Watermelon mint water
Barely a recipe. Empties faster than anything else in the fridge.
Watermelon is the one fruit that genuinely gives something up to the water it sits in. It is 91% water to begin with, the flesh collapses easily, and the colour and sweetness move across in under an hour.
The result tastes faintly of watermelon and not at all of "health drink", which is why it is the jug that empties first at any gathering in July.
How to make it
- Hands on
- 5 min
- Total
- 1 h 5 min
- Makes
- 4 servings
- Per glass
- 12 kcal
Ingredients
Method
-
Cube the watermelon
Cut it into rough 2 cm cubes. Do not bother being neat — you want cut faces, not presentation.
-
Crush lightly
Press the cubes gently against the side of the jug with a spoon. Half-crushed watermelon releases its colour in minutes; whole cubes take hours.
-
Add mint and water
Clap the mint between your palms, drop it in, and top with cold water.
-
Chill briefly
One hour is enough — this is the fastest infusion here. Serve over ice.
Worth knowing
- Freeze a handful of watermelon cubes and use them instead of ice, so it does not dilute as it sits.
- Drink it the same day. Crushed watermelon starts to ferment faintly by day two.
What it actually does for you
- Calories
- 12 kcal
The one infused water that transfers a measurable amount of anything, because crushed watermelon leaks sugar and a little potassium rather than just perfume. Still nowhere near an electrolyte drink — if you have been sweating hard, this is not the recipe you want.
How this was worked out: 300 g of watermelon holds about 90 kcal, 18 g sugar and 336 mg potassium (USDA FoodData Central, watermelon, raw). Crushing releases substantially more than slicing does, so the 12 kcal per glass is a rough estimate rather than a measurement.
Variations
- Add lime for sharpness — watermelon on its own can read as flat.
- Swap mint for basil for a more grown-up version.
- Strain it, and you have watermelon agua fresca.
Making it is the easy part
Remembering to drink it is the hard part. Honk watches your webcam with on-device AI and honks until you do, as gently or as loudly as you like.
Meet Honk → join the waitlistQuestions
Is watermelon water as hydrating as plain water?
Yes, and marginally more so if you eat the fruit as well — watermelon is about 91% water and carries a little potassium with it. The difference is small. The real effect is that people drink more of it, which is not small at all.
How long does it keep?
One day. Crushed watermelon left in water starts to taste faintly fizzy and sour by the second day, which is the beginning of fermentation. Make it in the morning, finish it by evening.
