The most delicious recipes on how to salt watermelons whole in a barrel for the winter

Fermented and pickled, with cabbage or apples, garlic or mustard - these are just some of the recipes for watermelons in a barrel, which we have collected for you in the article. This method of preserving favorite fruits for the long winter is suitable both for residents of private houses with cellars and for residents of city apartments - small barrels can be used for salting.

What watermelons are suitable for pickling in a barrel as a whole

Successful salting depends on correctly selected fruits and containers. Incorrectly selected watermelons will spoil the workpieces.

Selection and preparation of fruits

For salting, late watermelon varieties are chosen, while observing some conditions:

• berries are selected moderately ripe, preferably slightly unripe;
• whole fruits will do without scratches, dents, dark spots and other damage;
• medium-sized watermelons, weighing no more than 2 kg with a thin skin;
• grown without nitrates, which accumulate in the peel and, when salted, get into the brine and pulp;
• fruits with dense pulp - sugar, crumbly varieties unsuitable;
• salting is carried out not earlier than autumn, thus achieving the optimum temperature for fermentation.

The fruits are washed, pierced in several places with a wooden skewer at least 10-15 times, placing the punctures symmetrically. Then they are placed in prepared barrels.

Barrel preparation

Large containers for homework are produced from different materials: thick bottle glass, plastic, stainless steel, wood. Most popular salting in wooden barrels, allowing you to get a special taste of the fruit and increase the shelf life of the workpiece.

The barrels are thoroughly washed with cold water without the use of detergents, then the inner surface is scalded with boiling water. Next, the container is left in a warm, closed room, covered with a clean dry towel so that no dirt and dust gets into it. Do the same with the additional tools necessary for salting.

Important... New wooden containers are checked for sawdust in the cracks. These barrels are washed with cold water until the smell of fresh wood is removed. Then the container is filled with warm water and left for a month so that the boards swell and the brine does not spill out later. Every two or three days the water is changed to fresh.

The best recipes for the winter

For salting, take coarse non-iodized salt so as not to spoil the taste and color of the product. Barrels are poured with boiling water 2-3 times in case dust, microorganisms and fungal spores have managed to get there.

The fruits are neatly placed in even rows in a barrel, filling the container by two-thirds. Pour brine a few centimeters above the level of the laid berries. The emerging fruits are covered with a wooden circle, the diameter of which is slightly less than the diameter of the neck of the barrel; a load of such a mass is placed on top to press down, but not crush.

The barrels are left for two days at room temperature, as a result of which the juice flowing out of the punctures in the fruits will mix with the brine, which, in turn, will partially fill the watermelon. The leaked or evaporated brine is added to the required amount, the barrel is covered with gauze, folded in half, and transferred to the basement, where the salting process will continue.

There are many options for salting for the winter while preserving the natural taste of the fruit: with the addition of sugar, all kinds of spices or without them.

A simple whole salting recipe

The simplest recipe for whole barrel salting:

• washed punctured watermelons are placed in prepared clean, dry barrels;
• separately prepare a solution of 10 liters of water and 800 g of rock salt, stir thoroughly until it is completely dissolved;
• pour the solution, cover with a wooden lid.

Recipe "Babushkin"

Our grandmothers prepared brine from 400 g of salt, 500 g of sugar and a bucket of water. To obtain a richer taste, they took 700-800 g of salt and 0.5 kg of sugar, poured the fruits punctured in several places, covered the barrels with a cloth, put pressure on them, and two days later sent the container to the basement. After three weeks, they checked for readiness.

Whole pickled barrel watermelons

To obtain a rich taste of fermented watermelons, take 800 g of salt and 400 g of sugar and dissolve in 10 liters of water, pour the fruits packed in barrels with brine. After two days, they are sent to the basement for storage, the readiness is checked after 21 days.

Pickled whole watermelons

According to this recipe, soaked watermelons with a bright sweet and sour taste are obtained. To do this, prepare a brine from:

• 10 liters of water;
• 500 g of salt;
• 500 g of sugar.

