How To Clean and Cook Pumpkin Seeds? 5 Easy Steps to Follow and 2 Bonus Recipes

What better symbolizes fall than pumpkins? Pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice lattes, Halloween Jack-o’-lanterns and of course the pumpkin seeds themselves! Very nutritious and tasty, these seeds are a great supplement to add to your regular meals as the days keep getting colder, and we are in need of keeping our strength. Find out the easiest ways on how to clean and cook pumpkin seeds, plus some bonus recipes!

How to Clean and Cook Pumpkin Seeds:

Let’s begin with a step-by-step guide on how to prepare your homemade pumpkin seeds!

Step 1 – How to pick out the best pumpkin?

When you are wondering how to clean and cook pumpkin seeds, and looking for the best possible results, the size of the pumpkin itself comes to be quite important. The bigger the pumpkin, the bigger the seeds. Sometimes when the pumpkin is too big its walls might not be strong enough and when you start cleaning it they can collapse, but no worries, it is completely normal. That is the cost of getting bigger pumpkin seeds, hah! I personally don’t want to trouble myself with trying to open some tiny seeds, so the bigger, the better for me! Ever since I can remember, my mother would always keep stashes of pumpkin seeds in our flat, so she would have something to nibble on as she watched her favourite shows after coming home from work. I always wondered what she liked so much about these salty seeds, but as the years went by, I totally get her now! Don’t remember the last time that I didn’t have pumpkin seeds by my side while watching the latest episode of the Crown! But nothing really beats those which are homemade and completely original for your tastes, am I right?

Step 2 – How do you clean out the pumpkin?

This activity can get quite messy, so be sure to have placed the pumpkin you have chosen outside if you have a backyard. If you don’t, put out old newspapers or sheets of paper and put the pumpkin on top, so you don’t have pumpkin pulp lying around everywhere. And now for the cleaning itself! You will need to equip yourself with some tools to scoop out everything on the inside of the pumpkin. A serrated knife would work great for cutting off the top of the pumpkin. You can always go with those specially-designed pumpkin-carving kits, a small paring knife or battery-operated, pumpkin-carving knives. Take your pick. After you cut the top, you will need to scoop out all the gooey pulp and seeds. You can use a wide spoon or ladle. After you have scooped out everything, toss the seeds and pumpkin pulp in a large bowl and fill it with water.

Step 3 – How do you clean and separate pumpkin seeds?

Submerging the pumpkin bulk with the seeds in water is a very easy and useful technique for properly cleaning those pumpkin seeds! Now you need to separate the seeds from the pulp with your fingers. You can throw away the pulp. Then place the seeds in a colander and rinse with cold water to perfectly clean them.

Step 4 – How do you dry pumpkin seeds before roasting?

After you have properly cleaned your seeds, you need to spread them on a dish towel or a piece of baking paper a let them dry out for a night. The best seeds for roasting are the ones that have dried out completely. Of course, if you are in a hurry to get to roasting, you can always dry them quicker by holding them in paper towels and absorbing most of the water. But still, leave them for at least 20-30 minutes to dry.

Step 5 – How to roast and season pumpkin seeds? (Bonus Recipes!)

And the most enjoyable part is finally here! Now is the time to pick whatever seasoning you see fit would best capture that pumpkin seed taste you are looking for! I personally love when they are spicy, so most of the time I use curry and black pepper to season them, and before that I dip them in olive oil or butter. They turn out fantastic! But really, you can season them whichever way you like—from the most simple salt and butter mix to more peculiar choices like brown sugar and cinnamon to make them sweet! It is all up to you! After you have seasoned them, lay them out on a piece of baking paper on an even layer, turn the oven to 350 degrees F (180 C) and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until they look golden brown. Yum Yum, time to get to cracking those seeds! Oh, well, what do you know, the Crown is on?!

Bonus Recipes on how to Cook Pumpkin Seeds:

If you are looking for some unique seasoning to add to your pumpkin seeds, here are a few tasty recipes to try out!

1. Pizza pumpkin seeds

Ingredients you will need:

• 1 teaspoon of melted butter or olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon of oregano (dried)
• 1/6 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of Himalayan salt
• 1 tablespoon of grated cheese

Right before putting your cleaned pumpkin seeds in the oven, sprinkle them with this delicious mix of spices and then bake them to 350 degrees F (180 C) for 25 to 30 minutes. And now for my favourite recipe that I would love to share with you, here are the spicy and sweet pumpkin seeds!

2. Spicy and sweet pumpkin seeds

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon of melted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of Himalayan salt
• 1/8 teaspoon of chilli pepper
• 1/6 teaspoon of black pepper

Same as the previous recipe, just mix the seeds in the spices before you start baking them, and you will achieve this extraordinary flavour!

I hope you are all satisfied with your end results, and like me are enjoying them as you watch what’s on tonight’s telly. And if you just love trying out different pumpkin snacks, why not give a chance to something sweet rather than salty and look up some easy pumpkin dessert recipes?

Video Tutorial: How to Clean and Roast Pumpkin Seeds? 

 

Also read: Pumpkin Lasagna with Salmon: A Must-try Italian Dinner Recipe