Easy Grilled Watermelon

By Todd Martin June 2, 2024 4 mins read 142 Views

Elevate your next gathering with this delectable, easy grilled watermelon. This dish is the ideal choice for a cookout, potluck, or party.

These watermelon wedges are grilled hot and fast, drizzled with a delicate simple syrup, and garnished with mint. It makes a refreshing and tasty summer dessert. Make this grilled fruit dessert 3-4 hours in advance, cover and store it in your fridge, and serve it cold. This recipe calls for a medium-sized seedless watermelon. However, if you cannot find one in your area, you can use a seeded variety.

Why grill watermelon?

Grilling watermelon slices is a great way to enhance the natural sweetness of the fruit while adding a hint of smoky flavor. You can serve grilled watermelon as a dessert or chop it up to use in salsa or salads.

What does grilled watermelon taste like?

Grilling changes the texture of the watermelon from grainy to slightly chewy and helps caramelize the surface, resulting in a sweet, smoky finish. Sprinkle with a little salt before grilling if you intend to use the watermelon in savory dishes.

Ingredients

1 seedless watermelon
Water
Granulated sugar
Fresh mint leaves
Powdered ginger
Salt

How to make it

Simmer sugar and water over medium heat for 1 minute, stirring often. Add 3 mint leaves, ginger, and salt, and gently stir through.
Once the syrup reaches a honey or corn syrup consistency, it is done. Promptly remove from the heat, remove mint leaves, cover the pot and set aside.
Preheat your grill to 450 degrees or high heat. Oil your grill grates right before putting on the watermelon.
How to oil your grill: First, clean your grill grates to remove debris or minor rust build-up. Fold a paper towel to form a small square. Secure with outdoor cooking tongs, dip the paper towel into a high smoke point oil (olive, avocado, etc.), and glide it across the grill grates. Repeat this process 2-3 times.
While the grill is heating, prepare your watermelon.

Seedless watermelon being sliced on a cutting board

Cutting Watermelon

Cut off the rounded edges on each side and discard.
Next, stand the watermelon upright. Slice the watermelon in half lengthwise. Then, cut into 1″ thick slices, and cut each of those slices in half, to form triangle-shaped pieces.
Blot watermelon triangles with paper towels to remove excess moisture.

Grilling

Place wedges on the grill and cook for 2 minutes per side or until they develop nice char marks.
As soon as the watermelon is off the grill, it’s time to add the finishing touches.
Drizzle slices with simple syrup, sprinkle with freshly chopped mint, and get ready to savor the burst of fruity flavors. You can also grill the fruit 3-4 hours ahead of time and store it in a large, airtight container in the refrigerator. Garnish with syrup, mint right before serving with a scoop of ice cream.
Swap out the simple syrup for a splash of lime juice, if you span to use it in salsa or in a savory side dish, like a grilled watermelon salad.
Store leftover grilled watermelon in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge.

More grilled fruit recipes!