Name: Cantaloupe Salad with Olives and Red Onion
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1/2 red onion , sliced thin; 1/3 cup lemon juice (2 lemons); 1-3 teaspoons honey (optional); 1 teaspoon ground dried Aleppo pepper; 1/2 teaspoon table salt; 1 cantaloupe , peeled, halved, seeded, and cut into 1½-inch chunks (6 cups); 5 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley , divided; 5 tablespoons chopped fresh mint , divided; 1/4 cup finely chopped pitted oil-cured olives , divided

Why This Recipe Works

Melon salads are ideal hot-weather fare, but they're prone to some common pitfalls: namely, watered-down dressings and garnishes that slide to the bottom of the salad bowl. Because melons vary in sweetness, we started by tasting our cantaloupe to determine how much honey to incorporate into our dressing. To counter the abundant water contributed by the cantaloupe, we made an intense dressing with assertive ingredients such as lemon juice, red onion, and ground dried Aleppo pepper, but we skipped the oil, which would only be repelled by the water on the surface of the cantaloupe. Instead we added richness with oil-cured olives, which—when chopped fine—adhered to the surface of the cantaloupe pieces and held on to the dressing. To avoid watering down the dressing, we left the cantaloupe in large chunks, which freed less juice and accentuated the contrast between the well-seasoned exterior and the sweet, juicy interior.

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Before You Begin

Taste your melon as you cut it up: If it's very sweet, omit the honey; if it's less sweet, add the honey to the dressing. We like the gentle heat and raisiny sweetness of ground dried Aleppo pepper here, but if it's unavailable, substitute ¾ teaspoon of paprika and ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper. This salad makes a light and refreshing accompaniment to grilled meat or fish and couscous or steamed white rice.

Instructions

Combine onion and lemon juice in large bowl and let sit for 5 minutes. Stir in honey, if using; Aleppo pepper; and salt. Add cantaloupe, ¼ cup parsley, ¼ cup mint, and 3 tablespoons olives and stir to combine. Transfer to shallow serving bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley, remaining 1 tablespoon mint, and remaining 1 tablespoon olives and serve.