Not only do pumpkins give us their delicious pulp, they also give us a free bonus: seeds. Each of them is securely packed in a tray, making them interesting for long-term storage. But first they have to lose some moisture.

Drying is quickest in the oven

Suitable pumpkin varieties

Any squash that is edible can serve as a core source. The popular Hokkaido pumpkin offers a particularly large number of them. But the following varieties are also suitable for removing seeds:

  • nutmeg squash
  • yellow and red hundredweight
  • oil gourds

You can grow these pumpkins yourself in your own garden and look forward to a good harvest in the fall. But also pumpkins from the trade offer usable cores. If the pumpkin is healthy, so will the seeds, because inside they are safely protected from harmful germs.

tips

Oil pumpkin seeds have a wafer-thin skin that is edible. This makes the time-consuming pulling superfluous.

Ripe pumpkin - ripe seeds

Only ripe seeds can be dried for consumption, and these are always found in ripe pumpkins. So whenever an orange-colored fruit is part of your cooking ingredients, you can look forward to a few seeds. The insides of Halloween pumpkins don't have to be thrown away either.

Prepare kernels for drying

Once a squash is cut open, you can easily access the seeds. However, these are connected to the pulp by a fine mesh of threads and must first be removed from the inside of the pumpkin. The easiest way to do this is with a spoon or with your bare hands. However, the extracted cores are not yet ready for drying in their condition.

  1. Remove any coarse pulp residue from the seeds by hand.
  2. In a bowl of water, you can remove more residue from the seeds by rubbing, if necessary with the help of a clean dish brush or vegetable brush.
  3. Then rinse the seeds thoroughly in a sieve several times. The shells should be completely clean.
  4. Place the seeds on a clean kitchen towel to soak up some of the water.

Drying in the oven

  1. Preheat the oven to 180° to 200° C.
  2. Spread the pumpkin seeds on a baking sheet. They should not overlap so that they can dry well from all sides. It also makes sense to use baking paper so that the cores do not stick to the tray.
  3. Slide the sheet onto the middle rail.
  4. Leave the kernels in the oven for about 20 minutes. Turn them halfway through. Use a spatula for this, as the seeds get very hot and can burn your hands.
  5. After 20 minutes, take out the baking sheet and let the cores cool down. Only then may the cores be collected in a container.

Automatic dehydrator, also ideal for pumpkin seeds

Pumpkin seeds are dried even more evenly and easily in a dehydrator. If you own such a device, then the wet cores are in good hands.

Drying takes longer than in the oven because it is done gently at low temperatures. But there is no hurry to dry the kernels anyway. It is important that they dry really well, otherwise they can become moldy later in their storage place.

Follow the manufacturer's instructions when drying the kernels. It also makes sense to swap the individual layers in between.

storage and shelf life

Leave the skins on until you are about to use the seeds. As a result, the edible interior is even better protected from external influences and thus lasts longer. Keep them dry and cool. A can but also paper bags are ideal collection containers. The dried seeds have a very long shelf life. Rely on your sense of taste. This is the best way to tell if the kernels are still edible.

tips

If the cores show mold, then something went wrong during drying or their storage location was too damp. Discard such specimens, as they are harmful to health.

use of the cores

Dried pumpkin seeds are a popular ingredient for some salads and dishes because they have a nice crunch. For most varieties, the shell has to be cracked first. Varieties with thin skins can be eaten in this way.

As a snack, the dried kernels are also delicious when roasted. In the pan, they can be enriched with other flavors, such as salt or paprika powder. A sweet version with cinnamon and sugar can also taste delicious.

Dry pumpkin seeds as seeds

Pumpkin seeds that are to be used as seeds in the following year must not be exposed to such high temperatures, otherwise they will no longer germinate. Drying in an oven is therefore unsuitable.

  • Allow seeds to air dry slowly
  • Spread out individually on kitchen paper
  • drying can take a month
  • Turn cores occasionally
  • collect dry kernels
  • store in a dark, cool and dry place

Tip.
Larger core quantities can also be gently air-dried for consumption. But this only works well in warm autumn periods.

Conclusion for fast readers

  • Suitable Seeds: Of any edible squash that is ripe; e.g. B. Hokkaido
  • Preparation: Remove the remains of the pulp, wash and use a vegetable brush if necessary
  • Oven: single layer on baking sheet with baking paper; about 20 minutes; Turn cores in between
  • Temperature: 180 to 200 degrees Celsius
  • Dehydrator: ideal for drying pumpkin seeds; according to manufacturer information
  • Storage: let the cores cool down first; then collect in jar
  • Storage location: cool and dry
  • Durability: Long shelf life; rely on sense of taste; discard moldy kernels
  • Use: without shell; in salads or as a snack; also roasted with spices
  • Seeds: Air dry kernels for about a month; oven is too hot;

The garden journal freshness ABC

How can fruit and vegetables be stored correctly so that they stay fresh for as long as possible?

The garden journal freshness ABC as a poster:

  • as a free PDF file to print out yourself

Category:

Vegetable garden