Here are two ways to turn watermelon seeds into a party food and appealing snack.
Hot and Sour Watermelon Seeds
Hot and Sour Watermelon Seeds
Ingredients
3 T lime juice (2 limes)
1 T organic sugar
1 tsp. Coconut oil
1/4 – 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 C (115 grams) salted, sprouted watermelon seeds (Go Raw Brand)
1/4 tsp. allspice extract (opt.)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a saucepan over med-low heat, boil the lime juice until reduced to 1 T or less (about 1 minute)
Add the sugar, coconut oil, and cayenne pepper, stir to dissolve the sugar. Turn off the heat.
Add watermelon seeds and, if using, the allspice extract. Toss until dry looking.
Spread on a parchment paper lined baking sheet pan. Bake at 325 until lightly browned and dry, about 10 minutes.
Spicy Rosemary Watermelon Seeds
These are a quick and easy snack or party food, good for a large crowd. They will keep in the fridge for a week, or in the freezer for several months. These are so easy to make, you will want to listen to an audio book while making them. This version was inspired by Sally Fallon’s Rosemary Walnuts which was a favorite before I cut back on the oxalates in my diet.
Spicy Rosemary Watermelon Seeds
Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
4 – 5 teaspoons ground rosemary
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
1 1/4 cups (155 g) sprouted salted watermelon seeds, (Go Raw Brand)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350.
In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Turn off the heat. Stir in the spices. Toss the watermelon seeds in the pan until evenly coated.
Spread coated seeds evenly on a parchment paper lined baking sheet pan.
Bake at 350 for 6 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Cool to room temperature before storing in glass under refrigeration.
Thanks very much for these delicious sounding recipes Sally
I’m new to this site and way of eating. I’m really looking forward to trying this recipe. But do the seeds have to be sprouted? The Go Raw brand is pretty pricey and regular organic watermelon seeds are much more reasonable.
Seeds have phytates/phytic acid, which is a gut-irritating chemical that is dramatically reduced by soaking and sprouting. Soaking promotes seed “activation” and initiates germination. Pulling seeds out of dormancy changes their digestibility and makes them much less irritating to the gut, primarily because it reduces phytic acid. (Long soaks also reduce lectins, but I’m not sure how long the Go Raw brand is soaked.)
Anyone with health concerns should be very protective of their gut health. Limiting unsprouted seeds in the diet is a critical way to protect a healthy gut and may support gut healing.
You could try soaking and sprouting the seeds yourself (at least a day), but they need to be dried in order to use this recipe. So you would need a low-humidity environment or dehydrator. Otherwise you are likely to get mold growth on the seeds.
I hope this helps. Please invest in your health!
Sally