Preserving Watermelon Pickles

The short answer is yes.

The USDA has a great resource for canning and the link below is to the chapter specifically on canning pickled foods. Although they don't seem to have a watermelon rind recipe, they have detailed directions on preserving pickled fruits and vegetables which should cover your needs. Some people choose not to follow these guidelines and may be lucky enough to never have a problem but this is the safe way to do it.

http://www.foodsaving.com...

The USDA's information comes from the National Center for Home Food Preservation out of UGA. They have a specific recipe for watermelon rind pickle including water bath canning instructions.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/how...

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SeaJambon added 8 months ago

Also, rice vinegar may not have the acidity level you need. You want at least a 5% acidity because it has to compensate for the low acid watermelon rind. Use a tested recipe (nchfp is perfect; also try the Ball canning book) and follow it to the letter. If you haven't kept the pickles you made in the fridge but on a shelf, throw them out and start over. It may seem like a waste but two thoughts: they weren't what you wanted in the first place (taste wrong) AND they weren't properly processed, so the possibility of botulism or other food borne pathogens has not been removed. Doesn't taste good and may not be safe to eat -- definitely not worth keeping around. Sorry. Oh, and with regard to the water bath -- that needs to happen during the whole processing phase -- it isn't something you can do later.

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Meg is a trusted home cook.

added 8 months ago

Thanks, refrigerated pickles but deathly afraid of botulism, will throw pickles out and start over. Have a watermelon shell and two more watermelons in the frig. Hope to post a recipe and picture soon. Thanks a million, both of you!

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Meg is a trusted home cook.

added 7 months ago

Hi, the second batch of pickles turned out great. I made them using The Essential NYT Cookbook recipe and canned with a hot water bath. They were JUST like my mom's, I think. :)

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SeaJambon added 7 months ago

Yay!! I'm very happy for you. :)

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