How to Cook Pumpkins
on Sep 09, 2018, Updated Oct 18, 2024
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Maybe you’ve been lured in by some of the fabulous seasonal produce at a farmers market. Perhaps you’ve joined a CSA. Maybe you’ve heard good things about cooking with fresh pumpkins or tried a dish — savory or sweet — with fresh pumpkin at a restaurant, and you’d like to give cooking with pumpkin a shot, especially for the holidays. And maybe you don’t know exactly how to cook (or shop for, or store, or prepare) fresh pumpkins. Fair enough…let’s fix that! Here is everything you want to know about how to cook up those pumpkins and put them to use in all kinds of dishes!
From soups and stews to pumpkin mac and cheese, there are plenty of fresh pumpkin recipes to choose from that are perfect for fall. And don’t forget to roast those pumpkin seeds!
Table of Contents
More on cooking potentially confounding produce…
- How to Cook Broccoflower
- How to Cook Butternut Squash
- How to Cook Pears
- How to Cook Zucchini and Summer Squash
- How to Cook Kohlrabi
FAQs
Cooked fresh pumpkin is usually a bit lighter in color and thinner in texture than canned. It might be a bit more watery, though, if you puree it and let it drain in a sieve, it will thicken up. Fresh pureed pumpkin also may be a bit less sweet than canned.
Yes, you can substitute fresh for canned cup for cup. If you can, allow time for fresh cooked pumpkin puree to sit in a fine mesh sieve for a couple of hours at room temperature to drain off excess water, then you will have a condensed puree, more similar to the texture of canned.
If you want to use pureed pumpkin in a soup, you might skip the draining step but use slightly less additional liquid to make the soup.
Pumpkins are usually harvested in September and October in the U.S. Make sure you are buying a pumpkin designed for cooking, not a carving pumpkin, which will be more fibrous and less sweet.
Pumpkins are rich in Vitamins A and C, beta-carotene, iron, and potassium, the antioxidant lutein, and have lots of fiber. One cup of cooked pumpkin has about 50 calories, according to Verywell Fit. The seeds have protein, omega-3 fats, and some minerals.
Best Pumpkins for Cooking
Make sure you are starting with a pumpkin that is meant for cooking, not carving. You know you are on the right track if you see pumpkins labeled “pie pumpkin” or “sugar pumpkin.”
More specifically, look for varieties like Cinderella, Baby Bear, Baby Pam, New England Pie Pumpkin, Long Pie or Nantucket Pie, Fairy Tale, and the white Lumina pumpkin. Warty, bumpy Knucklehead pumpkins are also good for cooking and eating! The flesh (other than the white varieties) will usually be a rich orange color and have a smooth texture. Some of the shells will be tougher than others to cut through; use a large, sharp knife and work carefully.
Not all pumpkins are going to yield satisfactory results when it comes to cooking with them. Many pumpkins, especially the larger ones, have flesh that is stringy and watery and doesn’t make for such a great eating or baking experience. Save those for Jack-O-Lanterns.
How to Cut Up a Pumpkin
The skin is usually very thick and often hard, and you need to use a very sharp knife and be careful. Depending on how you are going to use the pumpkin, you may be cutting it into pieces for roasting and leaving it in the shell or cutting it into pieces and removing the rind.
If you need to remove the skin or “peel” the pumpkin and keep it uncooked in the process, then you need to work with a very sharp knife and a lot of focus. See below for how to use the microwave to soften a pumpkin and peel it more easily.
Carefully cut the pumpkin in half through the stem and clean out the seeds and fibrous gunk using a sharp spoon or an ice cream scoop. Make sure to use a spoon with sharp edges, such as a metal spoon, to scrap out all of the pulpy, stringy insides, including the seeds.
Place each pumpkin half cut-side down on a cutting board. Use a sharp knife to slice off two flat panels from the shell, one slice removing the root end and one slice removing the stem end.
Sit the pumpkin upright on one of these newly flat sides and slowly work your way around, slicing off the skin of the pumpkin, following the shape of the pumpkin as best you can. You will lose a bit of the flesh as you go; there’s no way around that. Then, the peeled pumpkin flesh will now be ready to be sliced or cubed or whatever you want for your recipe.
How To Peel Pumpkin in the Microwave
You can use the microwave to make pumpkin peeling a bit easier. Cut the pumpkin into large chunks, or in half if it is smaller in size, making sure that the pieces can fit in the microwave with plenty of room around them. Scrape out all of the seeds and gunk with a sharp spoon or ice cream scoop.
