Identify a pumpkin or winter squash
Photograph it and find out the variety, whether it is worth eating, and how it behaves in a pot.
Choose a pumpkin photo
Drag a photo here, or tap to choose. JPG or PNG. A clear, close shot works best.
The edible question comes first
There is a real distinction here that gets glossed over constantly. Pumpkins and winter squash are edible. Gourds, including the little decorative ones you see in autumn displays, mostly are not, and the ones that technically are will taste bitter and fibrous.
The varieties sold for decoration, like Turk's Turban, Jack-be-Little and the warty mixed gourds, were bred for their shells. They are hard, watery and unpleasant. Some are genuinely bitter, and bitterness in a cucurbit comes from cucurbitacin, which will make you ill.
The rule I follow: if it was sold as a decoration, do not eat it. If it tastes bitter, throw the whole thing out, not just the bitter bite.
The main varieties and what they are for
| Variety | Skin | Flesh | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Queensland Blue | Grey-blue, deeply ribbed | Deep orange, dry, sweet | Roasting, soup. The best all-rounder |
| Jarrahdale | Grey, ribbed, heavy | Dense, dry, sweet | Roasting, mash, soup |
| Butternut | Pale tan, smooth, pear-shaped | Orange, moist, sweet | Soup, roasting, curry |
| Kent | Dark green, smooth | Rich, dry, very sweet | Roasting, pie, mash |
| Delica | Dark green, flattened | Bright orange, dry, very sweet | Roasting, pie |
| Buttercup | Dark green, turban-shaped | Dense, dry, sweet | Roasting, soup |
| Japanese pumpkin | Dark green, ribbed | Dense and very sweet | Roasting, tempura |
| Spaghetti squash | Pale yellow, oval | Strands like pasta | Used as a pasta substitute |
| Turk's Turban | Striped red and green | Pale, fibrous, poor | Decoration only |
Dry and floury or watery and stringy
This is the distinction that changes what you cook. A dry, floury pumpkin roasts into sweet caramelised wedges and makes a soup you could stand a spoon in. A watery one turns to mush and leaves a puddle on the tray.
The dry ones are dense and feel heavy for their size. Queensland Blue, Jarrahdale, Kent and Delica are all in this group, and they are the ones worth buying. Butternut is moist but reliable.
The watery ones are the big pale field pumpkins sold for carving, and most decorative gourds. They are fine for a pureed soup where you control the liquid, and hopeless for roasting.
A quick test in the shop: pick two of similar size and buy the heavier one. Density is a good proxy for dry flesh.
Reading the outside
- A dull, hard skin that resists a fingernail is ripe and will store for months. A glossy skin that dents easily is immature and will not keep.
- The stem should be dry, corky and attached. A missing stem is an open door for mould, and a green stem means it was cut early.
- Deep ribbing usually means drier, denser flesh. Smooth, uniform skins are often thinner-fleshed.
- A hollow sound when tapped means it is drying out inside.
- Any soft spot, particularly around the stem, means it is already going over.
- A grey-blue bloom on the skin of a Queensland Blue is normal and not mould.
What to do with the seeds
Almost all pumpkin seeds are edible, but the hull thickness varies enormously. The hull-less varieties sold as pepitas have a thin, edible seed coat. Most others have a tough hull you will want to remove, which is fiddly but not difficult once the seeds are toasted.
Rinse them, rub off the fibres, dry them, toss with oil and salt and roast at about 160 degrees for twenty minutes, stirring once. They will crisp as they cool. Do not roast them hot or they will burn before they dry out.
My father grew pumpkins for years and gave them away by the trailerload, and it took me an embarrassingly long time to work out that not all of them were worth eating. Some were magnificent. Some were watery, stringy and tasted of nothing.
The difference was the variety, and I had never thought to ask which was which. I just took whatever came out of the pile.
Once you know the varieties, a pumpkin stops being an anonymous orange vegetable and becomes a specific ingredient with specific uses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Look at the skin colour and shape first, then the ribbing. Grey-blue and deeply ribbed is Queensland Blue or Jarrahdale. Dark green and flattened is Delica. Pale tan and pear-shaped is butternut. Dark green and turban-shaped is buttercup.