It’s pumpkin time! With fall comes pumpkins and with pumpkins comes pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin spice latte, pumpkin cookies, and pumpkin seeds.
No matter what I use a fresh pumpkin for, I am always sure to make good use of all the wonderful seeds inside. The only trouble is cleaning them.
For years I’d struggle to separate the seeds from the guts and get frustrated because no matter how hard I tried, there would still be strings of pumpkin on my seeds when I baked them.
Not any more! I learned this little trick through an act of frustration. A couple of years ago I was too tired to clean the seeds as soon as I pulled them out of the pumpkin, so I put them in a bowl of water until I found enough energy to work on them. When I came back about 30 minutes later, all the strings and tiny pieces of pumpkin had sunk to the bottom while all the seeds were floating on top. What a time saver!
How To Clean Your Pumpkin Seeds – The Fast And Easy Way:
Step 1: Remove seeds from pumpkin.
Step 2: Remove the larger pieces of pumpkin pulp from the seeds.
Step 3: Place pumpkin seeds in a bowl twice as large as you need and fill with enough water so the pumpkin seeds can float to top.
Step 4: Allow seeds to sit for 5 – 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Then, carefully remove clean pumpkin seeds floating on top of water.
That’s it! This is what the water looks like with the remaining pumpkin pulp sitting on the bottom of the bowl.
I love working with pumpkins and using the pulp as well as the seeds. Finding a trick that cuts down the time I have to spend in the kitchen makes it even better, and for this I am — Simply Grateful.
Simply Grateful Housewife 
Oh what great advice. We didn’t plant pumpkin this year, I still have plenty left from last year in the freezer. I do miss having them for a harvest decoration. Super post!
It realy works and I am so glad to know this little trick, especially with all the pumpkin I am canning this year.
I am going to try this technique! I love to roast pumpkin seeds, but they can be a pain to clean! I look forward to reading more of your blog.
Thank you so much for stopping by. Pumpkin seeds can indeed be a pain to clean, but moreso to shell. I’d love to find an easy way to shell them, as it is I’m usually too lazy and just eat them shell and all.
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