The Boozy Watermelon Salad You Didn't Know You Needed This Summer

Summer is in full swing, and you know that means the refreshing drinks will be flowing. Before getting too tipsy, consider how you might level out the booze-to-food ratio. One great idea is to create a boozy salad that's both refreshing and delicious. Gin and juice are out; it's all about the watermelon salad with rum. Sure, it's more of a mouthful, but that's the whole point.

Particularly in the summer, when a light meal is all you want, a boozy watermelon salad is a great excuse to feel a little buzz while keeping your meal relatively healthy. Eating watermelon has numerous benefits, so it's a guilt-free way to enjoy a little splash of rum. In all honesty, booze does not have to be about drinking; it's also about taste. Different liquors can add different notes and punches to our meals — and the watermelon salad with rum is a great way to test this theory.

This slightly boozy salad couldn't be easier to make. Cube the watermelon into bite-sized chunks and place them into a bowl. Sprinkle a little cayenne pepper, lime juice, and rum over the melon and toss. Then serve with a few mint leaves and a pinch of salt. It's refreshing yet filling. The rum with the watermelon slightly tones down the sweetness while the salt gives you a savory, fruity bite. A great little salad for those super hot days, especially if you like a boozy kick.

You could try plenty of watermelon varieties for this trick, with varying colors, sweetness, and seed quantity, allowing you to fit the dish to your liking. If rum is not your jam, then vodka is a common alternative. Vodka isn't as sweet as rum can be, so it's best to add a little sugar or a sweeter liqueur like Grand Marnier alongside it. Also worth mentioning, watermelon is best when sliced fresh, as it'll be at its peak flavor and retain that crunchy texture. If you're making this salad ahead of time, make sure you serve it within an hour, as the salt will draw out the water from the melon.

Tipsy salads can extend far beyond just watermelon. Soaked pineapple in rum is also a delicious snack, especially on hot days. The iconic British beverage Pimm's is another great way to get a boozy-soaked fruit salad. The drink is usually made with bursting red strawberries, crunchy cucumbers, juicy oranges, and a good handful of mint, all mixed into a Pimm's and lemonade jug. The salad excludes the lemonade and mixes the Pimm's with olive oil, honey, vinegar, and seasoning to create a more savory dressing. The Pimm's is sweet and herby, which complements the mint and other fruits in the salad.

If you fancy your salad more savory, mixing liquors into your dressings is another excellent way to add a boozy punch this summer. Mix bourbon with apple cider vinegar, honey, shallots, olive oil, basil, and a little seasoning. It'll bring some wonderful oaky notes to an arugula salad. If you want to experiment with getting boozy and foody simultaneously, watermelon salad with rum is a fantastic place to start.