The cooking technology does not differ from other recipes. The main condition for obtaining a tasty preparation is compliance with the basic rules. Fill a barrel with fruits, pour in a ready-made brine, cover with a clean dry cloth, put oppression. The barrel is left for 12-24 hours at room temperature to start the fermentation process. At the end of the period, they are lowered into the basement for storage. Salting is tried after 3 weeks.

Spice recipe

To add spice, different spices are put in the barrel:

• hot pepper pods;
• cherry or currant leaves;
• peeled cloves of garlic;
• black allspice;
• celery root;
• sprigs of greenery;
• nutmeg.

The ingredients are laid out between the watermelons in the process of filling the barrels, filled with brine prepared according to one of the recipes. Then they act according to the usual scheme.

Recipe "Spicy"

Prepared small fruits are placed in a container, mixed with cloves of garlic, horseradish root, currant and cherry leaves, mint are added, allspice and cinnamon are added. Pour brine prepared from 10 liters of water, 400 g of salt, 500 g of sugar. The load is placed on the top layer, covered with a clean cloth, kept warm for a day, then sent to storage in the cellar. The striped berries are ready in a month.

For lovers of spicy things, a recipe for "Dessert" salting is offered, which includes the following ingredients:

• red hot pepper;
• nutmeg;
• Bay leaf;
• horseradish root;
• coriander;
• ginger root.

The berries, when placed in a container, are shifted with horseradish root and ginger root. Prepare brine from:

• 10 liters of water;
• 500 g of salt;
• 500 g of sugar.

Put on the fire, add bay leaf, hot pepper and spices, after boiling, remove from the heat, cool and fill in a container with watermelons. The barrel is covered with a cloth, the load is placed, and left indoors for a day. Then they are lowered into the basement, from time to time they are examined for the presence of mold. After 3 weeks, check for readiness.

Whole watermelons in a barrel with cabbage

With this salting method, the barrel is filled with layers of chopped cabbage and watermelons. The cabbage heads are washed, the top leaves are removed, cut arbitrarily, if desired, sprinkled with salt, crumpled with hands to make it softer and more obedient.

The first and last layer, 10-15 cm thick, is made from cabbage, pre-salted at the rate of 60 g of salt per 1 kg of chopped vegetables. The berries are shifted with apples and unripe tomatoes so that they do not touch each other and the walls of the container.

The brine is being prepared:

• 10 liters of water;
• 0.5 kg of salt;
• 0.5 kg of sugar.

The laid fruits are poured with a solution, covered with a cloth. The barrel is placed under oppression, fermented for 2 days at a temperature of 20-22 ° C and sent to the basement for further storage.They try watermelons no earlier than a month later, they are stored until mid-winter.

Mustard powder recipe

The mustard powder added to the brine gives pungency and piquancy to the fruit, protects the food from the formation of fungus and prolongs the shelf life of the finished pickling. For cooking, take 10 liters of water, in which 400 g of salt and 50 g of mustard are dissolved, pour brine into a barrel of watermelons.

The second option is to add 400 g of sugar to the brine and increase the amount of salt to 800 g, put mustard powder in the same amount. Barrels filled with fruits are poured with brine, fermented for 2 days at room temperature, then placed in a dark cool place. After 3-4 weeks, the watermelons are ready to eat.

Pickled watermelons in their own juice

To cook pickled watermelons in your own juice, you need the following ingredients:

• 10 kg of melons of the same size weighing 2-3 kg;
• 60 g of salt;
• 5 kg of watermelon pulp.

Cooking method.

1. Wash 5 kg of watermelons, cut into pieces, separate the pulp from the peel and seeds. Using a blender, beat the pulp to a puree consistency. Pour salt into the resulting mass and mix until it is completely dissolved.
2. In a washed, treated with boiling water and dried barrel, lay out the first layer of whole fruits, put pulp puree on top. Next, the next layer is alternated with the pulp until the barrel is full. The last layer is the mashed potatoes.
3. The barrel, covered with a clean, dry linen cloth, is placed in a dark, cold place for a week. The mold that has appeared is removed from time to time, if necessary, the container is topped up with brine.

