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Glyko Karpouzi Kyprou (Γλυκό Καρπούζι Κύπρου)
Created by Chef Dimitra
Cyprus keeps the watermelon after the red flesh is gone: firm white rind, lime-soaked for snap, simmered slowly in lemon syrup until each piece shines on the spoon.
Glyko Karpouzi Kyprou is Cyprus's watermelon-rind spoon sweet, the summer thrift of the island made bright and formal in a saucer. The red flesh is eaten cold, then the white rind is saved, peeled, cut, and turned into cubes that gleam in lemon syrup. Good pieces are translucent but not soft. They meet the spoon with a small snap.
The method that decides it is the soak in asvestis, food-grade slaked lime. It tightens the rind so the syrup can enter without collapsing the pieces into jam. Use only food-grade lime, rinse until the water runs clear, and the rest is patient simmering.
I like this sweet after a bitter Greek coffee, one cube and a little syrup, not a bowlful. It is Cyprus in its plainest intelligence: nothing wasted, nothing disguised. A recipe written down is a recipe saved, especially when the ingredient was once headed for the bin.
Ingredients
trimmed watermelon rind
Quantity
1kg
dark green peel and red flesh removed, cut into 3cm cubes or fingers
food-grade slaked lime (asvestis or pickling lime)
Quantity
20g
for soaking
cold water
Quantity
2L
for the lime soak
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| trimmed watermelon rinddark green peel and red flesh removed, cut into 3cm cubes or fingers | 1kg |
| food-grade slaked lime (asvestis or pickling lime)for soaking | 20g |
| cold waterfor the lime soak | 2L |
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