Smoked Watermelon Ham Recipe By Tasty

Steps:

• Tip: When buying your watermelon make sure to lift it up. It should feel heavy and dense. If the watermelon feels light and hollow, it has lost too much of its natural moisture.
• Brine and smoke the watermelon: Carefully cut the ends off of the watermelon. Turn the watermelon onto a flat side, then cut off the rind, working carefully to cut off as little flesh as possible. Discard the rind. The watermelon should look like a football with flat ends and be red all over, with no remaining white patches.
• Lay the watermelon on the cutting board lengthwise. Find the side of the watermelon that has the largest surface area and set that face-up. If the watermelon will not lay steadily with that side up, slice a small amount off the back to make a flat surface, which will allow the watermelon to sit evenly.
• On the top of the watermelon, cut 1-inch deep diagonal slits in opposite directions to form a cross-hatch pattern.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the salt, coconut sugar, chili powder, paprika, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cloves.
• Rub the spice mixture all over the watermelon, making sure to get some between the cross-hatch cuts, but being careful not to tear the watermelon.
• Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet. Place the watermelon on the rack, cross-hatch side up, and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 12 hours. This will pull out excess moisture and allow the flavors from the spice rub to permeate the entire watermelon.
• Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C).
• Drain all but 2 tablespoons of the hickory chip soaking liquid, then spread the chips and reserved liquid in an even layer over the bottom of a roasting pan. Set a roasting rack on top.
• Place the watermelon, cross-hatch side up on the roasting rack. Cover the pan tightly with heavy-duty foil.
• Bake the watermelon for 30 minutes. You will begin to see a bit of smoke coming from the roasting pan. If it is smoking too much, you may need to carefully tighten the foil around your pan to keep the smoke inside.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 250°F (120°C). Continue baking the watermelon for 3 hours, then remove the foil and roast another 3 hours.
• While the watermelon roasts, make the chipotle and honey glaze: Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring frequently, for 1-2 minutes, or until light golden brown in color and very fragrant.
• Add the coconut sugar, honey, orange juice, mustard, chipotle, salt, and Worcestershire sauce and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is evenly combined. Bring to a simmer and then reduce the heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, for 10-12 minutes more, or until reduced by half. The glaze should coat the back of a spoon and leave a trail behind it when stirred in the pan. Transfer the glaze to a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl to cool; you should have about 1 cup.
• After 6 hours, remove the watermelon from the oven and turn the broiler on high.
• Remove the watermelon; it should look slightly charred and reduced in size. Carefully remove the rack from the roasting pan and place on a baking sheet. Discard the excess liquid and hickory chips from the pan. Return the rack with the watermelon to the roasting pan.
• Brush ¼ cup of the glaze over the top of the watermelon. Broil for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pan as needed, until the glaze has evenly caramelized. If one spot is getting darker more quickly than others, use foil to cover that specific area. Remove the watermelon from the oven and let cool slightly.
• Using long metal spatulas to support the watermelon, transfer it to a large serving platter with sliced oranges or fresh rosemary or thyme sprigs. Glaze the warm watermelon with another ¼ cup of the glaze. Slice the watermelon and serve with the remaining glaze alongside.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Prepare the watermelon: Using a sharp knife, cut the top and bottom off the watermelon, removing enough rind just to expose the red flesh. Stand the watermelon upright on one flat end and pare off the rind, cutting using long strokes of the knife from top to bottom. (The strips you remove will look like barrel staves.) Place the watermelon in large stockpot or bucket.
• Prepare the brine: Add 2 quarts of water to a large pot along with the wood ash, salt, oregano, peppercorns, juniper berries, cloves and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Remove from heat, stir in another 4 quarts of water and let cool to room temperature. Once cooled, stir in the tamari. Pour the brine over the watermelon, placing a saucepan or other weight on top to keep the watermelon submerged. Transfer to the refrigerator and brine the watermelon for 4 days.
• Transfer the brined watermelon to a wire rack set over a sheet pan. Let it rest in the refrigerator until the surface feels tacky, 4 hours.
• Set up your smoker following the manufacturer's directions and heat to 250 degrees. Alternatively, set up your charcoal grill for indirect grilling and heat to 250 degrees, using half the normal amount of charcoal (you need less charcoal to keep the heat low).
• Spread 2 tablespoons olive oil in a sturdy foil pan large enough to hold the watermelon. Add the watermelon and arrange the garlic and rosemary alongside it in the pan.
• If using a charcoal grill, add the wood chunks or chips to the coals. Place the watermelon in its pan in the smoker or on the grill grate. Smoke the watermelon for 2 hours, basting with the pan juices, replenishing the wood as needed.
• Remove the watermelon and score the surface in a 1-inch diamond crosshatch pattern, just as you would a ham, cutting no more than 1/4 inch deep.
• Continue smoking the watermelon in the smoker or on the grill until the outside is firm and bronzed with smoke, 2 hours more, basting every 30 minutes with the pan juices and the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Remove the pan from the smoker or grill.
• Finally, you'll want to finish cooking at a high temperature to add color to the watermelon. If working on a grill, add more charcoal and heat it to high (400 degrees). If you have a smoker, increase the heat to 400 degrees, if your smoker will go that high. Alternately, you can finish the watermelon ham in an oven heated to 400 degrees.
• Grill, smoke or roast the watermelon until darkly browned on the outside, basting with pan juices every 15 minutes, about 45 minutes. Allow the watermelon ham to cool slightly, about 15 minutes, before slicing. To serve, cut the ham crosswise into 1-inch slices. Spoon the pan juices over the watermelon and serve warm or cold.