Summer 2016 | Sea Island Life Magazine Spring/Summer 2016 | Page 9

FINDING THE PERFECT MELON
Sea Island chefs offer tips for the selection process.

ON THE NOSE
When choosing melons,
smell is the No. 1 factor,
according to River Bar
Chef de Cuisine Eric
Fullem. “If it doesn’t
smell like anything, you’re
not going to get that
great flavor,” he says,
adding that, conversely,
a fermented smell is an
indicator of over-ripeness.
If a melon doesn’t have
a ready-to-eat aroma,
Jonathan Jerusalmy, the
executive chef and culinary
director at Sea Island, says
to “let it ripen a little at

your house. Leave it where
it’s not too hot and not too
cold, and let it ‘finish’ …
[in] 48 hours.”
FLAVOR ENHANCER
For instant lusciousness,
Fullem recalls a trick his
parents used to enhance
flavor: “They’d dribble
honey on cantaloupe
that wasn’t sweet enough.”
ROUGH EXTERIOR
“The outside should be
a little bit tougher than
the skin of your hand,”
Jerusalmy says. Avoid

brown spots and cracks
in the rind and check out
the heft of the melon. “The
heavier the melon, the
more dense the flesh and
the more sugar,” he adds.
READY FOR PICKING
When picking melons
straight from the garden,
Fullem advises: “If it
pops off the vine, it’s
ready. But if you have to
struggle to remove it, it’s
not.” At farmers markets
and grocery stores, avoid
melons with vines that
appear cut and not pulled.
Sea Island’s melon and peekytoe crab salad

recipe, in which melon balls are sautéed
in lavender honey, sprinkled with crushed
almonds and covered in a port wine sabayon.
“[The melon] is not a piece of art by any
stretch of the imagination,” he admits. “It’s
a little bit rugged but it’s got more substance
than a regular melon. The flavor, the consistency of the flesh of the melon—that’s as
close as it gets to heaven for me.”
For Eric Fullem, chef de cuisine of Sea
Island’s River Bar, the produce works well
in simple dining. “There’s no real need to
dress up a fully grown, properly taken care

of melon,” he explains. “A piece of prosciutto
with nice, ripe cantaloupe is perfect.”
In salads, he favors cantaloupe or honeydew. He pairs both with succulent peekytoe
crab for a fresh, flavorful bite. “I like the
softer, creamier texture [of the melons],” he
adds. “It just seems more natural for a savory
experience than watermelon.”
While creative recipes and flavor combinations abound, for Jerusalmy, the optimum
way to enjoy melons picked at their peak is
the simplest: “The real flavor and the best
way for me to eat it is raw.” m

MELON AND
PEEKYTOE
CRAB SALAD

In this recipe from Eric Fullem, chef de
cuisine at Sea Island’s River Bar, two
types of melons are used. Fullem says
fresh cantaloupe and honeydew enhance
the naturally sweet peekytoe crab to
create multiple dimensions of flavor
and aroma. In addition, the acid in
the lemon juice and the spice of the
mustard oil complement each other
for a well-rounded salad.
Servings: 4
¼ cup cantaloupe, diced
¼ cup honeydew, diced
16 ounces peekytoe crab
Flake sea salt (to taste)
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
Zest from 1 orange
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 dash mustard oil
1 teaspoon basil

Grilled watermelon accompanies coconut rice, peas and scallops at Fish restaurant in Charleston, S.C.

Season cantaloupe and honeydew with
flake sea salt to release natural moisture.
Pick through the crabmeat to ensure
there are no shells and then mix with
melons. Season with juice, zests, oils and
herbs, and mix thoroughly.

SPRING/SUMMER 2016 | SEA ISL AND LIFE 9