Description
Simple and spicy-sweet, this watermelon arugula salad features a chili honey lime dressing for a refreshing summertime side dish! Dried arbol chiles add spiciness and pops of color to the dressing, but you can use dried red pepper flakes instead.
Ingredients
For the Dressing
- 3 small dried arbol chiles or 1 Guajillo chile (or 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup lime juice (from approximately 2 limes)
For the Salad
- 4 cups cubed watermelon
- 2 cups arugula, packed
- 1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, ribboned
- 1/4 cup fresh mint, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Prepare the chiles. Place the dried arbol chiles in a shallow bowl and cover with hot water. Let soak for 10 minutes to reconstitute. Once chiles have soaked, discard the water. Slice each chili open and remove the seeds. Slice into thin strips.
- Make dressing. Add the sliced chili strips, honey, lime juice, and extra virgin olive oil in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
- Dress arugula. In a large bowl, add the arugula and drizzle with 1/4 of the dressing. Toss to coat.
- Arrange salad. Either add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and toss to coat or arrange dressed arugula on a platter and pile with watermelon, fresh herbs, and slivered almonds. Drizzle with remaining dressing and serve immediately.
Notes
Adjust spiciness: If you're worried about the spiciness of the dressing, feel free to start with just 1 dried arbol chile - you can always add more later! Otherwise, 1 dried Guajillo chile makes a milder swap, or skip the reconstitution step entirely with 1/2 teaspoon dried chile flakes.
Pre-dress arugula. For best results, don't skip the extra step of tossing the arugula on its own with 1/4 of the dressing. This ensures every bite of the salad has flavor and the dressing doesn't just sink to the bottom!