How To Cut A Melon

This is a true story, I’m sure of it.

I heard from a friend who heard from a friend that a lady was at the supermarket asking a clerk to cut up the watermelon she was buying.

This poor woman is probably a mom who has no time to watch cooking shows.

Before I had kids, I thought I was tired.  At least I had time and energy to watch TV and cutting a melon is a technique I learned from Alton Brown.

I love Alton Brown.

Who else can teach a science lesson at every meal?

Alton rocks.

Or perhaps this woman does not own a sharp knife.  Which is my #1 requirement for cutting anything in the kitchen.

Especially melons.

If my knife can cut through a super-ripe tomato without leaving an indention on the skin it is a sharp knife.

Any knife not to this standard is cast away to the knife boneyard that I will someday repurpose to teach my girls the fine art of knife throwing.

Important life skills, you know.

Once you have that sharp knife than can cut through a ripe tomato without a single impression, you’re ready to sink the blade into one end of the melon, turning the melon in a circular motion until the piece falls off.

Once both ends are chopped off, stand the melon on one end.

On this melon, I had a hunch that something was not right in the center, so I cut down the middle.

Usually, I do this step *after* cutting the rind.  Six one way, half-a-dozen the other.

Next I cut slivers from top to bottom working my way around the melon.

Until I get all the rinds cut off

I set the two half-circles flat.

Then begin chopping into small squares.

Bite size for my young’uns.

Then bag’er-up.

Grab some forks.

We’re headed to the park!