Cutting a Watermelon

[DameEdna]

From WikiHow,on cutting a watermelon:

"Note that if you cut along the dark stripes on the outside of the watermelon, then the watermelon seeds will end up on the outside of the pieces of watermelon, making them easier to remove."

Is this true? I thought slicing a watermelon was something which did not require special training.
Apparently I was wrong about that.

[Anna Phor]

Alas, I do not know the answer to this question, but I'm resurrecting this thread with another watermelon question.

How long can I keep an uncut watermelon? If I buy one this weekend at the market, and don't open it up, will it still be good next weekend? And do I need to keep it in the fridge?

[dcs]

I have kept cut-up watermelon in the fridge for up to a week and still eaten it. You should be fine with a whole watermelon. I would think you would want to keep it in a cool place, but I am not sure it has to be in the fridge (although that couldn't hurt if you have the room).

[porcupine]

ISO creative ideas for watermelon, other than gazpacho and salad with feta (unless you have particularly interesting recipes).  ÑпаÑибо!

[lperry]

Watermelon in the blender with a bit of mint makes a lovely agua fresca on a hot day.  It also makes a nice sorbet, frequently with no added sugar needed.  A couple of tablespoons of vodka will keep the texture smooth.  If all else fails, you can feed it to my bizarre, watermelon-eating cats. 

[Pat]

Salsa for grilled fish

For the gazpacho, it can be served in the scooped out rind/shell for a fancier presentation.

[TedE]

I made an awesome Asian-influenced watermelon salad earlier this summer (alas, I don't remember the source of the recipe; it was a magazine tear out that I followed loosely).  Think fish sauce, chili paste, a dash of soy, crispy fried scallions and mint + Thai basil.  The salty/sweet/sour/spicy combo was a great BBQ side dish.  If I had to do it again I would use a *slightly* underripe melon.  If you don't toss it immediately prior to serving is gets mushy.  Or I guess you could precut the watermelon and let the cubes drain in a colander (saving the juice to incorporate into the dressing).

[Fishinnards]

Here is a spicy Thai watermelon rind salad (video with English subtitles). The recipe is here, towards the bottom of the page.