The watermelons here in California are sweet, juicy, and cheap these days.  Seedless, too.  That makes me happy.  Watermelon is one of my favorite fruits.

You know how to enjoy watermelon, right?  Bring one to a picnic, cut everybody some nice wedges, and have at it.  Simple.  Did you know there’s another way?  A cooked way?

A few days ago, I noticed an article about just that type of exotic preparation: watermelon steak.  Apparently, it’s one of the more popular dishes at the Boston restaurant 51 Lincoln.  I decided to give it a go.

To make watermelon steak, get a nice  seedless melon.  Cut some thick slabs (I’d recommend at least two inches thick), put them in a roasting pan, and dot with butter (about half a stick).  Add salt and and a little pepper.  Pour on about a quarter-bottle of cream sherry (that’s the type that has a high sugar content).  Cover with oiled parchment paper, then cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil.  Roast for at least two and a half hours (probably longer, perhaps much longer) at 350 degrees.  The original recipe specified that the roasting should continue until the watermelon is charred, but I couldn’t get that to happen.  Instead, after somewhat more than three hours, I took the roasted melon out of the pan and gave it a quick searing (sort of) in a hot frying pan.  Serve with the roasting juices spooned over, and accompany with feta cheese.

The texture and appearance is remarkably similar to raw tuna, completely unlike fresh watermelon.  There is a bit of watermelon flavor, but the sherry clearly has control.  The saltiness of the feta cheese provides a nice complement to the melon.

Give it a try, if only for the novelty.