Pumpkin Seed Recipes

October 5, 2022 9:50 AM

Tis the season! I’m looking for the world’s best roasted pumpkin seed recipes. I prefer savory over sweet but anything goes. Helpful preparation tips are welcome as well.
posted by Diskeater to Food & Drink (5 answers total)

Do you need an actual recipe? Because last year I achieved pumpkin seed excellence by combining roughly equal amounts of Penzey’s sweet curry powder and their smoked paprika, a couple generous palmfuls of kosher salt, and poured enough avocado oil on it to make a paste plus some extra. I tossed the washed and patted dry pumpkin seeds in the mixture, using my hands to get them coated, spread them in a single layer on a foil lined sheet tray, and roasted them in a preheated oven at 350 until they seemed done. I want to say it was maybe half an hour? I didn’t want the spices to burn and I opened the oven a few times to toss them around.
posted by Mizu at 10:09 AM on October 5, 2022 [1 favorite]

I season my pumpkin seeds with only salt so you can really taste the nutty rich pumpkin goodness. I bake them at a low temp for about an hour spread out on a parchment lined sheet pan and stir them often.

Two prep tips: First, I don't bother to fuss around being all thorough about getting every last bit of the pumpkin guts off of the seeds. It's a lot less work to do and the seasoning adheres nicely to the sticky bits of guts. Second, I season the seeds twice. Once before I bake them, taste and season again for maximum flavor.

The one true path to pumpkin seed heaven in my opinion is simply to serve them hot and fresh straight out of the oven. Leftovers are great if you don't eat them all immediately but hot and fresh is the very best.
posted by RobinofFrocksley at 11:08 AM on October 5, 2022 [3 favorites]

I asked a pumpkin seed question (oh my god a dozen years ago) and got some good answers, but my favorite pumpkin seed recipe is still my own that I led the question with!

This year I'm planning to do half with my fave spicy seed recipe and half with warm curry spices.
posted by phunniemee at 1:05 PM on October 5, 2022

I fry pumpkin seeds with garlic and basil, first, then celery, and red pepper to make a pasta dish. I stir in the cooked pasta and add grated cheese, (parmesan,) it is delicious. You could also add sliced sweet Italian sausage to the sautee. You can throw in organic tomato basil marinara if you want. I like it more like al pesto. A trick with frozen sausages is give 'em a minute in the microwave, then slice them up with your kitchen scissors. Yes, over the pot, then you aren't slicing raw-half cooked sausage on your cutting board.
posted by Oyéah at 7:50 PM on October 5, 2022

Here's an easy and moreish savoury recipe from a popular restaurant in my city.

Preheat oven to 170 celsius. In a large bowl, stir together 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp water until dissolved. Add 250g shelled pumpkin seeds and stir to coat. Spread seeds in a single layer on a tray (or two) lined with baking paper, and bake for about 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until dry and toasted.
posted by Naanwhal at 2:18 AM on October 6, 2022