The 1-Second Watermelon Cutting Trick I Swear By
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I love eating watermelon, but I often pass over it in the grocery store because slicing it is so labor-intensive and messy. So I obviously jumped at the chance to try the ZaH Melon Slicer, which is essentially a large-scale version of the classic apple slicer that promises to portion a watermelon into perfect wedges with one quick motion.
What’s So Great About the ZaH Melon Slicer?
The ZaH Melon Slicer takes all the labor out of cutting a watermelon, and saves money by eliminating the need to buy expensive pre-sliced cubes. In one second it slices an entire watermelon, eliminating the only barrier between me and my favorite summer snack: effort.
The ZaH Melon Slicer can basically cut any type of melon into 12 even slices in just one second. It measures 15.7 inches in diameter, including the handles, and 4.5 inches in height. It’s large enough to cut through medium-size watermelons, and smaller ones too, of course. The large padded handles are easy to grip, which helps because it does take some force to actually cut through the fruit.
My first attempt using the slicer was an epic fail. I watched a couple of instructional videos from other users, so I followed suit and chopped both ends off my medium-sized watermelon with a knife — that’s where I made my fateful mistake. I didn’t want to waste any produce, so I was way too conservative in my initial cuts. You need to cut deep enough so that there’s only a small section of rind at the edge for the blades to cut; otherwise it gets stuck before it even reaches the flesh.
I decided to try the tool again — this time with a petite watermelon and generous initial cuts — and it was a completely different experience. The tool sailed through the watermelon and produced 12 equal slices in basically one second, exactly as promised. A minute before I had been debating the ethics of posting the slicer on my Buy Nothing Facebook group, and the next I’m planning to buy a melon every week for the rest of summer.
Even with my successful second attempt, I admit the tool isn’t perfect. When I processed the larger melon, the slices were slightly too thick and very long, but the petite watermelon slices were just right. Also the cylindrical core of watermelon created by the center circle of the tool looks strange, so I had to take an extra step and slice that into coins. The slicer is hand-wash only, which makes sense and isn’t too bad as long as your sink is wide enough to fit it.
But despite these small inconveniences, I’m delighted to have the ZaH Melon Slicer in my repertoire. If you hate slicing watermelon as much as I do and have room for this gadget, I would say it’s worth it. With more assertive initial cuts, it works well and saves tons of time. Now I never hesitate when I see a watermelon in the produce aisle; I just pick one using this ingenious two-finger rule, and place it in my cart. Perfectly sliced watermelon is only one quick swoosh of the slicer away.
Buy: ZaH Melon Slicer, $26.98 (normally $31.98)
