Roasted pumpkin seeds are a crunchy, salty, irresistibly good snack and so easy to make! This recipe has a life-changing trick that makes it the BEST roasted pumpkin seed recipe you’ll ever taste. Promise!
If you think carving pumpkins is the best part of Halloween, I have a surprise; it’s not!
Every person I’ve served these roasted pumpkin seeds can’t wait to cut into a winter squash to make more!
They are a wholesome snack that are addictively good.
Roasted pumpkin seeds are easy to make. Getting them out of the gooey inside of the pumpkin is the hard part.
This roasted pumpkin recipe has a special TRICK that makes all that hassle go away!
Trust me it will become your favorite recipe for roasting any type of winter squash seeds.
What do Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Taste Like?
Seeds roasted through this method are incredibly delicious.
They are very nutty and bursting with flavor (I actually find them to taste a bit like bacon).
Use this Method for All Winter Squash Seeds!
These roasted pumpkin seeds are so delicious making them only at Halloween is a crime!
This method is perfect for all winter squash seeds.
Making some Butternut Squash soup (or Butternut Squash Noodles in Sage Brown Butter)? Don’t throw away the seeds; roast them.
They are delicious for snacking but also great on salads, to top soups, tossed on granola and many other foods.
A Life Changing Trick!
Boil the seeds in salted water first.
How will that make a difference?
Boiling separates all the pumpkin membrane from the seeds, freeing them to easily be roasted.
All that time trying to pull away the slippery pumpkin goop? The boiling takes care of that.
The salt water also plumps up the seeds giving them incredible texture and flavor when they are roasted.
Why this is the Best Method for Roasting Pumpkin Seeds?
It can take hours to dig through the pumpkin membrane to release and roast the seeds.
Even then they generally don’t come out well.
They can be thin, hard to crisp up for a nice crunch and lack flavor, or taste ‘green’.
By pre-boiling the seeds have begun to cook before the roasting. Roasting in the oven really finishes them and crisps the outside to a pleasing texture.
It’s like night and day from traditional roasted pumpkin seeds; trust me.
Which Pumpkins Have the Best Seeds for Roasting?
Pick a large pumpkin (not heavier but physically bigger) that sounds hollow when you tap it.
How to Season the Seeds
This is the fun part. Seasoning the roasted pumpkin seeds can be anything you love.
Salt or salt and pepper alone are delicious. Do you have a favorite spice? Try it.
Suggested Seasonings
Try a few sprinkles of Ground Chipotle Chilies, some salt and pepper before roasting. They are delicious with some smoldering heat and smoky flavor.
Sprinkle the seeds with some soy sauce or Tamari (if gluten-free) before roasting for salty Asian twist.
Cayenne Pepper is great if you love some heat. Sumac has a citrus flavor along with a Middle Eastern taste.You could even change it up and try some fine grain sugarfor a kettle-corn type flavor.
The possibilities are endless.
These seeds had a few sprinkles of Ground Chipotle Chilies along with the salt and pepper before roasting. They are delicious with some smoldering heat and smoky flavor.
How to Dry Pumpkin Seeds?
The best method is to roast them! They turn from wet, slick, grey-colored seeds into crisp delicious seeds you won’t be able to stop eating!
How to Make It – Step by Step:
STEP 1: Scrape the seeds from a partially cooked or uncooked winter squash.
PRO TIP: using a pumpkin scoopermakes the job easier.
STEP 2: Rinse the seeds to remove large pieces of membrane (photo 1).
STEP 3: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bring a large pot of salty water to a boil.
STEP 4: Boil the seeds for 10 minutes (photo 2).
STEP 5: Strain the seeds in a colander and remove any separated bits of pumpkin (photo 3).
STEP 6: Put seeds in a bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper or desired seasonings (photo 4).
STEP 7: Spread the seeds in a single layer on a prepared baking sheet. Bake to desired crispness; usually 10-15 minutes depending on the seeds (photo 5).
Allow seeds to cool then devour (photo 6)!
How to Tell When Roasted Pumpkin Seeds are Done
The seeds start as a wet, grayish color when they are raw. As they roast they become opaque white followed by golden brown as they become fully roasted.
More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love
- Need some pumpkin carving inspiration? Try these 11 Unique Pumpkin Carving Ideas!
