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    Home » Appetizers and Sides

    Published: Nov 3, 2023 · Modified: May 21, 2024 by Meghan Martigan · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

    Smoked Pumpkin Seeds

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Smoked Pumpkin Seeds are great as a nutritious snack or added to salads, soups, or trail mixes for some crunch. Season them with just salt or your favorite BBQ rub.

    smoked pumpkin seeds in a small round dish

    When making a Smoked Pumpkin, we like to save the seeds to smoke. Season them simply with salt or go for extra flavor with some BBQ rub.

    Smoked Pumpkin Seeds are delicious by themselves as a snack, but they can also be added to other dishes like a salads, soups, and trail mixes to add some crunch.

    Pumpkin seeds are a good source of minerals and fiber.

    Jump to:
    • Remove the Seeds from the Pumpkin
    • Clean the Seeds
    • Season the Seeds
    • Wood and Wood Pellets
    • Smoke the Pumpkin Seeds
    • Serving Suggestions
    • Storage
    • 📖 Recipe

    Remove the Seeds from the Pumpkin

    Using a sharp knife, cut a pie pumpkin down the center, a little off center from the stem.

    slicing a pumpkin in half using a large meat slicing knife
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    Scoop out the pulp and seeds with a metal spoon, scraping the sides with the edge of the spoon.

    a metal spoon scooping out the seeds and pulp from a pie pumpkin

    Transfer the seeds and pulp to a small bowl.

    a bowl of pumpkin seeds and pulp

    Clean the Seeds

    Add water to the bowl containing the pumpkin seeds and pulp.

    a bowl of water with pumpkin seeds and pulp floating in it

    Swirl the seeds around with your hands and pull out the pulp.

    If you have seasonal allergies, you may want to wear food safe gloves when doing this step, as raw pumpkin can sometimes irritate your skin.

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    a bowl of pumpkin seeds in water with a pile of pumpkin pulp next to it on a paper towel

    Transfer the pumpkin seeds to a strainer. Rinse the seeds with running water to clean off as much pulp as possible.

    clean pumpkin seeds in a metal strainer

    Lay the pumpkin seeds out on a clean kitchen towel.

    Spread them out and allow them to dry partially.

    clean pumpkin seeds laid out on a kitchen towel

    Season the Seeds

    Transfer the clean seeds to a foil lined baking sheet and spread them out.

    clean pumpkin seeds spread out on a foil lined baking sheet
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    Drizzle the seeds with olive oil. You can use any kind of cooking oil you prefer. Since we are cooking the seeds at a lower temperature, you don't need to stick to a high smoke point oil.

    a hand pouring a small glass bowl of olive oil on top of washed pumpkin seeds on a foil lined baking sheet

    Sprinkle the seeds with either just salt or your favorite BBQ rub.

    Here we used a combination of Three Little Pigs Championship BBQ Rub and Blues Hog Original Dry Rub.

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    We sprinkled both rubs generously over the seeds, then mixed them around.

    pumpkin seeds on a foiled lined baking sheet that have been sprinkled with BBQ rub

    Wood and Wood Pellets

    For pumpkin seeds, we like using a fruitwood like cherry or a nutty wood like pecan.

    Electric smokers will use wood chips, which can also be used in a smoker box to smoke on a gas grill or a charcoal grill.

    In a pellet grill like a Pit Boss or Traeger, we like Bear Mountain Apple Pellets or Knotty Wood Almond Cabernet Wine Blend Pellets.

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    When we want more smoke flavor on a pellet grill, we add a pellet tube smoker or a firebox with charcoal and real wood chunks.

    We also use real wood chunks when smoking on a charcoal grill.

    Smoke the Pumpkin Seeds

    Start your smoker and let it run through the start up process. Then set the temperature to 300°F.

    We chose a lower temperature for the pumpkin seeds since we were seasoning them with a BBQ rub containing sugar, and we do not want to risk the sugar burning.

    For a reminder on how to start your smoker, check out:

    • How to Start a Pit Boss
    • How to Start a Traeger
    • How to Start a ZGrill
    • How to Start a Camp Chef
    • How to Start a Masterbuilt Electric Smoker

    Many models of Masterbuilt electric smokers only go up to 275°F.

    If this is the case for you, just set it to 275°F and know the seeds will take longer to cook.

    You can smoke your pumpkin seeds right on the foil lined tray.

    seasoned pumpkin seeds on a foiled lined baking sheet on top of the grill grates of a pellet grill

    Make sure to stir the seeds around every 15 minutes or so, flipping them and moving them around the pan to ensure even cooking.

    seasoned pumpkin seeds on a foil lined baking sheet

    The seeds are done when they are crisp and slightly golden in color.

    seasoned pumpkin seeds on a foil lined baking sheet

    At 300°F, our pumpkin seeds took about 45 minutes to finish cooking.

