Turkiye eat cold watermelon with white cheese in summer. The fruit is sweet and juicy, but the cheese is salty. The two different tastes can work well together. Size can also give watermelon a special meaning. Diyarbakir holds a culture and watermelon festival with a competition for very large local fruit. Watermelons in this competition can weigh between 15 and 70 kilograms. The event celebrates local farming and pride. This example connects a simple summer meal with a long farming tradition.

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Text to type: In Mexico, watermelon can become a cold drink called agua fresca. Aguas frescas are an important part of Mexican food culture. People make different kinds with fruit or seeds, water, ice, and sometimes sugar. For a watermelon version, the fruit is mixed with water and served cold. Recipes can change from one family or shop to another. This drink is easy to share from a large container on a hot day. Here, people enjoy the fresh taste without eating a slice.

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Text to type: Most people eat the soft flesh and throw away the rind. In parts of the southern United States, however, people make pickles from the pale part of the rind. They first remove the fruit and the hard dark-green skin. The crisp pale rind can then be prepared as a pickle. Home cooks and small producers have kept this food tradition alive. It turns a part that often becomes waste into something people can eat. The watermelon is not only a sweet dessert anymore.

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Text to type: In Zentsuji City in Kagawa, Japan, some farmers grow cube-shaped watermelons. They place the young fruit inside special containers as it grows. Local farmers have developed this skill since the late 1960s. The regular shape and beautiful stripes make these watermelons unusual, and they can sell for high prices. People may value them as local gifts or display pieces. Their shape does not mean that they taste better. Like roasted seeds, cheese, drinks, and pickles, the square fruit shows that people can give the same plant very different meanings.

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