I used a 5% salt solution with Himalayan Pink Salt, a 1.4l fermentation vessel, some pink peppercorns, a couple of heads of fresh dill that we have growing, and a handful of unpeeled garlic cloves cut in half lengthways. I took a quartered watermelon (manageable size), cut into slices, removed the pink fruit and used the sliced rinds.
Left for 6 days, which is probably a long time in this heat (kitchen is regularly above 30 degrees centigrade at the moment) although this is one of my first brining attempts so I don't have much to compare.
Tasted today, and unfortunately pretty underwhelmed with the outcome. Some tasting notes:
- Far too salty for my tastes. Not sure if this developed with time, I should have tasted daily to observe flavour changes. Unclear if a lower % salt solution will still facilitate the fermentation - any tips?
- Far too garlic-y for my tastes. A little bit of garlic goes a long way! I'd maybe use 1 or 2 cloves max next time.
- I fermented the whole rind (sliced) but the the outermost green skin is tough and unpleasant to eat. Next time I'd either peel this off before fermenting, or eat the inner rind and discard this outer peel.