It's the great pumkin seed recipe, Charlie Brown

October 27, 2006 10:17 AM

Anyone have a tried-and-true pumpkin seed recipe? I've tried making them in the past with veggie oil and Lawry's seasoned salt, but they turn out chewy and oily and awful. I'd like to make the glorious, pure-white, salt-encrusted type you can buy in little packs at the Quickie Mart. Advice? Besides going ahead and buying the little packs at Quickie Mart?
posted by printchick to Food & Drink (13 answers total)

how long do you bake them? when we make pumpkin seeds, we bake them until they're nice and golden-brown and crispy (maybe like 15 mins? 20? depending upon temp.)

also, it may help to use freshly ground seasalt. salt them well before baking.

in short: bake 'em longer. maybe a bit hotter. liberally sprinkle finely-ground seasalt. take 'em out when they're a bit darker than a well-done pie crust, let 'em cool, and enjoy!
posted by deejay jaydee at 10:21 AM on October 27, 2006

I soak them in salt water for about an hour before roasting (about 1/2 c of salt to about 8 c of water), then cook them at 350F for 1/2 hour or so (until golden), keeping a close eye on them and stirring them around regularly. I find that the brine works much better than just salting them. This also helps to get any remaining slime off them, and makes for crispy, salty, roasted pumpkin seed goodness. Damn, now I want some.
posted by elizard at 10:41 AM on October 27, 2006

Last year, I tossed them in melted butter. This year, I used olive oil. The buttered ones were way, way better.
posted by Ruki at 10:52 AM on October 27, 2006

no oil, and sprinkled with fine salt either popcorn salt or pickling salt before roasting on a sheet pan which has been rubbed with a bit of oil to prevent sticking. One year I let them go too long and was so pissed at myself for ruining this annual delight.
posted by Gungho at 11:38 AM on October 27, 2006

To crust them with salt and keep them from being oily, you may want to parboil them in a a heavy brine before roasting. This might also tenderize them abit.

Thanks for the question.
I'm going to experiment tonight.
posted by Seamus at 11:46 AM on October 27, 2006

I had ones last nite that were DELICIOUS. Coated in oil and melted butter and salt, baked at 250(f) for an hour. OMG.
posted by radioamy at 11:48 AM on October 27, 2006

Butter and Worcestershire sauce. Roast 'em hot.
posted by ikkyu2 at 11:54 AM on October 27, 2006

Response by poster: Please report back to us, Seamus!
posted by printchick at 12:02 PM on October 27, 2006

Rinse them in a colander. While they're still wet, spread them out on a cookie sheet and sprinkle them with kosher salt. Bake them like deejay jaydee says.
posted by cog_nate at 12:11 PM on October 27, 2006

I like to soak them in brine for 24-36 hours. To make the brine, mix salt in water somewhere between luke warm and just-too-hot-to hold-a-finger-in. Mix salt in until the water won't hold anymore. Strain and bake at 350 to 375 until golden brown shuffling now and then. They should get crispier as they cool. My favorite part (besides eating 'em) is the popping sound they make as they cool. Love that!
posted by sublivious at 1:46 PM on October 27, 2006

I'm a butter and fresh-ground salt and pepper gal myself. Make sure you have them in a single layer and flip them once or twice.
posted by beccaj at 2:15 PM on October 27, 2006

Old Bay
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 2:39 PM on October 27, 2006

Ok, my recipe won't make the white, salt-encrusted type you want (I'm guessing brining is best for that) but this is better, IMO.

DON'T rinse the seeds. You lose all the good pumpkin flavor that way!! Having tried it both ways I def. prefer the UN-rinsed kind. Just separate the seeds from the major stringage and chunks- some residue is good though, because it turns into crispy, buttery little chunks.

Melt some butter, add some salt (I used coarse kosher salt to try and get that pretzel effect, I think it all just dissolved anyway but it sure was salty). I had about 4 pumpkin's worth of seeds. I melted 6 tablespoons of butter and added a hefty palmful of salt. They turned out a little too salty so you may want less. Just guess for your amounts, after all you can never have enough butter!! :) But I would add as much salt as will dissolve in the butter within 3-4 minutes of stirring. Taste to see how salty it is. If not too salty, you may want to sprinkle a layer of salt over the seeds after spreading on the baking sheet.

Toss the seeds in the butter/salt mixture. Spread onto a baking sheet in a thin layer. Roast for 45 minutes in a 300 degree oven. Check and stir occasionally to make sure all sides are getting toasted. They're done when they're not wet anymore and a golden brown.

My 4 pumpkin's worth was def. NOT a thin layer- it was about a half to 1 inch deep. I went for it anyway. I had to stir a lot and leave in for an additional 30 minutes, but they still turned out great. Next time I would use two baking sheets though.

Enjoy!! :)
posted by thejrae at 11:52 AM on October 31, 2006 [1 favorite]