Place the pieces of pumpkin in a shallow microwave-safe dish or plate (as many as can easily fit) with a thin layer of water at the bottom of the dish.
You can microwave the pumpkin for about 6 minutes, checking after around 4 minutes, until the skin and flesh have softened somewhat. Let it rest until cool enough to handle, then use a sharp knife or even a vegetable peeler to remove the skin — this will be easier than peeling off the shell from an uncooked pumpkin.
If you are planning to puree the pumpkin, you can continue cooking it in the microwave until the flesh is completely soft, which might take up to 20 minutes, possibly longer if the pumpkin is very dense or thick. Check every 3 minutes or so after 15 minutes. When a knife slides into the skin easily, it’s done.
Use a knife to remove the skin, or just scoop out the flesh from the shell when it is cool enough to handle.
How to Cook Fresh Pumpkin in the Oven
If you are planning to cook and then puree or mash it, then you can bake the pumpkin in the shell. This is the easiest method of cooking pumpkin (or see above for microwave cooking instructions).
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, and spray it with nonstick spray. Cut the pumpkin in half vertically using a large, sharp chef’s knife. Scoop out the seeds and stringy interior scraping, to get all of the gunk out (save the seeds for roasting), and place the pumpkin halves cut side down on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, until a knife inserted into the pumpkin slides in easily. Then, remove and allow the pumpkin to cool to room temperature.
How To Make Homemade Fresh Pumpkin Puree
After roasting or microwaving the pumpkin, let cool to room temperature. Scoop the flesh from the rind and place it into a food processor or blender in batches if necessary. Process until smooth, or as smooth as desired. You can also use a food mill for this.
Line a fine mesh sieve with a layer of 100% cotton cheesecloth if you have it; if not, it’s ok to just use a fine mesh sieve or fine mesh strainer. Add the puree to the sieve, place the sieve over a bowl, and allow to stand for 2 hours until any excess water has drained off. Press down on the pumpkin light to press out any remaining water, and then proceed with your recipe.
Fresh Pumpkin FAQs
A 3-pound cooking pumpkin will yield about 2 cups of drained puree. A 5 to 6-pound pumpkin will yield about 3 cups of drained puree – the yield will depend on the variety of pumpkin. Some pumpkins have thicker shells; others have more flesh or meat.
See above for varieties of pumpkins that are best for cooking. Then pick a pumpkin somewhere around 4 to 7 pounds; though some good cooking varieties run smaller or larger; this is just an average. A few dings or dents don’t matter; just don’t choose any pumpkins that are soft.
If you’ve ever had a pumpkin pie, then you probably have some idea, though most pies are made with canned pumpkin (a perfectly great product — more on that below!), and of course, in pumpkin pie, you are also tasting the sugar and warm spices added to the filling.
There are subtle flavor differences between the various varieties of pumpkin, but on the whole, fresh pumpkin tastes much like a winter squash, such as butternut or acorn, possibly a bit sweeter. Roasting a pumpkin intensifies the natural sweetness more than other cooking methods.
How to Use Fresh Pumpkin
You can use fresh pumpkin pretty much in as many ways as you can use other fresh winter squashes, such as butternut squash. You can also use fresh pumpkin in savory and sweet recipes instead of squash.
Use homemade pumpkin puree in a soup or in pumpkin pies, pumpkin muffins, or quick breads. Use cubed and cooked pumpkin in salads, pasta dishes, casseroles, soups, and stews. Pumpkin can be sautéed, roasted, steamed, simmered in liquid, and baked. See below for all kinds of recipes that can make use of your cooking pumpkin.
How to Store Fresh Pumpkin
A whole fresh pumpkin can last anywhere from 1 week to 1 month and be stored at cool room temperature. If it starts to become soft in spots, it’s past its prime.
Cooked fresh pumpkin can be stored tightly sealed in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It can also be frozen in an airtight container or freezer-proof zipper top bag for up to 6 months.
16 Fresh Pumpkin Recipes
Try pumpkin in these recipes! Substitute for sweet potato or butternut squash where appropriate. Some of these recipes also call for canned pumpkin, but you can use your own fresh purée.
Creamy Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
Indian Butternut Squash-Carrot Soup
Pumpkin Gingerbread
Pumpkin Curry Soup
Roasted Butternut Squash and Fennel Soup
Pumpkin Streusel Muffins
Roasted Butternut Squash
Sweet Potato Pie with Whipped Cream
Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
Moroccan Lamb and Butternut Squash Stew
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Brownies
Sweet Potato Spoon Bread
Soft Pumpkin Cookies
Butternut Squash and White Bean Ragout
