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Once you learn how to roast pumpkin seeds in the oven (and see just how easy and delicious it really is!), you’ll never be throwing away those seeds again! This is the perfect festive and healthy Fall snack you didn’t know you needed!

Carving pumpkins? Or making something outta fresh pumpkin? PRO TIP: Do not (and I REPEAT!!!) DO NOT throw away those pumpkin seeds! Not only are they packed full of valuable nutrients but roasting them in the oven makes them the perfect healthy and light snack any day of the week! These Pumpkin Seeds can be seasoned however you like and are oven roasted to crunchy perfection. If you were ever wondering how to roast pumpkin seeds in the oven then I’m here to tell you just how simple it really is. Oh, and did I mention delicious? Trust me! You’re never going to toss those seeds in the garbage again!

bowl of whole roasted pumpkin seeds, more seeds outside of the bowl in front of it

I’m not really even sure why but roasted pumpkin seeds just remind me of my parents. And my grandparents. And like, my entire family. I guess it’s because I have very fond memories of my mother (and grandmother) being extremely adamant about not throwing away a single pumpkin seed during pumpkin carving time. That was the golden rule. No pumpkin seed went unroasted! And I’m prettttty sure that for me, even as a kid, the pumpkin seeds were the best part of carving altogether. If you’ve ever wondered what exactly you should do with all those pumpkin seeds after carving or coring a pumpkin to use in a dish, learning how to roast pumpkin seeds in the oven is always a great idea!

I mean, they’re crunchy, easily customizable depending on your mood and when roasted, have a distinct toasty flavour that just makes them EXTRA delicious. Besides, don’t you feel a little extra badass when you waste as little as possible when it comes to food? I know I do. You’re normally taking the seeds out of the pumpkin anyway so…why not put them to good use?! Or shall we say, GREAT use. But let me warn you… these little seeds are highly addicting!

WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THESE WHOLE ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS

half of a cut open pumpkin exposing the flesh and seeds — *Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.*

In order to roast pumpkin seeds in the oven, you’re obviously going to need to get the seeds from somewhere! Now, it doesn’t matter if that somewhere is from a small sugar pie pumpkin (like the one in the photo above) or their much larger, much heavier pumpkin friends normally used for carving. You’ll be surprised at how many seeds are in a single pumpkin, even in the small ones!

Sure, while it’s entirely possible to buy pumpkins just for their seeds…why?! when you can make so many delicious things with the pumpkins themselves! Roasting pumpkin seeds normally comes after making something delicious such as pumpkin soup or roasted pumpkin wedges since you’ll need to remove the seeds for those kinds of dishes anyway. So, IMHO, it’s always a double whammy working with fresh pumpkin as you’ll get the dish you’re using it for as well as the roasted seeds. It’s like a 2-in-1 deal I’m always happy to participate in!

Now for the seasonings. And this is where you can either decide to keep things rather simple with a just a little bit of salt and pepper (as I’ve done in this recipe). Or, get a little crazy with it and season these babies HOWEVER YOU LIKE! Homemade pumpkin spice (because can you ever really have enough pumpkin?!), Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, garlic powder and turmeric are a few of my favourite ways to season them.

And finally, a little bit of butter, ghee or oil (olive, avocado or coconut are my favourites) is the only other thing you need to get this enjoyable little snack well under way. It helps the seasonings stick to the seeds, adds flavour and helps them crisp up when roasting in the oven.

parchment lined sheet pan with whole roasted pumpkin seeds, spoon on the pan

HOW TO ROAST PUMPKIN SEEDS IN THE OVEN (KEY TIPS)

spoonful of whole roasted pumpkin seeds over a bowl of the rest, small pumpkins in the background

Wash them well. The pumpkin seeds will be wet and slimy directly out of the pumpkin. Give them a good wash to ensure no stringy fibres, pumpkin pulp or slimy coating remains. EXTRA TIP: I find using a fine metal sieve works best for this. The seeds clean easily. You’ll be able to pick out any stringy pieces that don’t belong while shifting the seeds through your fingers. They normally float to the top.
Dry them well. To ensure the pumpkin seeds roast up nice and crisp in the oven, pat them as dry as you can with paper towel before adding any seasonings, oil or butter. Moisture will not be these pumpkin seeds’ friends.
If you have the time for it, try boiling the pumpkin seeds in a pot of salted water before seasoning and roasting them. Although totally not mandatory, the salt will permeate the seeds so both the insides and outsides will be salty making them extra delicious. However, with that being said, this step is totally optional and you’ll still get deliciously flavoured roasted pumpkin seeds if you decide to skip it.
Don’t be shy with the seasonings. Generously, and I mean generously, season these babies up and toss to coat to ensure that every seed gets a piece of the spices. Whether that be just salt and pepper or whatever your creative brain decided to throw together, you’re gonna want them nicely and evenly coated with seasonings for maximum flavour.
Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a slicione baking mat for easy clean up. It also helps to prevent possible sticking.
Spread the pumpkin seeds out as evenly as you can on the baking sheet. Some touching is OK. But, try not to overlap or pile them on the tray as they’ll stick or clump together. You want them to have enough room to breathe – the more room they have, the crispier they’ll turn out. Work in batches if you have to. Or, spread them out on two parchment lined baking sheets instead of just the one. Then, when it comes time to roasting them in the oven, alternate the pans between the middle and bottom racks for best results.
Rotate or shake the pan and stir the pumpkin seeds every 15 or so minutes to ensure even cooking.
Allow the pumpkin seeds to cool (at least slightly) before eating. They will harden as they cool and the roasted flavour will become more pronounced (aka they’ll taste that much more delicious!). No need to transfer them once they come out of the oven…they can cool down right on the pan where they’ll finish cooking and continue crisping up.

side view of whole roasted pumpkin seeds seasoned with salt and pepper, small orange pumpkin in the background

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT KIND OF PUMPKIN SHOULD I USE?

