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Spicy pepitas are highly craveable and super quick & easy to make. They pair beautifully with wine, beer, gin, tequila, mezcal, and more. Don’t miss them.
Why we love this recipe
Crisp, salty, more-ish bar snacks are something to celebrate. These little gems are:
- Made from whole foods
- Vegan and gluten free
- Ready in 10 minutes
- Highly customizable
- Make-ahead and freezer-friendly
- Perfect for last-minute guests
I first published this recipe here in 2010. I’ve updated it a bit for clarity.
What you’ll need
Here’s a glance at the ingredients you’ll need to make this easy recipe.
- Pepitas are pumpkin seeds without hulls. They come from oilseed, Styrian, and other varieties of pumpkins. Buy them raw. You can usually get them in the bulk aisle of the supermarket, or in packages. Store them in the fridge or freezer if you’ll have them for more than a couple of weeks, since they’re full of natural oils that can spoil.
- I like to use good old sweet Hungarian paprika, but to change things up you could use smoked paprika instead.
- Fine sea salt is almost always my salt of choice, unless there’s a specific reason to use a different kind. It has a gentle taste and will stick well to the pepitas.
How to make them
Here’s what you’ll do to make a beautiful, quick and easy batch of spicy pepitas. You can see the steps in action in the video that accompanies this post, and get all the details in the recipe card below.
- Warm olive oil over medium heat in a frying pan until it shimmers. Add the pepitas and stir to coat.
- Sprinkle in half the paprika, half the garlic powder, half the salt, and the cayenne.
- Cook, stirring almost constantly to prevent the spices from burning, until many of the pepitas are popped and lightly browned.
- Off the heat, stir in the remaining spices. Taste for salt and heat and add remaining salt and additional cayenne if you like.
Expert tips and FAQs
Absolutely! We love this combo, but you can play around with other ground spices and seasonings to your heart’s desire. The method of adding half the seasonings while cooking and the other half afterward will stay the same.
Old Bay, ranch, taco, simple sea salt and cayenne — the sky’s the limit.
Yes, pepitas can be made in advance. They keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. Or freeze them for up to a year.
More super-quick & easy snacks
- Roasted pumpkin seeds
- The best popcorn
- Chili salt edamame
- Charred shishito peppers
- Crunchy roasted chickpeas
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Spicy Pepitas
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
- 1 ½ cups (180 grams) pepitas
- ½ teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, see note 4
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, or more to taste
Instructions
- In a 10-inch skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat until shimmering.
- Add the pepitas and toss to coat with the oil.
- Sprinkle on the half the paprika, half the salt, half the garlic powder, and the ground cayenne.
- Cook, stirring almost constantly so the spices don’t burn, until many of the pepitas have turned light brown and made a popping sound, about 5 minutes.
- Off the heat, sprinkle with the remaining paprika and garlic powder. Taste for salt and heat. (I like to use the full amount of salt for a proper salty bar snack, but it’s up to you.) Add remaining salt and extra cayenne to taste, if you like.
- Pour into a small bowl and serve.
Notes
- Pepitas are pumpkin seeds without hulls. They come from oilseed, Styrian, and other varieties of pumpkins. Buy them raw. You can usually get them in the bulk aisle of the supermarket, or in packages. Store them in the fridge or freezer if you’ll have them for more than a couple of weeks, since they’re full of natural oils that can spoil.
- I like to use good old sweet Hungarian paprika, but to change things up you could use smoked paprika instead.
- Fine sea salt is almost always my salt of choice, unless there’s a specific reason to use a different kind. It has a gentle taste and will stick well to the pepitas.
- As written, this recipe is quite salty, which I think is perfect for a bar snack. If you’d like to reduce the salt, feel free.
- Pepitas can be made in advance. They keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. Or freeze them for up to a year.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hungry for more?
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Perfect recipe! I added just a little bit of chili powder to it as well.
So… am thinking these might need to be an addition to the Annual Mexican Fiesta repertoire?! hmm?? Love the writing as usual!
I find plain roasted pepitas with a bit of sea salt addicting, so these might be truly problematic. I got a laugh out of your Mexico account.