This refreshing Watermelon Feta Salad with Mint is perfect for summer. Sweet ripe watermelon salad combined with feta cheese and fresh mint is simply dressed with olive oil and lime juice. It’s a sweet-and-salty combination that looks just beautiful on the table for a backyard cookout, a potluck, or even a Sunday brunch!
My husband loves watermelon salad. During the summer, one of his favorite snacks is freshly sliced chilled watermelon with crumbly slices of feta. The saltiness of the cheese is a perfect compliment to the cool sweetness of the watermelon. He introduced me to the flavor combination, and now I’m hooked, too. Nothing says summer like fresh watermelon and feta!
A few weeks ago we had some friends over for dinner. The weather was just starting to warm up, so we decided to make it an outdoor dinner in our back yard. As I grocery shopped for the meal, my mind was on all the summery foods we’ve been missing. I browsed the produce section and noticed that ripe seedless watermelons were on sale. Of course, my mind went to watermelon and feta! I decided to create a simple summer salad with seedless watermelon chunks, crumbled feta cheese, fresh mint, and a homemade lime juice dressing.
After a little experimentation with the dressing, this is what I came up with! The salty citrus dressing really brings out the flavor of the watermelon, the mint is refreshing, and the feta adds a perfect touch of creaminess. Even those of you who don’t like sweet, fruity salads may appreciate this one– the flavor is truly unique. It was a big hit with our friends, and I’m guessing it will be making regular appearances on our summer menu. It would might just be the perfect side-salad for your 4th of July barbecue. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
If at all possible, try to find goat or sheep’s milk feta– preferably the larger chunks sold in delis or cheese markets. I personally prefer the flavor of block feta to pre-crumbled feta. Enjoy!
Recommended Products:
Food Photography and Styling by Kelly Jaggers
Watermelon Feta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 pounds whole seedless watermelon, chilled (about 12 cups of cubed fruit)
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 whole limes, juiced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese (sheep’s milk feta preferred)
Instructions
- Note: This salad is best made just prior to serving. Prepare one hour or less before your meal.Cut rind from the watermelon, then chop the fruit into 1 inch chunks. Place chunks in a colander to drain as your chop.
- In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, fresh lime juice, salt, and black pepper to create a dressing.
- Place watermelon in a large salad bowl. Pour dressing and chopped mint over the watermelon and toss gently to coat. Pour the crumbled feta into the salad bowl and stir gently to integrate the cheese into the salad. Serve.
Video
Nutrition
I made this last night, for the 2 of us. I added some purple onion slices and kalmata olives. All very tasty & a nice combination of flavors.
Made this for a bbq. Used juice of 2 limes plus one tablespoon good quality balsamic and 1 tsp honey. Mixed just before serving. Everyone loved it. Making again tonight!
It is the most easy prepared appetizer and was a big “wow” – how light and refreshing it is. Thank you very much!!! Highly recommended!!!!!
This was great but the second time I added a cup of blueberries and a 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds for a little crunch. It was a nice addition for a new taste.
I like the idea of adding some crunch. Will be trying it with pumpkin seeds. Thanks for the idea!
Add a can of sliced black olives, 1/2 cup of thinly sliced sweet onion and 1 1/2 tsp of Tabasco this take it to the next level. Try it… you won’t be disappointed.
oh wow thank you for the tip vairiations