I am on a mission to find a recipe for how to roast pumpkin seeds. We have been roasting pumpkin seeds in my family for as long as I can remember. It was something I always looked forward too. My Dad threw them in the oven and they never turned out quite the same, but they were always delicious. I have been making them every Halloween season as well but that is the thing, with no recipe. I just always threw in some spices or just plain salt, tossed them in the oven, sometimes hot, sometimes low, and cooked until they looked done. Some batches were better than others but this year I decided I needed to commit to a method so I can have consistent results year after year.
I scoured the internet and found 3 different methods varying in difficulty, time, and temperatures. One thing remains the same in all the recipes and that is to put all your guts in a bowl and then remove the bigger chunks and pulp until you have mostly seeds, swish, and swish, and the seeds will float to the top with most of the goo staying on the bottom.
I will give you a quick recap of our findings, for more detail on any of the methods, see the specific method below.
Overview of the Methods
Method 1 was the most like a traditional seed that you would find in the store. They stayed pretty snow white and they had a great traditional salty flavor. The one downside of this method was the shell was still pretty hard and you really had to do some chewing to break it down. This method used moderate heat and was right in the middle of the difficulty and steps needed. This was my husbands least favorite due to the toughness
Method 2 was my least favorite but my husband’s favorite…The shells were very easy to chew but I think I overcooked them even with taking them out a bit early. This method also had the most steps having to boil them before roasting on a moderate heat. Due to the extra steps, I do not think I will be making them this way again.
Method 3 was the best! It was right in the middle of the two as far as texture. As a bonus, it had the least amount of steps! You roast these for longer over a lower heat. Moving forward this will be my base recipe. I used a ranch flavoring to spice them up but use whatever seasonings you like.
Method 1
- Put 4 cups of water and 1/2 cup of sea salt in a large bowl.
- Warm the water up in the microwave for 2-3 minutes.
- Stir until most of the salt has dissolved.
- You may still have a little salt on the bottom but that is fine.
- Add the pumpkin seeds and let soak for at least three hours.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Pour the pumpkin seeds into a large colander to drain.
- Spread the pumpkin seeds in a single layer on a cookie sheet.
- Sprinkle two tablespoons of sea salt all over the pumpkin seeds and stir to evenly coat.
- Place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes depending on how large and how many pumpkin seeds you have. Every five minutes or so rotate the pan and using a spatula flip the seeds.
- Bake until all seeds are dry.
- The shell should still be a pale white color.
- Do not allow the shell to brown.
Method 2
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Scrape out and remove seeds from your two pumpkins. Wash and clean your seeds from your pumpkin, making sure you remove any unwanted pumpkin rinds or deformed seeds. Wash in a colander and once again remove any unwanted items.
- Soak the clean seeds in a bowl full of water for 1/2 hour on the kitchen counter or overnight in the refrigerator. Drain the seeds, discarding the water.
- Fill a pot with water and a dash of salt (enough water so that it will cover the seeds). Bring the water to a boil. Place seeds into the boiling water and boil gently for about 10 minutes. This helps cook the insides of your pumpkin seeds so when you go to roast them you will get perfect pumpkins seed crunch insuring the insides are cooked.
- Turn off the heat and drain the seeds and place back into your empty bowl. Toss seeds with olive oil. Lay out seeds in a thin layer onto a cookie sheet. Sprinkle with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt. Place in oven and move and turn the seeds over about every 10 minutes, making sure they are not burning. Seeds are done after about 40 minutes or when they become firmer and are no longer soft. You do not want dark spots on your seeds, you want them to be a darker yellow. Season with additional salt if desired. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Place into a clean mason jar. Enjoy!
Method 3
- Once you have the seeds mostly separated, fill up a big bowl of warm water and dunk in the seeds. Use your hand and swirl them around a bit to loosen any pumpkin guts remaining. Then, let the seeds rest for about five minutes or so. In those five minutes, magic happens! The seeds all float, and the remaining pumpkin guts sink.
- Fish out the seeds using your hands, a slotted spoon, or a sieve, and put them onto a dish towel and pat them dry.
- Now you’re ready to season and roast! Preheat your oven to 300° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You want to roast pumpkin seeds at a low temp to make sure they get nice and crunchy without burning.
- Per half cup of seeds, toss with about a teaspoon of olive oil and then toss immediately afterward with the spice combo you’d like.
- Make sure to toss it really well so each seed is coated.
- Then spread the seeds out on the prepared baking sheet. You’ll want to give the seeds some room to breathe, so make sure there isn’t more than one layer.
- Pop them in the oven, and bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring two to three times during cooking.
- You’ll know the seeds are ready when they are beginning to brown. You don’t want them super dark, just a little golden (and if a few get darker, that’s fine). If you taste them hot out of the oven, they may seem a little chewy still, but as they cool, they will crisp up nicely.
Ranch Seasoning
To make ranch pumpkin seeds, for each half-cup of raw pumpkin seeds, you’ll need:
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dill
- 1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/8 teaspoon celery seed
- 1/8 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
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More Fall Fun
Check out these recipes below for more flavors of fall.
The Best Oven Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Ingredients
Pumpkin Seeds
- 1 carving pumpkin seeds removed and cleaned
- 1 teaspoon oil
Ranch Flavoring
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dill
- 1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/8 teaspoon celery seed
- 1/8 teaspoon paprika
- black pepper a few cracks
Instructions
- Pat the cleaned seeds dry on a kitchen towel and preheat your oven to 300
- Line a baking tray with a silicone mat or parchment paper. PLace the seeds in a mixing bowl and add the oil. Mix well then add your spice blend or salt. Lay on a silicone mat in a single layer. Bake for 30-40minutes. Every 10 minutes remove and use a spatula to mix around the seeds and the redistribute them in a single layer.
- You want them just a tiny bit golden. Let them cool and enjoy.
