Spicy Watermelon Salad With Shrimp

If you don't mind a little heat, this spicy watermelon salad is for you.

The combination of juicy, crunchy, creamy, spicy and sweet all go together beautifully in this summer watermelon salad recipe.

The base of the salad starts with some fresh watermelon, diced cucumber and avocado, sliced jalapeño pepper, scallions, and fresh herbs.

Then, it's topped with perfectly grilled shrimp that are flavored with some salt, pepper and a squeeze of lime.

Now, what really takes this watermelon salad to the next level is the miso ginger dressing and chili crunch oil.

The miso gives that umami saltiness that balances perfectly with the heat from the chili crunch oil.

I love that you can adjust the spice in this salad to your likings. Add as much or as little of the chili crunch oil as you want.

And if you've never had chili crunch oil, all I have to say is you have to try it!

It's the next best condiment that I will always have in my fridge (move over Sriracha).

More on that later ;).

• watermelon
• cucumber
• avocado
• jalapeño
• scallions
• fresh herbs like basil, mint and cilantro
• crushed peanuts
• shrimp
• chili crunch oil

• avocado oil (or olive oil)
• sesame oil
• white miso paste
• fresh ginger
• lime juice
• rice wine vinegar
• honey or agave

This miso ginger dressing makes more than enough for this salad.

I personally like to fill my bowl up with the salad before I add the dressing, so I can add as much or as little as I want, but it's totally up to you.

I keep the leftover dressing in a small glass jar in my fridge and use it on other salads, it's SO good :).

Chili crunch oil is a condiment made with oils, chili peppers, garlic, and other seasonings. It's used on anything from noodles to drizzled on pizzas.

It's recently become very popular so you can find it almost at any grocery store.

Some stores have their own version, I've seen it at Trader Joe's and it's called chili onion crunch.

My favorite brand is the Momofuku Chili Crunch Oil (I found mine at my local Target).

I've also seen recipes to make your own chili crunch oil.

1. Make the miso ginger dressing: combine all dressing ingredients in a bowl or mason jar. Stir to combine (or if using a jar, cover the lid tightly and shake it to combine). Set aside.
2. Grill your shrimp: drizzle shrimp with avocado oil, add salt, pepper and lime. Toss to combine. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Add shrimp and cook 2-3 minutes per side until pink and slightly charred. Remove and set aside.
3. Assemble the salad: In a large serving bowl, add your watermelon, cucumber, avocado, jalapeño, scallions, fresh herbs and peanuts. Top with grilled shrimp.
4. Add about half of the miso dressing to your salad. Toss together (you can add more dressing if desired).
5. Drizzle with the chili crunch oil, to taste. Serve immediately.

• Because of the water content in the watermelon, this salad is best if eaten right away otherwise it gets very watery from the watermelon juice.
• You can keep the dressing separate until ready to serve.
• You will probably have leftover miso dressing which you can save in a jar in your refrigerator for other salads!
• The jalapeños add a mild amount of heat, however, the chili crunch is quite spicy so add a little at a time to your liking.
• This watermelon salad would also be great for eating in a lettuce wrap or wonton wrapper!
• If you want to keep this vegetarian, omit the shrimp and add grilled tofu :).

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Grilled Mango Chicken Kabobs

Spicy watermelon and shrimp salad. Tossed with a miso ginger dressing and drizzles with @Momofuku chili crunch oil 🤤.