    Serving Suggestions

    We eat smoked pumpkin seeds by themselves as a snack.

    You can also serve them on top of a soup or salad. Toss them with some nuts and dried fruit for a trail mix, especially if you kept the seasoning simple with just salt.

    Storage

    Store the pumpkin seeds in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

    📖 Recipe

    smoked pumpkin seeds in a small round dish

    Smoked Pumpkin Seeds

    Meghan Martigan
    Smoked Pumpkin Seeds are simple to prepare and make a great snack or addition to salads, soups, or trail mix.
    No ratings yet
    PRINT PIN SHARE SAVE Saved Recipe
    Prep Time 30 minutes mins
    Cook Time 45 minutes mins
    Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins
    Course Snack
    Cuisine American, BBQ, Smoked, Thanksgiving, Vegetarian
    Servings 4
    Calories 120 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 Pie Pumpkin
    • 1 tablespoon Olive Oil or cooking oil of your choice
    • 1 tablespoon Kosher Salt or BBQ Rub

    Instructions
     

    Remove the Seeds from the Pumpkin

    • Using a sharp knife, cut the pumpkin down the center, a little off center from the stem.
      1 Pie Pumpkin
      slicing a pumpkin in half using a large meat slicing knife
    • Scoop out the pulp and seeds with a metal spoon, scraping the sides with the edge of the spoon.
      a spoon with pumpkin pulp and seeds
    • Transfer the seeds and pulp to a small bowl.
      a bowl of pumpkin seeds and pulp

    Clean the Seeds

    • Add water to the bowl containing the pumpkin seeds and pulp.
      a bowl of water with pumpkin seeds and pulp floating in it
    • Swirl the seeds around with your hands and pull out the pulp.
      a bowl of pumpkin seeds in water with a pile of pumpkin pulp next to it on a paper towel
    • Transfer the pumpkin seeds to a strainer. Rinse the seeds with running water to clean off as much pulp as possible.
      clean pumpkin seeds in a metal strainer
    • Place the pumpkin seeds on a clean kitchen towel. Spread them out and allow them to dry partially.
      clean pumpkin seeds laid out on a kitchen towel

    Season the Seeds

    • Transfer the clean seeds to a foil lined baking sheet and spread them out.
      clean pumpkin seeds spread out on a foil lined baking sheet
    • Drizzle the seeds with olive oil.
      1 tablespoon Olive Oil
      a hand pouring a small glass bowl of olive oil on top of washed pumpkin seeds on a foil lined baking sheet
    • Sprinkle the seeds with salt or your favorite BBQ rub.
      1 tablespoon Kosher Salt or BBQ Rub
      pumpkin seeds on a foiled lined baking sheet that have been sprinkled with BBQ rub
    • Mix the seeds around to evenly coat them with the oil and seasoning.

    Smoke the Pumpkin Seeds

    • Start your smoker and let it run through the start up process. Add wood pellets, chips, or chunks depending on your smoker.
    • Set the temperature to 300°F. If your smoker only goes up to 275°F, set it to this temperature.
    • Place the foil lined tray containing the seasoned seeds on the grates of your smoker.
      seasoned pumpkin seeds on a foiled lined baking sheet on top of the grill grates of a pellet grill
    • Make sure to stir the seeds around every 15 minutes or so, flipping them and moving them around the pan to ensure even cooking.
    • The seeds are done when they are crisp and slightly golden in color. At 300°F, this will take around 45 minutes.
      seasoned pumpkin seeds on a foil lined baking sheet

    Notes

    If you have seasonal allergies, you may want to wear food safe gloves when picking out the pulp from the seeds, as raw pumpkin may irritate your skin.
    Store the pumpkin seeds in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 30gCalories: 120kcalCarbohydrates: 2gProtein: 5gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.01gSodium: 1745mgPotassium: 130mgFiber: 1gSugar: 0.2gVitamin A: 3IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 8mgIron: 1mg
    Keyword how to smoke pumpking seeds, pit boss smoked pumpkin seeds, smoked pumpkin seeds, smoked pumpkin seeds in a Masterbuilt, smoked pumpkin seeds in an electric smoker, traeger smoked pumpkin seeds
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    Robert "Mads" Martigan, the founder of Mad Backyard

    Hi, I'm Mads, the founder of Mad Backyard and an avid outdoorsman, barbecue/smoker buff, and pellet grilling enthusiast who loves to share my passion for outdoor living and outdoor cooking with the world.

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