Melons

Never take a gamble on lugging home the wrong watermelon again.

This sweet, spicy, and punchy upgrade to classic slabs of salted watermelon is the palate-pleasing appetizer your cookout guests deserve, Fresh coconut water is much sweeter, and has a greater depth of flavor than bottled versions, so crack open a coconut if you can. If using store-bought, select a brand with no additives for the best tasting crudo. Reserve the strained spicy marinade to use as a fruity base for a tequila cocktail.

Grilling watermelon gives it a pleasantly smoky flavor and a glistening surface that’s reminiscent of tuna steaks. Here, F&W’s Justin Chapple tops slabs of the sweet-smoky fruit with warm pickled shrimp, onion, and jalapeño. Fresh parsley finishes off this summery main dish.

Creamy, rich whole milk yogurt carries the sweetness of juicy watermelon and cantaloupe in this refreshing summer salad. Perfect for brunch or dinner, the dressing adds just enough spice and acidity. For the sweetest melons, look for watermelons that sound hollow when you knock on them and have a pale yellow patch from where they sat in the field.

Everything you've ever known is a lie.

Chef Joe Kindred of Kindred restaurant in Davidson, North Carolina, lets watermelon sit in a savory marinade for 30 minutes to draw out the juices from the fruit and intensify its flavor. Slideshow: More Watermelon Recipes