How to Make Pumpkin Seeds at Home (2025)

Home » Special Diets » Vegan » How to Make Pumpkin Seeds at Home

By Desiree Nielsen, RD

No ratings yet

Jump to Recipe

It is much easier than you think to make homemade pumpkin seeds!! Keep those seeds out of the compost…and get them into your belly. This post gives you step-by-step instructions on how to make pumpkin seeds at home.

Roasted pumpkin seeds are such a yummy, nutrient dense snack. This dietitian‘s fave way to eat them? Probably my Sriracha-roasted pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds are also incredibly easy to make at home. This recipe uses pumpkin seeds from a pumpkin, though it can be adapted for store-bought pumpkin seeds (pepitas) as well.

So if you’re carving pumpkins, or roasting them to make soup or another recipe, keep those seeds out of the compost…and get them into your belly! You’ll save money, minimize food waste and get a delicious—and nutritious—snack out of the deal.

There are a few steps involved for perfectly roasted pumpkin seeds. Here’s a list of what you need to gather to get started:

a bunch of seeds from a pumpkin
a bowl
salt
a rimmed baking sheet
parchment paper
avocado or melted coconut oil
any seasonings you wish, like Za’atar, cinnamon, cumin, curry

But first, some helpful information about pumpkin seed nutrition.

Health Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds

When you make pumpkin seeds at home you get the fibre-rich husk plus nutritious seed kernel inside. A quarter cup of whole pumpkin seeds packs a surprising amount of nutrition for very few calories:

3 g of protein
3 g of fibre
149 mg of potassium (for electrolyte balance, heart/kidney health)
43 mg of magnesium (muscle contraction, immune, heart health)
1.6 mg of zinc (skin, immune, gut health)
0.5 mg of iron (energy)
3 g of fat (mostly monounsaturated and omega 6)

If you are eating a quarter cup of store-bought green pumpkin seeds (pepitas), they have more concentrated nutritional values:

10 g of protein
2 g of fibre
283 mg of potassium
200 mg of magnesium
2.7 mg of zinc
3 mg of iron
17 g of fat

(all nutrient data from Canadian Nutrient Data File)

Older, single studies have also suggested that pumpkin seeds are rich in anti-inflammatory phytochemicals, or that they may be directly supportive of heart health and prostate health.

In my opinion, the best path to a healthy body is to eat more plants. And pumpkin seeds fit the bill!

If you’re wondering how the healthy benefits of pumpkin seeds stack up against other seeds, check out my posts on:

hemp seeds
chia seeds

5 Recipes for Pumpkin Seeds

Seeds don’t typically get as much attention as nuts, their more popular cousins.

But if you’re ready to add some more pumpkin seed love to your life, here is a bit of recipe inspiration: