It’s pumpkin seed time again. Every October I look forward to scooping the slimy guts out of the family pumpkins. There’s something oddly satisfying about performing these legal lobotomies once a year. I still remember the first year we did this with my kids: one of them loved it, and the other one wanted to vomit. I guess the innards were a little too squishy for a 2-year-old.
Most years, I make the classic recipe at least once, and then experiment with something new. This recipe is one I created a few years ago, but it’s still one of my favorites. The citrus with chili combo is one that I grew to appreciate during my days living in Guatemala, Central America. It’s a match made in heaven.
For those of you that have been reading my blog for a while, you’ll also know I love Tapatio hot sauce. I use it on all sorts of stuff. I’ve had this recipe with other hot sauces as well, but Tapatio is my go-to. Feel free to experiment with any hot sauce you have and report your findings in the comments below!
Note: This recipe used to be part of a larger, all-inclusive post. I’ve separated it for easier sharing and saving. You can also take a gander at the Sugar ‘n Spice pumpkin seeds recipe and the Chipotle Ranch one.
Lemon Picante Pumpkin Seeds
Ingredients
For Boiling
The Sauce
Method
The following steps are pretty easy, but they take a few hours. There’s a drying and slow roasting time, during which it’s a good idea to relax and read a good book. Or maybe watch your favorite Halloween movie; I’m a sucker for The Burbs.
Make sure your pumpkins seeds are washed and cleaned. You don’t want any of the pumpkin’s guts interfering with your flavor. Dissolve the salt into the boiling water and then add the pumpkin seeds. Boil for 10 minutes.
Drain the seeds and set them out to dry on a non-fuzzy kitchen towel for a couple hours. You don’t want to use a paper towel, those sneaky devils will stick to the seeds and leave bad thoughts in your head.
Towards the end of the drying time, preheat your oven to 250°F. This is a slow roast. Mix the sauce ingredients together and add the seeds, making sure they’re all nicely coated.
Once coated, spread the seeds evenly and as thinly as possible on a non-greased baking sheet. Place in the oven and stir every 20 minutes or so. Depending on how dry they were when you put them in, they could be done anywhere between 1 and 2 hours. (Still watching that movie?)
You’ll know they’re done when the outside is slightly crunchy and the inside still a wee bit chewy. Yeah, you’ll have to taste it. The horror! The pumpkin seeds will also be toasty brown and lighter in weight.
Whenever I’ve made these, they usually take about 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour and 45 minutes. This is one of my new favorite pumpkin seed recipes. It starts tangy and ends with some heat!
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Recipe Lemon Picante Pumpkin Seeds The Cooking Dish (PDF)
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 4 people | 4 hours |
| Cook Time | Passive Time |
| 2 hours | 3.75 hours |
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This has become my new favorite. It starts out tangy and then hits you with a sweet spiciness. I can't stop munching on these.
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- 2 cups water
- 1 tbsp salt
- 2 cups pumpkin seeds washed and cleaned
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbasp Tapatio brand hot sauce
- 1/2 tsp lemon pepper
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- Start with pumpkin seeds that have been washed and cleaned. Dissolve salt in boiling water, then add the seeds. Boil for 10 minutes. Drain seeds and lay to dry for ~2 hours on a non-fuzzy kitchen towel (not a paper towel).
- Near the end of the drying period, turn oven on to 250°F and mix the sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl. Add seeds and stir until evenly coated. Place seeds in a non-greased baking sheet.
- Roast the seeds inspecting and stirring every 20 minutes until the seeds are done. This can take up to two hours. Seeds are done when the outside is crunchy and the middle has a slight chew to them. They will be lightly browned and lighter in weight.
Baking time greatly depends on how long you let the pumpkin seeds dry. If the seeds are completely dry before you bake them, you may only need to bake them for 20 minutes. Although this recipe takes a long time from start to finish, most of the time you're not doing anything but checking on the seeds.
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