Published: Jun 22, 2020 · Modified: Jan 23, 2023 by Angela · This post may contain affiliate links · 46 Comments

Watermelon Pico de Gallo (salsa)

Name: Watermelon Pico de Gallo (salsa)
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 3 cup watermelon (small dice); 1/2 cup yellow or orange bell peppers (finely diced); 1/3 cup onion (finely diced); 2 small jalapenos (finely diced, (seeds and membranes removed optional)); 1/2 cup cilantro (chopped); 3 TBSP lime or lemon juice; 1/4 tsp salt; 1/8 tsp black pepper

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Watermelon pico de gallo is a sweet, spicy, & juicy salsa that will be your new summer favorite. It is amazing with chips but even better on fish tacos. There is no limit to how many ways you can enjoy this homemade fruit salsa.

This watermelon salsa has wonderful fresh summer flavors. Serve this at any picnic, BBQ, potluck, or party. It is colorful and goes great with other crowd-pleasers like ahi poke nachos or teriyaki chicken skewers.

chips and watermelon salsa — chips & watermelon salsa

Pico de gallo is a fresh salsa commonly used in Mexican cuisine and this watermelon salsa will be your new favorite. What is not common, is making it from watermelon instead of tomatoes. It is traditionally made with tomatoes, onions, peppers, cilantro, and lime. In this refreshing version, the sweet watermelon balances the pungent onions, spicy peppers, and the fresh kick from the lime and cilantro.

This easy recipe for watermelon pico de gallo is the summer salsa for all your fun Mexican cravings. I love it on tacos or with just chips. However you wish to enjoy it, the colors, flavors, and ease of this recipe will make you want this part of your normal rotation.

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How to Make Watermelon Pico de Gallo
Ingredients Needed for Watermelon Pico de Gallo (salsa)
Instructions
Substitutions or Variations
What to Serve with Watermelon Pico de Gallo
Storing Watermelon Salsa
Other Watermelon Recipes
PIN FOR SAFEKEEPING & SHARING!
Watermelon Pico de Gallo (salsa)

How to Make Watermelon Pico de Gallo

Start with either a personal size or a large watermelon. We typically buy the seedless but whatever variety you prefer will work just fine. The key to this watermelon salsa Fresca is that the ingredients be fresh. Since it is a raw recipe and no cooking is needed, quality ingredients at their peak are important. For the most part, this recipe is all about your chopping skills.

Ingredients Needed for Watermelon Pico de Gallo (salsa)

Watermelon
Onion
Jalapeno Peppers
Sweet Bell Peppers
Cilantro
Citrus juice (lemons or limes)
Salt & Pepper

Ingredients for Watermelon Pico del Gallo (salsa)

Instructions

Cut the watermelon into small dice, you do want them to be smaller than bite-sized, or else the chips or tacos will be full of large chunks of watermelon and nothing else. Also, dice the onions and sweet bell peppers.

I like to seed and remove the membranes for one of the jalapenos so that the pico de gallo is not super spicy. Doing this to only one jalapeno makes it just right for our family's heat tolerance. You can do whatever you like and have all the insides for more heat or none at all for all mild all the time.

DON'T FORGET TO WASH YOUR HANDS REALLY GOOD AFTER HANDLING AND DICING THE JALAPENO PEPPERS -- the last thing you want to accidentally do is touch your eyes after that. OUCH

Once everything is diced and in a medium-sized bowl, juice the lemons or limes. Depending on your size, you may need one or two. Pour the juice over the ingredients and toss lightly to coat.

Nice I finely diced the fresh cilantro leaves and sprinkled that on top. Followed by one final gentle stir and I also seasoned it with salt and pepper. Optional, a sprinkle of Tajin or cumin if you have that to your liking. The great thing about fresh salsas like this pico de gallo is you can experiment and make it your own.

Substitutions or Variations

Sometimes you cannot find an ingredient or need to use an alternate due to allergies or dietary needs. Here are some ingredient substitutions or variations that work for this watermelon salsa recipe.

Onion - use red, white, or yellow onion.
Lemon - use lime juice instead.
Extra Spicy - double the number of jalapenos and/or do not remove the seeds or membranes.
Cilantro - omit if you are not a fan (and want salsa without cilantro) and replace it with another fresh herb like flat-leaf parsley.

What to Serve with Watermelon Pico de Gallo

As mentioned this fruit salsa is great as an appetizer dip served with tortilla chips. It is also great as a topping on tacos, quesadillas, or tamales. Also, add it to burritos. It is fantastic with grilled chicken thighs, fish, or pork.

Storing Watermelon Salsa

This fresh salsa stores well in the refrigerator. Place any leftovers in an air-tight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I would not store it any longer since the watermelon will get mushy and soft.

I do not recommend freezing salsa. It does not hold up well when frozen or thawed to use later. I recommend eating watermelon salsa when it is fresh.

Other Watermelon Recipes

During summer, the most popular fresh ingredient in my house is always watermelon so we have a lot of it from May to September. This is why I am always looking for new delicious ways to enjoy. This is probably why I already have several amazing watermelon recipes on the blog. So if you love watermelon, you may want to check out these refreshing, fun, and unique recipes:

WATERMELON MINT MARTINI RECIPE

MEXICAN WATERMELON CUCUMBER SALAD WITH TAJIN

IngredieWatermelon Pico del Gallo (salsa) PIN — Watermelon Pico del Gallo (salsa) PIN

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