If it is watermelon season and you are feeling a bit crafty, this Watermelon Crab Salad is for you.
Watermelon Crab Salad is a refreshing, healthy salad complete with crab meat, a touch of heat, and a good dose of watermelon. Perfect for a light lunch!
Sadly, the idea for this dish came to me last year well after the watermelon season had ended. So, I had to wait a while to test it out, but here we are and I made it happen.
I love watermelon salads as a whole because they are so delicious and refreshing with just the right amount of sweetness. Not to mention that you can have all sorts of fun create different shapes and sculptures.
Make sure you PIN Watermelon Crab Salad!
If I am being honest here, I am not the craftiest when it comes to watermelon art. There is no way I can carve a lion face into the side of a melon or magically transform cookies into 3-D masterpieces.
And it is because of my lack of art school skills that I took a different approach for this salad. To make something equally impressive as it is tasty, I decided to skip the sculpting classes and busted out my cookie cutters instead.
If I messed that up, we would need to have a larger conversation. Even the most basic arts and crafts skills can give you a gorgeous looking salad.
Watermelon is a glorious fruit that is actually a member of the gourd family. It grows in the US from April to November although you can sometimes find it imported from other countries.
Health benefits of watermelon:
- Keeps you hydrated since it is full of water.
- Lowers inflammation.
- Helps you feel satisfied with little calories.
- High in Vitamin A and C.
- Has been linked to improved heart health.
You can’t smell or feel the ripeness of a watermelon, but there are some clues. These delicious treats ripen on the vine in the sun.
A ripe watermelon will have something called a “ground spot.” This is a white or yellow patch on the underside of the melon that indicates it is ready to be enjoyed.
If you tap the watermelon, it should give off a hollow sound. They should feel heavy in your hands no matter the size. Occasionally, a store or farm stand will sell them with their stem attached.
That stem should be hard and green which lets you know it was harvested recently.
Eaten plain, it is a tasty, sweet treat that pairs fabulously with so many other flavors. Sprinkle some salt and it will instantly amplify the flavor.
Pair it with feta or goat cheese and you have a creamy, tangy-sweet treat. You can even add it to salsa to tame the spice levels. Balsamic vinegar is also super delicious!
For this salad, I used a few items from my fridge and sweet, local Maryland blue crab meat. Add a little bit of jalapeno, lime, and salt, and you have one refreshing salad.
For more information on how to choose crab meat, check out my Crab and Shrimp Stuffed Shells with Sherry Cream Sauce. Make sure you check out my 7 tips for more interesting salads before you starting chopping!
If you loved my Watermelon Crab Salad, check out these other easy crab recipes:
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Watermelon Crab Salad
Ingredients
- 2 large slices watermelon
- 1 cucumber seeded and finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves shredded
- 1 jalapeno seeded and finely minced
- 1 cup lump blue crab meat
- Juice of 2 fresh limes
Instructions
- Combine cucumber, basil, jalapeno, crab meat, and lime juice in a medium bowl. Place into the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- Cut watermelon into 1 1/2 inch slices. Cut center with a cookie cutter, the shape of your choice, but make sure the center has enough space that you can hollow out a small hole to hold 2 tablespoons of crab meat mixture. You will need at least 4 cut-outs. Reserve the rest for snacking.
- Take each of the four slices and a small slice, about 1/2 inch, horizontally. This will be the lid.
- Spoon out the center of each cut-out to form a bowl.
- When ready to serve, spoon crab meat mixture into the centers of each watermelon bowl. Place the lid back on and serve. Enjoy!
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was!
This looks so yummy and so pretty! I would never think to pair crab with watermelon but I’m sure its awesome!
I would never have paired these together but it sounds amazing and I am so intrigued! It looks super fancy too!
First, the presentation is just adorable! I wouldn’t want to touch it because it’s so pretty! But then I’d have to give in because that sounds yummy. Never thought of crab paired with watermelon.
That looks so cute but I have to admit I’m afraid to use watermelon in anything but fruit salads! I would be willing to give it a try though.
I am not going to lie- this strikes me as a weird combination. I guess that I can’t knock it until I try it though!
Not only are the flavors amazing together, but your presentation is just so pretty!
Your watermelons are so cute! The salad looks delicious.
I love the watermelon cut outs! Perfect for those watching their carbs
That looks so fancy! I bet it’s tasty! We’ve been buying a LOT of watermelon lately, I need to try this, thanks for sharing.
Really cute….Almost too cute to eat. I am not a big watermelon eater but I like it juiced.
this looks and sounds delicious, I’m going to try this. Low in calories as well, so what a great find! Thanks!
For the love of deliciousness! I think I could make this – maybe not as cute as yours, but it would edible! 😀
That looks yummy. This past weekend I made watermellon and feta salad and was looking for more watermellon salad recipes!
What a great idea to cut the watermelon into shape with a cookie cutter! This looks like such a great salad for summer.
I love watermelon! I bet this is a delicious combination.
I bet that is very tasty! I love the little flower cutouts you used on the watermelon. So cute!
This is so pretty that I would probably have to convince myself it is okay to eat it! I love the idea of pairing watermelon and crab together.
I love the way you cut the watermelon! I’ve never had Crab and Watermelon together, but it is definitely something I would try. 🙂
What an interesting combination. Don’t know that I’m adventurous enough to try, but the presentation looks great!
i wouldn’t have thought of that combo. it sure looks refreshing though
I remember going to this cooking demos at one of the higher end and popular restaurants in Tampa. The chef taught us about putting salt on watermelon. Something so simple that they do.
This looks delicious! Crab and Watermelon so refreshing! Perfect for a hot summer meal!
That looks so neat. I never would have to make the watermelon salad like that.
I love eating my watermelon plain with no salt, although my kids add salt to theirs. This looks delicious and I love the cut shape you cut yours into.
My husband would LOVE this. He loves anything with crab, and I love anything watermelon…so together this would be a pretty tasty treat!
I’m allergic to shelled fish — BUT I love this idea! My husband loves crab meat so I wonder what he’d think of this idea!!
I would love to try this salad. I’m going to put it on my grocery list~ YUMMO~
I would have never paired these two items together, but it seems like a refreshing summer meal! Perhaps I will give it a try!
I never would have considered eating these tow together. Looks like a great summer dish!
Beautiful photos! What a light and healthy dish!
I am not sure about crab and watermelon together but I love the idea of using my cookie cutters to make shapes out of my watermelon slices. Awesome!
I’ve never paired fruit and seafood. It looks delicious!
Oh YUM! I’m watermelon obsessed this summer!
Just pinned this cool stuffs!!
Hugs
Watermelon and crab my two favorite foods! Looks like a great recipe for the summer!
I wish I was a seafood person because I really like the combination you have here. It’s so beautifully presented too!
You could leave out the crab and still have a fabulously tasty Watermelon Salas, Liz.
I never considered pairing watermelon with crab. Sounds like it would have a very unique flavor! Thanks for sharing!
What a delicious combo! We love watermelon and crab. I’ll have to give this one a try.
This looks great for a summer time lunch,I have not had crab for years we used to catch our own.
This sounds like the perfect light lunch!
This seems like a very interesting combination. It intrigues me!!! I’ll have to give it a try… 🙂
I’ve only recently discovered how versatile watermelon is. This looks like a great summer salad.
Such an interesting combination. Looks tasty.
I am like a child and would eat it solely based on the shape. I am such a dork like that, but in all seriousness – it sounds awesome 🙂
Wow! this is gorgeous, love crab!