Any fresh pumpkin with seeds (all of them, lol) is good for this recipe. For reference, I used the small sugar pie pumpkins and got a ton of seeds! However, as kids, the large, carving ones were most popular in our household due to all the carving that normally took place around this time of year. Adjust your seasonings and oil or butter based on the size of your pumpkin and how many seeds you get. I got about one cup of seeds per small sugar pie pumpkin. As a general rule of thumb, 1-2 tbsp of oil or butter for every cup of seeds should be more than enough. As for the seasonings, just season them freely until you can visibly see that most of them are nicely coated.

DID YOU KNOW that you can also roast the seeds of several winter squashes like acorn, butternut or delicata? DON’T THROW AWAY THOSE SEEDS, PEOPLE!

CAN I EAT PUMPKIN SEEDS RAW?

Yes, you can eat pumpkin seeds raw. But roasting them brings out this toasty, almost inexplicable, flavour you just have to try. To me, there really is no comparison between a roasted pumpkin seed and an unroasted pumpkin seed…I’m always reaching for the roasted version first!

CAN I EAT THE PUMPKIN SEED SHELLS?

Yes! And honestly, while I love hulled pumpkin seeds just the same, hulling them after roasting in this situation is totally unnecessary. The shells contain fibre and are extremely delicious and easy to digest when roasted. If you feel like you must, for whatever reason, you can use your teeth to get to the little seed (known as the pepita) in the center and discard the shell.

ARE ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS HEALTHY?

YES! Pumpkin seeds make a great healthy snack as they have a ton of valuable nutrients. Among these are healthy fats, magnesium, zinc, protein, fibre, iron and Vitamin K. They’re high in antioxidants which reduce inflammation and can help prevent many diseases.

HOW SHOULD I USE THESE ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS?

My favourite way to enjoy roasted pumpkin seeds is straight out of the bowl for snacking! As already mentioned, they’re a healthy, easy snack that can be seasoned different ways every time. However, that’s not the only way you can enjoy these babies! Try them in as a garnish for soups (pumpkin soup, anyone?!), in homemade granola or trail mix, as a salad topper or in baked goods like these Keto Friendly Pumpkin Muffins or desserts like this Keto Friendly Pumpkin Mousse.

HOW SHOULD I STORE ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS?

Store these roasted pumpkin seeds in an airtight container and keep them on the counter. They’ll last a while (at least a few weeks) …or will they?! They’re gone within a few hours at my house!

side view of roasted pumpkin seeds on a sheet pan

HOW TO ROAST PUMPKIN SEEDS IN THE OVEN

Yield: ~1 cup

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Once you learn how to roast pumpkin seeds in the oven (and see just how easy and delicious it really is!), you’ll never be throwing away those seeds again!

Ingredients

1 Pumpkin*
Butter, Ghee or Oil*
Salt and Pepper, to taste (and/or other seasonings of choice)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 300° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Using a sharp chef’s knife, carefully cut the pumpkin in half to expose the flesh and seeds.
Gently scrape out the seeds using a spoon. Don’t be afraid to use your hands to help you pull them off the strings.
Place the pumpkin seeds into a fine metal sieve and rinse them, under cold water, to remove any leftover stringy pumpkin fibres or pieces. Use your hands to swirl them around and detach any pumpkin pulp.
OPTIONAL STEP: Add the pumpkin seeds to a pot and cover with water. Add 1 tbsp of salt for every half cup of seeds. Bring to a boil then simmer for 10 minutes, drain, then proceed to the next step*
Pat dry with paper towel or a clean cloth. The drier you can get ’em, the crispier they’ll be.
Add them to a bowl with some butter, ghee or oil (1-2 tbsps per cup of seeds is good enough) and your desired seasonings. Toss well to coat.
Lay them out in as single of a layer as you can on the parchment lined baking sheet without them piling on top of each other (some touching is OK).
Bake for 45 minutes or until the seeds are nicely golden brown and crunchy, stirring the seeds and rotating the pan every 15 or so minutes. Allow to cool before eating.

Notes

Any pumpkin works! Normally roasting pumpkin seeds comes after making something delicious with fresh pumpkin or after pumpkin carving. Seeds from either of those situations work well in this recipe!

If I’m going with an oil instead of butter or ghee – I like using avocado, olive or coconut.

OPTIONAL SALTED WATER BOILING STEP: The salt will penetrate the seeds making them extra salty and extra delicious. However, this step is totally not mandatory and skipping it will still result in deliciously flavourful seeds.

Serving size will vary depending on how many pumpkins you use or what size your pumpkin is to begin with. As a general rule of thumb, you’ll get about 1 cup of roasted pumpkin seeds for every sugar pie pumpkin (the small guys).

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 1 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 387Total Fat: 38gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 20gCholesterol: 63mgSodium: 390mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 2g

Nutrition is only an estimate and calculated using Nutritionix.