- 1½ cups raw pumpkin seeds*
- 2 teaspoons olive oil, melted coconut oil, or oil of choice
- ¼ – ½ teaspoon kosher salt**
- Optional: ¼ – ½ teaspoons spice of choice***
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Yield: 6 (¼ cup) servings
I find it easiest to thoroughly and evenly crisp the seeds when they are at least somewhat dry before baking. Below I offer several ways to accomplish this, depending on how patient you are. Sometimes, it’s hard to wait!
Ingredients
Instructions
- Prepare the seeds: Remove the big globs of pumpkin from the seeds. It’s ok to leave some of the stringy goop–it will actually add flavor. Spread the seeds out on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Drying the seeds: Dry the seeds, which have been spread into an even layer, uncovered, in the refrigerator (or on the counter if you don’t have room in the fridge) for several hours. Stir occasionally and spread into an even layer again. For more thorough drying or if you simply prefer to cook the seeds later, you may let the seeds dry in the refrigerator, uncovered and stirring occasionally, for up to several days. Once the seeds feel completely dry to the touch, transfer them to an airtight container and bake within the week. As another option, place the seeds in an oven preheated to 250℉ for 60 to 90 minutes to dry out, stirring occasionally. Don’t want to wait? You may bake the seeds immediately after removing them from the pumpkin; they will simply take longer to evenly crisp, but they will.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 300℉. In a mixing bowl, toss the seeds with the oil, salt, and optional spice. Spread the pumpkin seeds in a single layer on a clean baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or spray or oil the sheet).
- Bake for 30 minutes, stirring after 15 minutes. After 30 minutes, stir again, reduce the heat to 250℉, and continue to cook in 10-15 minute increments, stirring in between, until the seeds are crisp and dry. Total time will depend upon how dry your seeds were when you started cooking, size of seeds, etc. The last batch I cooked was semi-dry when I started baking, and it took 60-65 minutes.
Notes
*The stated measurement of seeds is roughly the amount of seeds you will remove from one medium-large pumpkin. Feel free to adjust the recipe based on the quantity of seeds you have, spreading over an additional baking sheet to maintain a single layer, if necessary.
**If you are a salty snack lover, you may want to use ½ teaspoon of salt. For a lower sodium option or milder flavor, reduce the amount to ¼ teaspoon. If using fine table salt instead of kosher salt, reduce these amounts by a pinch.
***The seeds are delicious as is, but you may certainly add spices of choice. Cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, curry, and cinnamon are all good options.
The scoop on the goop: Big chunks of goop will prevent the seeds from evenly drying out, but smaller pieces add flavor and are easy to remove once the seeds are cooked. That said, everyone in my house eats the seeds that have some of the crispy goop attached first!