Kelly Rossiter
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There is something about a slice of cold watermelon that evokes the freedom of a child's summer for me. My mother used to send us out into the backyard in our bathing suits with a hunk of watermelon and the juice would dribble down our faces and we would spit the seeds as far as we could. Then we would jump through the sprinkler and rinse all the sticky juice off. Now the watermelon are seedless, and having a lawn isn't very green.
I don't buy watermelon very often, because I'm the only person in the family who likes it, so I really had to search for a way to serve it that would be palatable for my husband. I won't describe the look on his face when I told him what I was serving for lunch. He does, however, like Thai food and I decided to take the gamble. As it turned out, the soup was tasty and he quite enjoyed it. The original recipe also included crab meat that sits in the centre of the soup, but I don't like crab, so I omitted that. I'm the cook, so he has to eat the watermelon, but I don't have to eat the crab. That's the way it works at our house.
Thai-Spiced Watermelon Soup
Ingredients:
5 cups coarsely chopped seeded watermelon (from a 4-lb piece, rind discarded)
1 fresh lemongrass stalk
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 1/2 tablespoons mild olive oil
1 small hot green chile such as Thai or serrano, finely chopped (including seeds), or to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Method:
- In a large bowl, purée the watermelon using an immersion blender.
- Discard 1 or 2 outer leaves of lemongrass and trim root end. Thinly slice lower 5 to 6 inches of stalk and then mince, discarding remainder.
- Cook lemongrass, shallot, ginger, and garlic in oil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring, until aromatics are pale golden, about 5 minutes. Add the watermelon purée and simmer over moderate heat, stirring, 5 minutes. Add chile, lime juice, and salt. Serve hot, or chill for at least two hours and serve cold.
Difficulty Level: Easy
Adapted from Gourmet, July, 2004
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