Is Hokkaido pumpkin suitable for a good soup? Can butternut be used for pumpkin pie? We explain how to use the most popular pumpkins.
Pumpkins cannot be missing in the kitchen in autumn, either in soup or cake, such as risotto or lasagna. The taste and pulp decide which type of pumpkin is best suited for each recipe.
One of the most popular edible pumpkin varieties is probably Hokkaido. This sweet pumpkin has the advantage that you can eat it cooked with skin. Other types of pumpkin, such as Patisson, should be peeled before eating.
Pumpkins are not vegetables, just like tomatoes, they are fruits and botanically belong to berries. Pumpkin is related to cantaloupe and can grow a lot. There are pumpkins that have exceeded 50 kilos.
The overview shows you in keywords how each pumpkin tastes and what kind of pulp it has. This way you will know which pumpkin recipe is suitable for each variety and if you can eat it raw or have to cook it.
1. HOKKAIDO PUMPKIN
- It has chestnut flavor, sweet, nutty, firm pulp, can be eaten raw.
- Recipes: Pumpkin soup, au gratin, cake, can also be fried or baked, whole, stuffed or sliced
2. BUTTERNUT SQUASH (VIOLIN OR PEANUT)
- Buttery flavor, few seeds, a lot of pulp, which can also be eaten raw and serves for any dish
- Recipes: Soups, for frying, steamed, such as sponge cake or pumpkin chutney. It combines very well with strong spices such as chili and garlic.
3. PATISSON PUMPKIN OR BONNET
- Neutral taste, slightly reminiscent of artichoke. The pulp of the specimens collected early is very tender, but it should always be cooked.
- Recipes: in salad, steamed with other vegetables, to make stuffing and to fry.
5. SPAGHETTI SQUASH
- Delicate nutty aroma. The pulp is fibrous. After cooking it looks like spaghetti.
- Recipes: Goes well in salad, baked and risotto.
6. JACK BE LITTLE PUMPKIN
- It tastes like chestnuts, with firm orange pulp that can also be eaten raw. It is also an ornamental pumpkin.
- Recipes: Pumpkin soup, baked, sweet dishes such as jams or cakes
7. SWEET DUMPLING PUMPKIN
- This small pumpkin has a sweet taste with a slight hint of chestnut. Firm and crispy meat.
- Recipes: You can cook whole, steam with other vegetables, fry or eat in risotto.
8. TURBAN PUMPKIN
- Aromatic taste and firm pulp. A disadvantage of turban pumpkins is that they are somewhat more difficult to peel due to their irregular shape.
- Recipes: Soup, baked or hollowed out and stuffed
ALL EDIBLE PUMPKINS ARE HEALTHY
While pumpkins were once considered food for the poor, they are now an integral part of our kitchen in autumn.
No matter what type of pumpkin you bought or which one you like best, they contain vitamins that are especially important in the cold season. These include vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene), vitamin E, and vitamin C. They also contain many trace elements such as calcium, zinc and potassium.
If in autumn you pay attention to a healthy diet you should always have some pumpkins in the kitchen, among other things because they contain only 25 kilocalories per 100 grams.
RECIPES WITH PUMPKIN
- 3 recipes with pumpkin out of the ordinary
- 7 recipes with pumpkin and how to cook it to make it perfect
- 5 Original Ways to Consume Raw Pumpkin
- 3 healthy and delicious pumpkin desserts
- Pumpkin cream: grandma’s recipe and the most original variants
INEDIBLE PUMPKINS
Most varieties of pumpkins are edible. However, some are sold for decorative purposes. Some varieties of small ornamental pumpkins contain the bitter substance cucurbitacin. Their very bitter taste makes it clear that it is better not to eat them.
When in doubt, try a small piece of raw pumpkin. The bitter substance can cause stomach irritation or more or less severe nausea, but it should not be fatal.
