Tennessee native here; my parents (both from North Carolina) salt their melon. I stop short of saying that salted melon is an abomination, but you’ll never see me eat it. My wife grew up with in the Baltimore/DC area, and I’ve never seen her salt her melon. Son’s girl friend is visiting from NY state; I’ll try and remember to ask her.
Around here, the Mexican way is lime, hot pepper, mayonnaise, and cotija cheese. Now that’s the best way to eat it!
When I was a kid in Georgia, salting a watermelon was a normal thing to do. Seems I remember that I liked it. Then I got older, tastes changed, decided I didn’t like anything about the whole grainy/seedy/sticky mess.
Black pepper on cantelopes? No, they should be buried in a shallow grave.
My mother taught us to sugar rhubarb, but a neighbor insisted it should be dipped in salt. I would eat it either way until I got older and discovered that I disliked rhubarb intensely.
HMS Irruncible, there are a lot of varieties of what we call cantaloupe. Some are delicious, others are flavorless. I love me some Chanterais melon, but plain old muskmelon rarely tastes good.
Yankee. I’ve always put salt on watermelon, and as an adult, discovered the joy of salt on cantaloupe.
Salt on peaches is also delicious.
When I was a kid (in rural Louisiana, if region matters), salt on watermelon was just the way things were done. I’ve since learned that I prefer it without salt. I’ve also found that I prefer it at close to room temperature, rather than ice-cold.
Lurking in this thread made me buy a honeydew and a personal-sized watermelon yesterday. I used to eat (only) watermelon with salt, but I haven’t for years. Maybe I’ll try it again.
Salt on cantaloupe and watermelon, like my grandfather. Also salt on pumpkin pie, just before eating.
They sell cottage cheese with chives or Swiss herbs or bell pepper with cayenne pepper or plain. I only buy the plain and put honey on it.
Even my husband, who is notorious for his fussy eating habits, enjoys this salad. Who would have thunk?
I’ve always salted watermelon and cantaloupe. I was fairly old before I found out some other people don’t.
I also put salt and pepper on my corn on the cob. I’d seen my dad do it for decades but it looked like too much work for me and in addition salt is bad for you mkay? But then I tried it and it makes it taste amazing, so now I am a confirmed salter.
Butter and salt and sometimes pepper. Isn’t that the usual way to eat corn on the cob?
Butter yes. Up until a decade or so ago I had never tried salt or pepper on CotC!
Yes, totally! Many of my favorite “recipes” involve nothing more than garden-fresh produce and a salt shaker.
my aunt will put salt on her watermelon occasionally …she tried a chunk first to see is she needs it
Try a dash of olive oil and a squirt of fresh lemon juice.
The Greeks have been doing it for thousands of years, and they’re onto something.
Try lime juice and a bit of cayenne.
Or just shake on some TaJin:
Mexican street fair style: a squeeze of lime, a dab of mayonnaise, a few shakes of chili powder, and a sprinkling of grated romano cheese.
(No, I don’t know how romano cheese became a Mexican street fair thing… it may in fact be a substitution. Anyway, try it once. Especially on roasted corn which is better than boiled corn)
I’ve never had it with Romano. Here it’s cotija cheese (as I mentioned earlier in the thread in post 42.)
I make elotes at home all the time. Usually with queso fresco cuz that’s what’s in the stores around here. I grill them with the mayo and chili powder, then cover 'em with lime and cheese hot off the grill.