Chargrilled watermelon with toasted coconut and wild honey

You'd be surprised how many fruits get better with a little grilling. These skewers make plain old watermelon a dessert-worthy dish.

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 45 g (½ cup) desiccated coconut
• ½ small watermelon
• 60 ml (¼ cup) wild honey
• zest and juice of ½ lemon

Instructions

1. Place the coconut in a frying pan over low-medium-low heat and stir continuously until light golden. Pour the coconut into a bowl and set aside.

2. Preheat a large grill pan over a medium-high heat. Remove the watermelon rind and set aside. Cut the flesh into 2-3 cm pieces. Thread the watermelon pieces onto skewers and place onto the dry, hot grill and cook, turning occasionally until nicely marked. Place the skewers on a platter, drizzle over some honey and sprinkle with two-thirds of the toasted coconut so that it sticks to the charred watermelon.

3. Very finely dice a few slices of the reserved watermelon rind. Place in a small bowl with the remaining toasted coconut, a drizzle of honey and the lemon zest and juice. Stir to combine.

To serve, stack the charred skewers on a platter and scatter over the watermelon rind.

Ainsley Harriott explores Australia's best regional produce markets in the brand-new season of Ainsley's Australian Market Menu on SBS and SBS On Demand.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.