The One Thing You Should Never Do With Watermelon

Nothing screams summer like juicy, ripe slices of watermelon. So watching a supposed professional chef take a perfectly sweet watermelon and ruin it with prepackaged taco seasoning is enough to make me sad and nauseous at the same time.

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I mean, you shouldn’t really even use taco seasoning on tacos. That premade stuff is basically garbage — by the time you get it, the flavors of the spices are totally muted, so they pile on buckets of salt to make it actually taste like something. You’re much better off making your own seasonings from scratch.

Also, the chef puts way too much seasoning on each piece! Also, who cuts their watermelon into rectangles? Screw that.

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If you’re going to jazz up your melon, there are plenty of other options. Tajín Fruit Seasoning is a blend of chili peppers, salt and dehydrated lime juice that’s perfect for sprinkling on fruit, and you can make an approximation of it yourself with a sprinkle of ground dried chilies, salt and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

You can top your watermelon with basil and balsamic or drizzle it with honey and a scattering of chopped fresh mint. It’s even good with cheese — sweetened cream cheese for dessert or salty feta at lunch.

But the one thing I think we can all agree on is that the packet of taco seasoning that’s been slowly hardening in your cupboard over the past few months belongs in the garbage, not sprinkled atop your fresh summer watermelon.

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