How To Cook Pumpkin

Ever wonder how to roast a pumpkin? It’s easier than you might think. I’m going to show you how you can do it and have it come out perfect every time. 

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Inside: See How To Cook Pumpkin

Pumpkins! Beautiful, glorious pumpkins! Can you think of anything better to usher in fall than the season’s first pumpkins? I love decorating with pumpkins, don’t you?

But there’s so much more to pumpkins than having them adorn your porches and mantels. They are a delicious addition to your fall recipes and are so easy to prepare.

Not sure how to cook pumpkin? Don’t worry. I’ve gotcha! I’m going to show you how to do it, and when you’re all done, you can use all the pumpkin pulp for all kinds of fall goodies.

What Pumpkins Are Best for Baking and Cooking?

I recommend using a sugar pumpkin also called pie pumpkins (pictured above) for the best results. They are sometimes called sweet pumpkins.

What Is a Sugar Pumpkin?

Sugar pumpkins (pie pumpkins) are smaller and tend to be sweeter with smooth flesh. They are also a little darker in color than the bigger carving pumpkins.

Sugar pumpkins are cultivated specifically for eating, making them a likely choice for cooking and baking over the more grainy and often bitter larger field pumpkins.

Are All Pumpkins Edible?

Keep in mind that all pumpkins (and gourds, for that matter) are edible – even the ones at the pumpkin patch, but that doesn’t mean you’ll want to eat every pumpkin you come across. Because many of them should be your last choice when choosing one for baking and cooking.

Unlike sugar pumpkins, the flesh in these larger pumpkins is more fibrous, and they tend to have less flavor and more moisture content (making them watery), resulting in undesirable results once cooked or baked.

So save your trip to the pumpkin patch for the carving pumpkins; unless they have a sugar pumpkin stand, then it’s a win-win!

Be sure to wash your pumpkin until it’s squeaky clean. You want to prevent the knife from pulling anything on the outside into the flesh inside of the pumpkin.

I lay the pumpkin on its side and cut through the pumpkin from stem to stem. You can cut through the stem, but if you don’t feel like flexing your muscles to the max, you can pull the cut pumpkin apart at the bottom, and the stem will break in half. Easy!

After you have the pumpkin cut, scoop out the seeds and fibrous strands from each half and be sure and save the seeds for roasting. If you’re not into that, you can discard it all.

I like using an ice cream scoop because it does such a great job at scooping out the insides and freeing the strands from the pumpkin walls, leaving them nice and clean. It’s amazing how many seeds are in one of those little buggers.

When I first learned how to cook pumpkin, I started by scooping out the interior before baking it and have stuck with doing it that way over the years, but you don’t have to.

The reason I prefer scooping the pumpkin out before it’s cooked is because the flesh is hard on an uncooked pumpkin; as a result, you can scrape those fibers without cutting into and removing any pulp.

The flesh becomes soft and tender after cooking a pumpkin, making it easier to cut into the sides when scooping it out resulting in scooping out the pulp. And you sure don’t want to lose any of that delicious pulp you just took the time to bake.

It’s not necessary to scoop the center of the pumpkin before baking, but I think it’s best in the long run.

How To Cook Pumpkin

Now we know how to prep those little sugars, so let’s go over the cooking process.

Did you know, as with all other varieties of winter squash, sugar pumpkins can be baked, roasted, puréed, boiled, steamed, and stewed?

I recommend baking or roasting for optimal flavor. Plus, it’s so easy to do and turns out every time, so that’s what we’ll talk about today.

Put the two pumpkin halves cut side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet with the cut sides facing down and bake for 40 – 60 minutes, depending on the size of your pumpkins.

How Long To Cook Sugar Pumpkins

You’ll need to cook your pie pumpkin anywhere from 40 -60 minutes, depending on the size of your pumpkin. For example, it only took the pumpkin in this post 40 minutes to become fork tender.

You’ll know your pumpkin’s ready when you can pierce it easily with a fork. The fork should glide like butter through the skin and flesh of the pumpkin.

Also, when the skin on your pumpkin starts looking wrinkled and blistered, it indicates that the pumpkin is ready to remove from the oven. What you see here is the skin pulling away from the pulp.

You can either scoop the pulp out of the pumpkin or pull the skin off. I usually spoon it out so I can get close to the skin. Often, when I’ve tried peeling them, I’ve discovered a thin layer of pulp on the inside of the skin that a spoon would have gotten.

How To Cook Pumpkin Step by Step