Pickled Watermelon Rind

Fill a large bowl with ice water and set aside.

Cut the fruit from the white watermelon rind — leaving about ½ inch of pink fruit is A-okay. Cut away all of the green peel. Then cut the watermelon rind into about 1 ½-inch cubes; you should have 1 lb (450 g) of watermelon rind.

Bring a medium pot of lightly salted water to boil. Add the watermelon cubes; reduce the heat to medium-low and let them simmer just to take the edge off the rind’s opaqueness, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Strain the watermelon cubes in a strainer and dunk the strainer into the ice bath to stop the cooking process.

In a saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, lime juice, sugar, salt, and ginger over medium heat. Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve, about 2 minutes. Drop in the chile. Lightly crush the makrut lime leaf in the palm of your hand to release the fragrant oil and drop it in, too.

Remove the watermelon rind from the ice bath and let strain any excess water. Transfer the cubes to a sterile 1-quart (1-L) Mason jar. Carefully pour the vinegar mixture over the watermelon cubes so that they’re covered completely, leaving a little head room. Let cool completely. Store in the refrigerator, covered, for 48 hours before eating. These will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.