A flavorful salad perfect for a hot summer day, this watermelon arugula salad is a wonderful and refreshing blend of tastes. Peppery arugula, salty parmesan, and sweet watermelon combine for a great summer salad for your next cookout or family gathering.
This is a great salad to make during the summer months when watermelon is on sale. I love to buy whole, seedless watermelons to make lots of dishes like this one and my blueberry watermelon salad. A whole watermelon costs so much less than pre-cut watermelon cubes.
Watermelon arugula salad is great as a meal or as a side dish and it’s incredibly versatile. Feel free to switch around any number of the ingredients. I’ll list several ideas below as well. Experiment to find what you or your family enjoys the best.
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🥘 Ingredients for Watermelon Arugula Salad
These are the basic ingredients for my arugula and watermelon salad recipe, but you can easily change up some of the ingredients to suit your tastes as well.
Lettuce – Peppery arugula works great here to offset the sweetness of the watermelon. Using only arugula can be a bit much though for some people, but an arugula and baby spinach mix works great as well.
Watermelon – I prefer to buy a whole seedless watermelon for this recipe, but you’ll only use barely a quarter of it here depending on the size. Buying pre-cut watermelon cubes is more convenient, but also much more expensive, so it’s your choice.
Cheese – This recipe uses shaved parmesan for a salty addition, but feta is also a very popular choice. Salty kinds of cheese in chunks or shaved pieces work best to offset the sweetness and pepperiness of the other ingredients.
Nuts – You can use almost any nut here, or none. I use toasted walnuts for this recipe, but toasted pecans are also a great choice.
Onion – Another optional ingredient, but I love the addition of diced shallots in the dressing or tossed directly with the salad. Red onion also works.
Herbs – Fresh mint works really well with watermelon and the other ingredients, but you can also try herbs like basil, cilantro, tarragon, etc.
Oil & Acid– Use some extra virgin olive oil for the dressing and some fresh lime juice for the acid.
Sweetener – Just a bit of honey in the dressing adds flavor and sweetness without overpowering the natural sweetness of the watermelon.
🔪 How to Make Watermelon Arugula Salad
Cut the watermelon into bite-sized cubes and dice the shallot. If using nuts, toast them in a skillet over medium heat for a few minutes until fragrant. Once cool enough to handle, give the nuts a rough chop and set aside.
In a large nonreactive mixing bowl, or in a small mason jar, add the diced shallot, olive oil, lime juice, honey, salt, and pepper and shake or mix vigorously.
Add the arugula, watermelon, and dressing into a large, nonreactive mixing bowl and stir to combine and coat the lettuce. Sprinkle the parmesan and toasted walnuts on top and serve immediately.
🍉 How to Choose the Best Watermelon
Watermelons can be sweet and juicy or rather bland and watery. No method is fool proof, but there are some things to check when trying to choose a flavorful watermelon.
Symmetry & Tapping – Look for watermelons that are mostly symmetrical in shape. Long, elongated ones tend to be more watery than round ones, but large ovals can also be sweet. Symmetry usually means more than shape. The old method of tapping on the watermelon also has merit, so look for a hollow sound.
Field Spot – Two of the best indicators, however, are visual things to check out. On one edge of the watermelon, you should see the field spot, or ground spot. The whiter it looks, the worse the flavor will likely be. Check for a field spot that’s a dark yellow or orange for the best flavor.
Webbing – Also look for webbing in the same area. It looks like a bunch of scratches. A small amount of webbing usually indicates a bland watermelon, while a large amount of webbing typically means a sweeter watermelon.
📖 Watermelon Arugula Salad Variations
Summer salads like this one are great because of their endless variety. Use the watermelon salad recipe as a starting point and switch things up to how you would best like it to taste.
Lettuce & Herbs – While arugula pairs well with salty cheeses and sweet cubes of watermelon, not everyone is a fan of it. Try an arugula and baby spinach mix, or just baby spinach or other lettuces with some flavor other than bland Iceberg.
You can also skip the herbs, but mint has a really nice cooling flavor that pairs well with watermelon. Basil also pairs well with watermelon or switch it up and add some cilantro or tarragon.
Cheese – This salad works best with good salty cheeses like parmesan, feta, pecorino, etc. Cubes and shaved pieces work well, but feel free to go with a cheese you love. Maybe some mozzarella balls or torn chunks.
Nuts – You can omit nuts if you prefer, but they do add a nice texture to the salad. Toast and give a rough chop to nuts like pecans or walnuts, but you can also experiment with things like cashews, pistachios, almonds, macadamias, etc. Maybe even add some candied pecans for texture and sweetness.
Mix-Ins – I like the subtle flavor of the shallots here, but you could add 1-2 different things instead. Try sliced strawberries, blueberries, red onion, radish, jicama, mushrooms, corn, etc. Find what you enjoy.
Dressing – I enjoy the flavor of the quick lime dressing used here, but lemon also works well. If you’d prefer something premade, balsamic, especially a balsamic reduction, pairs great with the salad also. I would avoid creamy dressings, but a good Italian or flavored vinaigrette could work also.
❄️ Storing & Making Watermelon Salad Ahead
Because this is a fresh salad, it’s going to taste the best the day you make it. The arugula will start to wilt, and the watermelon will release a lot of liquid as it sits. If you do have leftovers, you can store them in the fridge for a day or two, but the texture and quality will continue to degrade rather quickly.
If you want to make this summer salad ahead of time, I suggest keeping most of it separated and refrigerated until right before serving. Cut the watermelon into cubes and store them, the arugula, the cheese, and dressing all separate and combine when ready. You can also toast and chop the nuts ahead of time and they can store at room temperature in an airtight container.
📋 Recipe
Watermelon Arugula Salad
Ingredients
Watermelon Arugula Salad:
- 1 5-ounce package arugula
- 3 cups cubed watermelon
- ¼ cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped, optional
- ¼ cup shaved parmesan, or cubed feta
Lime Dressing:
- 1 small shallot, diced, about 2-3 tablespoons
- 2-3 sprigs fresh mint, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions
- Cut the watermelon into bite-sized cubes and dice the shallot. If using nuts, toast them in a skillet over medium heat for a few minutes until fragrant. Once cool enough to handle, give the nuts a rough chop and set aside.
- In a large nonreactive mixing bowl, or in a small mason jar, add 2-3 tablespoons of diced shallot, 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice, 1 teaspoon honey, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon ground black pepper and shake or mix vigorously.
- Add the arugula, 3 cups cubed watermelon, and dressing into a large, nonreactive mixing bowl and stir to combine and coat the lettuce. Sprinkle the ¼ cup shaved parmesan and ½ cup toasted walnuts on top and serve immediately.
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