Roman watermelon with honey and pepper

From the kitchens of Apicius: cold watermelon dressed with Roman honey, cracked black pepper, and a splash of posca, the vinegar drink of the legions

Origin: Rome and the Italian Peninsula, Roman Empire

From the journey of Watermelon.

The Roman agricultural writer Columella describes the cultivation of pepo, which scholars identify as watermelon, in his treatise Res Rustica (c. 65 CE), and the fruit appears in Roman still-life mosaics and frescoes from Pompeii, most famously in the House of Julia Felix mosaic (c. 62 CE), which depicts a slice of red-fleshed watermelon alongside figs, peaches, and pomegranates. The Roman cook Apicius, in De re coquinaria, records numerous preparations combining sweet ingredients with pepper (piper) and vinegar (acetum). The Roman flavour aesthetic consistently combined sweet and acid elements, and posca (diluted sour wine or vinegar) was the standard soldier's drink and a common table condiment. The combination of cold summer fruit with honey, cracked pepper, and a splash of posca transforms the cooling refreshment of watermelon into a more complex flavoured preparation, with the pepper adding warmth and the posca's acidity cutting the sweetness of both the honey and the fruit.

Ingredients

base

1.2 kg cold watermelon, rind removed, cut into wedges or large cubes

dressing

3 tbsp robust, flavourful honey (a dark Greek thyme honey or chestnut honey is ideal; avoid mild acacia honey)
2 tbsp white wine vinegar, diluted with 1 tbsp of cold water (posca substitute)

seasoning

1 tsp black pepper, coarsely cracked in a pestle and mortar (not finely ground)
0.5 tsp flaky sea salt

optional

1 tsp colatura di alici (Italian fermented fish sauce, the direct descendant of Roman garum), optional, for historical authenticity

Method

Refrigerate the watermelon for at least 2 hours before serving.
In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, diluted white wine vinegar, and the colatura di alici if using, until combined. Taste: it should be sweet, sharp, and slightly saline. Adjust the proportions as you prefer.
Arrange the cold watermelon on a serving platter. Drizzle the honey-posca dressing over the fruit.
Crack the black pepper coarsely using a pestle and mortar and scatter generously over the dressed watermelon. Finish with flaky sea salt.
Serve immediately as a summer starter or a refreshment between courses.

Notes

Posca, the Roman drink of diluted sour wine or vinegar, is approximated here with good-quality white wine vinegar diluted by half with water. The Romans also used mulsum (wine sweetened with honey) in cooking; a good sweet white wine such as Sauternes or Muscat can substitute for the honey-vinegar combination in a more luxurious version of this preparation. The House of Julia Felix mosaic, discovered at Pompeii in 1755, is one of the most detailed surviving depictions of Roman food and includes what appears to be a cut watermelon displaying its red flesh, confirming that sweet-fleshed red watermelons were present in the Roman world by the 1st century CE.

The Gastrographer

Name: Roman watermelon with honey and pepper
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Roman Empire
Ingredients: 1.2 kg cold watermelon, rind removed, cut into wedges or large cubes; 3 tbsp robust, flavourful honey (a dark Greek thyme honey or chestnut honey is ideal; avoid mild acacia honey); 2 tbsp white wine vinegar, diluted with 1 tbsp of cold water (posca substitute); 1 tsp black pepper, coarsely cracked in a pestle and mortar (not finely ground); 0.5 tsp flaky sea salt; 1 tsp colatura di alici (Italian fermented fish sauce, the direct descendant of Roman garum), optional, for historical authenticity

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control