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Yellow Watermelon vs. Red Watermelon

Is there a flavor difference between these two types of watermelon?

While you usually see only red watermelon at the grocery store, there are many more varieties of this fruit, offering orange, yellow, pink, and white flesh. The yellow-fleshed variety is the second most common type, and many supermarkets carry it in the summer.

To see if there were any flavor or texture differences between red and yellow watermelons, we tasted each plain and in our Watermelon-Tomato Salad. Overall, the yellow watermelon had the same signature juiciness and texture that we love in red watermelon, but it lacked some of the red's intense melon flavor. Tasters found it plenty sweet but “more mild” and “dull” compared with its red cousin. That said, it still was worth trying, if for nothing other than its interesting appearance.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Yellow-fleshed watermelon is juicy and very similar in texture to its red-fleshed cousin, but it is milder in flavor than standard sweet red watermelon.

REDDER IS BETTER: Red watermelon has the best flavor.

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