Initially, the word jerky was dedicated to meat, which was sliced and dried. This process was followed to preserve meat for a longer duration than usual using drying. We all find packaged and processed foods in the market, but homemade food is always tastier and healthier.

But it also comes with a lot of effort in cooking. That’s when the trend of jerkies started to reach home, where you can once dry and preserve the food and it for a longer duration. Adding salt to it can also prevent it from catching bacteria.

The idea of Jerkies didn’t stop with meat. People started to experiment with this process with vegetables and fruits too, which worked like magic and helped people to ease up on cooking. Well, when other fruits can be converted into jerkies, why should Watermelon be the exception, right?

That’s how we’ve got the recipe for Watermelon Jerky today, a quick treat with a watermelon flavor to add a twist.

Making Of Watermelon Jerky

Watermelon is everyone’s favorite in summer. It’s sweet, and it’s cool, it gives the required hydration to the body, just what we need. But when you’re in need of a quick snack, slicing the big Watermelon can be disappointing and regular slices of plain Watermelon can get boring. Let’s get started and dig into the recipe.

Ingredients:

Watermelon: 1 Big
Kosher Salt: 2 teaspoons
Seasoning: 2 teaspoons

Instructions for using a Dehydrator:

Wash the Watermelon properly and remove the rind.
Cut it into long and thin slices and remove the seeds.
Place parchment paper on the dehydrator tray and arrange these thin slices of Watermelon on the paper next to each other. Sprinkle Kosher salt and seasoning on top of the slices.
Put the tray inside the dehydrator and dehydrate the slices at 175 degrees for 10-14 hours. This process takes out the moisture present in the Watermelon while keeping its flavor and structure, which makes it long-lasting.
Take the tray outside and let the tray cool down for about 20 minutes. Check if they’re dry enough to break with a bend. If yes, you have got the perfect and crispy Watermelon jerky ready.

Instructions for using an Oven:

A dehydrator is not a common thing to have at home and comes to use very rarely. So, if you don’t have access to any dehydrator, you can use the regular oven for baking watermelon jerky, keeping in mind that this will take longer than a dehydrator. Let’s see the process of Watermelon Jerkies using an Oven:

Follow the same process as above in slicing the Watermelon.
Take a rectangular oven tray, place a parchment paper, and arrange the slices in order. Sprinkle salt and seasoning on top.
Bake the slices at 130 degrees for 20-24 hours. Have a peek in between to make sure the watermelon slices are not burnt.
Take the tray out and let it cool down for 30 minutes. Check if the slices are thoroughly dried and feel crispy when you taste them.

Storage:

As Watermelon itself is a very watery fruit, proper storage is required for Watermelon jerkies. If stored at room temperature, they can last up to 3-4 weeks, but with proper care in an air-tight container and placed in the freezer, watermelon jerkies can serve you up to 2-3 months.

That’s it. A crunchy, crispy, sweet, and salty delicacy that goes with every dish is here. You can either use watermelon jerkies in salads or other dishes or directly have them as a snack. Also, try some combinations of dips and sauces that go with and create a new taste.

However you’d like to eat, you can enjoy the sweet and homemade watermelon delicacy flavors whenever you want with a lot less effort. Start cooking this for your kids and loved ones, and thank us later! Check out Dash Of Butter for more healthy food recipes.