After a month, the product is ready for use, stored in the cellar for up to six months.

Garlic recipe

For pickling with garlic you will need:

• 4 kg of watermelons;
• one bunch of parsley and dill;
• one pod of hot pepper;
• 5 g black peppercorns;
• one large head of garlic.

Prepare a brine from three liters of filtered or well water, 9 tbsp. l. salt and the same amount of sugar, add peppercorns. The solution is put on fire, boiled, cooled to room temperature.

Cooking method.

• Salted watermelons in small containers. They take small-sized thin-skinned fruits, wash, cut lengthwise into large pieces.
• The keg is washed, poured over with boiling water, dried. A third of the parsley and dill are placed on the bottom. Then put a few peeled cloves of garlic, a pod of red hot pepper.
• Sliced ​​watermelon is placed tightly, shifting with cloves of garlic and herbs until the container is full.
• The keg is poured with cooled saline so that it covers the slices of watermelon, covered with a plate turned upside down, on top of which the load is placed.
• The workpiece is kept for a day at room temperature, then placed in a refrigerator for 2 days, after which it is sent to a cold storage place.

Crunch with salted watermelons after 20-25 days.

Whole salted watermelons with apples

10 pcs. medium size you will need:

• 750 g of salt;
• rye straw;
• 5 kg of apples;
• 10 liters of water;
• 10-15 cherry and currant leaves.

The container is washed, poured over with boiling water, dried. Ripe berries are placed in a barrel, apples, interlaced with straw and leaves of currants and cherries, are placed in the voids between them. The straw is pre-washed and scalded with boiling water.

The prepared brine is poured into a container with watermelons, covered with a wooden circle and placed in a cold, dark place so that the pickles do not deteriorate. The soaked fruits are ready in 2-3 weeks.

Terms and conditions of storage

To preserve the taste and properties, the workpiece is kept in a cool place. If the fruits are stored in a room, it is recommended to eat them in the near future, otherwise the product will turn sour and deteriorate.

Subject to the technology of preparing pickles, as well as storage conditions, delicious slices of watermelon are enjoyed throughout the winter - the product retains its properties for about six months.

The optimum temperature for long-term storage of food is 0 + 3 ° C.

Useful tips on the topic

• For quick penetration of the brine into the pulp of the fruit, the stalk of the watermelons is cut off before being placed in the barrel. This will shorten the fermentation period.
• For the bookmark, fruits of the same size are selected so that they are salted at the same time.
• Berries with a diameter of no more than 30 cm are suitable, then they will be salted evenly, along with the pulp.
• For pickling, take fruits that ripen in September, with pink pulp.
• Be sure to monitor the finished barrels so that mold does not appear. For this, the containers are inspected from time to time, if necessary, the mold is removed, the brine is added, the load is washed and returned to its place.
• Salted both whole fruits and slices.
• They choose wooden containers. Plastic is capable of impregnating the fruit with an unpleasant smell and taste, which will spoil the taste of the workpiece.
• If for salting a new wooden barrel is used, salts are taken 10-15% more than indicated in the recipe, since the wood will absorb a certain part of the salt.
• Room temperature is necessary at the initial stage of fermentation - in the first 12-24 hours, depending on the size of the watermelons. In the future, pickles are stored in a cool dark place. The basement is considered an ideal place.
• To prevent fermentation, ready-made pickled watermelons are taken out with clean cutlery.
• Water is taken from a well or filtered.

Conclusion

Recipes for harvesting watermelons are simple and affordable. Observing the cooking technology, they get a tasty and healthy treat from the melon culture. Recipes are optionally supplemented with other ingredients and spices. It is used both as an independent dish and as a side dish for meat dishes or an unusual dessert.