20160715-AMS-LSC-0040 (28412994022)

Liah Montgomery (3) helps pick and deliver a watermelon for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farmers Market's VegU recipe demonstration of a Watermelon, Cucumber, and Basil Salad on Friday, July 15, 2016, in Washington, D.C. USDA Photo by Lance Cheung.


Yields 4 to 6 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes
6 cups watermelon
1 cup cucumber
2 tbsp red onion
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp olive oil
2 tbsp basil leaves
salt and pepper, to taste
1. Scrub outside of watermelon and let dry. Cut the
fruit flesh into 2 inch cubes.
2. Wash and dice cucumber. Peel and finely dice
onion. Chop basil.
3. Toss watermelon, cucumber, onion, and basil with
vinegar and oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until
ready to serve. Leftovers will keep 1 to 2 days and
become quite juicy.
• The Cucurbitaceae is an important food plant family and includes
cucumber, gherkins, melons, gourds, marrows, squashes, and
pumpkins. The fruit, which is botanically called a ‘pepo’ is used as a
vegetable or dessert, but other parts of the plant (young leaves,
shoots, seeds, and root) may also be consumed as food. The fruit
contains a large amount of water and a reasonable amount of
vitamin C. Cucurbits are usually climbing plants.
• The classification of melons (Cucumis melo) is based on fruit
characteristics (surface and flesh) but, because of hybridization, it is
not always easy to distinguish between the groups. There are three
main cultivar groups of melon: (1) musk melons are distinctly
netted, with a raised network on the surface of the skin generally
lighter than the overall color of the fruit such as ‘Galia’ melons; (2)
cantaloupe melons have a warty or scaly skin but are not netted; (3)
winter melons are either smooth or shallowly corrugated but not
netted like the popular ‘Honey Dew’ melons.
• The scientific name for watermelon is Citrullus lanatus.

USDA Photo by Lance Cheung.