Watermelon and Arugula Salad is a delicious blend of sweet watermelon, peppery arugula and creamy feta cheese. It’s drizzled with an addictive dressing of fresh lime juice, Champagne vinegar and buttery olive oil with a gentle jalapeño kick, that’s so good you’re going to want to put it on everything!
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It feels wrong to admit that watermelon isn’t my favorite. Growing up, I remember looking around at other kids blissfully devouring huge wedges of it – lifting their dripping faces now and then to spew little black seeds. It baffled me. And it wasn’t the dripping and seed spitting I was opposed to, I didn’t especially like the flavor. To me it tasted – still does – like sugar water. But a big wedge of cantaloupe or honeydew melon, that’s a bliss I understand. They’re sweet, yes, but they burst with that unique, ‘melony’ flavor. Watermelon, not so much.
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Today, though, I’m excited to report that I’ve been redeemed. It turns out that I like watermelon – a lot actually – when it’s combined with other flavors that I love. Its watery, cool sweetness is the perfect foundation, and a critical element, to one of the better summer salads I’ve ever had.
I must give a nod to Hermiston farmers here – they grow a mean melon. Even watermelon, even seedless watermelon (which I’ve always heard has less flavor than its seed-filled counterpart). Maybe if I’d grown up in Eastern Oregon and had this Watermelon and Arugula Salad early on, it wouldn’t have taken me four decades to find a place in my heart for this much-beloved summer fruit.
Recipe at a Glance
- Hands-on time: 20 minutes
- Total time: 20 minutes
- Serves: 4
- Difficulty: Easy
- Great for: Cookouts, potlucks, light summer meals
Watermelon Arugula Salad Ingredients
- Watermelon: Look for a small seedless watermelon that feels heavy for its size.
- Arugula: Use baby arugula for the best texture. Mature arugula is spicier with tougher stems that aren’t great for salads.
- Feta: I like to use a firm (but not dry) block of feta that’s easy to cut into cubes. Crumbled feta works well too.
- Lime juice: Freshly squeezed is best here. About one lime should do it.
- Champagne vinegar: This may be my favorite vinegar with its bright and slightly floral flavor, but white wine vinegar makes a fine substitute.
- Shallot: Look for a firm, small shallot. You can use red onion in a pinch, but know that the onion flavor will be stronger.
- Jalapeño: I use half for gentle heat, but you use the whole thing for extra spicy kick.
- Thyme: Fresh thyme leaves are best, but half the amount of dried works too.
- Olive oil: Any good quality, extra-virgin olive oil will work here.
- Kosher salt and black pepper: For seasoning both the dressing and the finished salad.
How to Make Watermelon Arugula Salad
Blend lime juice, vinegar, shallot, jalapeño, and thyme until smooth. Add olive oil in a slow but steady stream while blending until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.
Layer watermelon, arugula, and feta in a serving bowl or platter. Drizzle with dressing just before serving and season to taste salt and pepper.
Recipe Variations
- Add a little extra heat with some thinly sliced red onion.
- Use goat cheese or shaved parmesan in place of the feta.
- Add several leaves of fresh mint along with the arugula for added flavor depth.
- Make it a meal: Add Spicy Grilled Shrimp or chicken to turn this into a main dish.
Make Ahead and Storage
You can make and refrigerate the dressing up to 3 days ahead; just shake well before using. The watermelon can be cubed a day in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container. Assemble the salad just before serving to keep the arugula from wilting.
What to Serve With
Ingredients
For the vinaigrette:
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice juice of 1 whole lime
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar or champagne vinegar
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
- 1/2 small jalapeño seeded and finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the salad:
- 1/2 small seedless watermelon ‘small’ is a 5-6 pound watermelon, see recipe notes
- 5 ounces baby arugula
- 4 ounces feta cut into 1/4-inch squares or crumbled
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
To make the vinaigrette:
- Combine lime juice, vinegar, shallot, jalapeño and thyme leaves to a blender pitcher and blend until smooth, scrape down sides as necessary. With the blender running, add oil in a steady stream and blend until smooth. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Transfer to small pitcher for drizzling.
For the salad:
- Arrange watermelon, arugula and feta on a serving platter or individual plates. Drizzle salad with desired amount of vinaigrette. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve.
Notes
- According to the Watermelon Board, the average size of a watermelon is 15-20 pounds, but often you can find small seedless watermelons in the grocery store – in the 5-6 pound range. You’ll need 1/2 of a small or a 1/4 of a large watermelon for this recipe.
- If your vinaigrette separates after chilling, shake or whisk to recombine.
- For best texture, wait to dress the salad until just before serving.
- Leftover vinaigrette is great on grilled vegetables or tacos.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’ve always loved a bit of heat with watermelon. The sweet is just so good with the spicy! This salad is amazing and so beautiful. 🙂 ~Valentina
Thank you so much, Valentina!
I’ve always loved watermelon Marissa. Glad you’ve come around. This salad looks totally refreshing and just perfect for summer! Love the feta watermelon combination.
haha..finally, right!? Thanks, Mary Ann.
There are plenty of foods that fall into that category for me, too, Marissa. Glad you discovered this recipe…it sounds delicious! I have to admit that I haven’t played around much with watermelon in savory salads. However, the combination of ingredients here sounds delicious. We have watermelon in the fridge right now, so I might just need to grab some feta and try it out!
I hope you’ll give this one a try, David!
Watermelon and feta are one of my favorite combinations! What a great salad to enjoy throughout the summer.
Thanks, my friend!
yum i do love watermelon and it is great in a salad. pairs so well with fetta and black olives for instance. cheers sherry
Thanks, Sherry!
Watermelon and feta are such a perfect combination. Love your salad dressing too!
Definitely a winning combo! Thank you, Sabrina!
Glad that you and watermelons are becoming good friends now, even if you like them only in salads! I’ve been a huge fan of watermelon salads for many years now; it’s always good, refreshing, and light. Love this version too.
Yes, finally friends! 😉 Thanks so much, Ben!
So many people I know don’t care for watermelon so you’re not alone! I love it, and it would be so good paired in a salad like this! That vinaigrette sounds amazing!
How funny…I guess I just assumed that everyone loved it! 🙂 I’m so glad that I discovered I could love it in the right combo!! Thanks so much, my friend!
What a beautiful salad, Marissa!! I didn’t eat a lot of watermelon growing up…and really not a lot now, but put it in a salad like this and I could eat the whole thing by myself. Love this one!
Thank you so much, Dawn!
Such a beautiful salad. I love this classic flavor combination. The presentation is lovely.
Thanks so much!
I am a big fan of watermelons, your salad looks great. Reading through the ingredients make me feel like this recipe brings together a lot of great tastes, lovely.
Thank you – it really is a nice combination.
I’ve never tried watermelon in salad, but this time i’ll do !!!
I imagine you get some delicious melons in Italy. I’m still dreaming of the tomatoes we had when we were there…
What a delightful and delicious salad!
Thank you…
Well, watermelon isn’t my favorite either, so at least you’re not alone! That said, it does sound pretty great in a savory salad application. 🙂
It’s amazing what adding a little salt and kick can do for it. 🙂
I love watermelon in savoury salads too! 🙂 I actually dried watermelon strips yesterday! They were so interesting! 😮
I’d love to try that – I’ve never heard of drying watermelon.