- How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree
- 25+ Sweet and Savory Gluten-Free Pumpkin Recipes You Won’t Want to Miss
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- How to Make Pumpkin Butter
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Ingredients
- Pumpkin Seeds or Winter Squash Seeds
- 2 teaspoons Olive Oil
- Kosher Salt
- Seasonings to taste
Instructions
- Scrape any squash seeds out of a partially cooked or uncooked winter squash.
- Rinse the seeds to remove the major chunks of squash or any strings possible. NOTE: The boiling separates most of it; this is to remove anything large.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Bring to boil a few cups of water and seeds; about 2 cups of water to 1/2 cup of seeds. Add ½ teaspoon of salt per cup of water. Note: the amount of salt may be increased or decreased to taste. Boil for 10 minutes.
- After boiling, return seeds to a colander and rinse. Any remaining pumpkin particles or string will have separated; remove them from the seeds.
- Put the seeds in a bowl. Toss with 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil to coat the seeds and add salt and pepper to taste. Additional seasonings and spices may be added.
- Spread seeds in a single layer on a baking tray or in a shallow roasting pan in the upper portion of the oven.
- Bake until seeds begin to brown and are a consistency of your liking; usually 10-15 minutes. NOTE: Different size seeds may take different lengths of time to cook. TIP: the seeds change from the wet, grayish color to more of an opaque white then golden brown as they become fully roasted.
- Leave the seeds to cool on a rack until you can safely handle them.
Video
Nutrition
Originally published October 2010
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds are a wholesome, delicious snack that are so easy to make!
Befu says
Used a cinnamon Chile rub and added Lawrey’s seasoning salt and a pinch of sugar. When they came out of the oven I sprinkled them with a little more sugar and more cinnamon (the rub didn’t have much of it). Oh my gosh. SO GOOD!
Toni Dash says
That sounds SO good Befu! Wish I had some right now. I love that flavor combination!
Chad Gasper says
Absolutely THE BEST I have ever had for pumpkin seeds. The boiling makes all the difference. Simple salt and pepper to taste and they are amazing and simple, even with the added step of boiling. SO WORTH IT!!!
Toni Dash says
So glad you loved them Chad! I swear by this method. It’s the only way I’ve made seeds for well over a decade. They are addictive too, aren’t they? Who knew pumpkin seeds could taste so good?
Tina Mateski says
Pre boiling makes a HUGE difference!
Toni Dash says
Doesn’t it?! I felt like I’m stumbled upon the pumpkin holy grail when I first started making the seeds this way and I’ve never looked back lol.
Fiona says
Can’t wait too try this! Sounded and looked soooooo Awesome!
Suzy says
Tried these with soy sauce and it was so tasty! Also did just the olive oil, salt and pepper and we couldn’t get enough!
Julie Blanner says
Love this! We always have seeds left from our pumpkin carving, but I never know how to cook them. They definitely won’t go to waste this year!
Katie says
I have been looking for something like this! I always like to roast the seeds when my kids carve pumpkins, and this is an amazing method!
Sara says
I love this method to boil the seeds to get all the stringy stuff off. Works perfectly for the best seeds!
Pam Dana says
Great tips! Thank you!!
Katerina @ diethood .com says
YUM!! My favorite snack!!
Lauren Kelly says
I never throw away those amazing pumpkin seeds! I love he flavors in these!
Stephanie says
My kids love these! I’m with you, I just use salt and pepper to season them.
lisa says
this is definitely the best method I’ve seen! i love me some pumpkin seeds… can’t wait til fall so i can get roasting!
Andrea says
this is delicious to boil first. Hard to save some for tomorrow to let my caregiver taste. She had never cut a homegrown pumpkin before.and was off work before I roasted it as well as made seeds……yummy thank you.
I still adore sharing a new food, that some folks in later years never experienced.
Hilda golde says
Pretty good! I boild with Jalapeño Sea Salt. and for seasonings: more sea salt, cayenne pepper and the True Lime Cilantro Garlic Seasoning. Ooh yeah!!
Toni Dash says
Wowza! I love it!!
Poppy Guloien says
I loved this…however I didn’t read that you were only supposed to boil them for 10 minutes until they had already been boiling for half an hour…thought I had ruined them because they went very grey but I decided to soldier on and do some experimenting. I put olive oil all over all of them and then separated them into four bowls and I did one bowl with just seasoning salt, one with worcestershire, one with Valentina’s hot sauce and one with Tamari. I had to bake them for 40 minutes stirring every ten minutes or so but they turned out AWESOME. Thank you. I never would have thought of boiling them.