We were recently given an entire box of pumpkins. In order to make the most of this generosity, we canned up the pumpkin and then proceeded to make use of every single other part of the pumpkin as well! Here’s how to can pumpkin and what else we did with it.
I know you might be wondering why I don’t just store these pumpkins in my root cellar instead of going through all the work of canning them.
Actually, the answer is really simple. By canning them up now, they are ready to use when I want them. I don’t have to pull a pumpkin out of the root cellar, clean it, roast it, and then puree it…I can just grab a can and puree it up whenever we want Pumpkin Pie or another pumpkin treat. Some work up front, but lots of time saving on the other end!
It’s just like canning beans. Yes, I could keep them in their dried form, but it’s more convenient to have them ready to go!
Canning Pumpkin Step-by-Step
Start by washing all of your pumpkins. They most likely sat directly on the ground in the dirt while growing so you’ll want to clean that off so it doesn’t get into your food.
Next, chop the pumpkins in half with a sharp knife. Then it’s time to scoop the “guts” out. My husband, David, found that this worked best with my large cookie scoop. Place all the guts in a bowl and set it aside. You can clean it up later.
Make sure all the seeds and the stringy inner parts are cleaned out. Those parts will not make good puree later.
Cleaning the stringy parts off the seeds is a great job for the kids! It does take some work, but you get a good, healthy snack from it. Your animals can eat the innards.
Once your pumpkins are cleaned, you’ll need to remove the shell or the peel of the pumpkin. You can use a sharp knife or a good vegetable peeler if you have one. This is the peeler that I have, and we use it for everything.
Save these peels! They will feed your animals! Check out my details on this below.
Cut all of the pumpkin into pieces no larger than 1 inch. Take these pieces and place them in a large stockpot with boiling water. Boil them until they start to get a little soft or for a few minutes. Do not boil them until they are cooked. They will cook in the pressure canner.
After boiling, pack the pumpkin into canning jars. I chose quarts here but you can use pints if you prefer. Just remember that since they are cubed, it won’t amount to as much when it’s pureed down. Pack the jars as tightly as you can. I needed 16 quarts to can 8 pie pumpkins of various sizes.
Fill the jars, leaving 1 inch headspace with boiling water. I use my Lindy’s Kettle to do this because it’s easier to pour! Wipe the rims of the jars and place on your canning lids and rims.
Place all the jars in your pressure canner following your canner’s instructions. I use a 23 quart Presto Canner. Process for 90 minutes (for quarts) at the pressure for your elevation. (Example, I have to can at 14 lbs of pressure because of my elevation. There’s a chart here.)
Pumpkin does tend to siphon a bit so your jars may look like this when they are done. It’s ok! As long as they are sealed properly and for the correct amount of time and pressure, they are safely canned. They may discolor on the tops that aren’t under the liquid, but this is normal and does not mean they have spoiled.
Store all canned goods in a cool, dry, and preferably dark space. When you are ready to use this pumpkin, just pop the seal, pour into your food processor or blender with a little bit of water and puree until smooth!
This recipe is from The Complete Ball Book of Home Preserving. I highly recommend having this book as a resource!
Pumpkin Seeds
Pie pumpkins have great seeds for roasting! I have a full tutorial on Roasting Pumpkin Seeds here so I won’t republish all the info here.
This time, I sprinkled Sweet and Smoky Everything Bagel Seasoning on my seeds before I roasted them. They made a tasty and healthy treat!
Pumpkin Shells
Depending on the type of animals you have, you may be able to feed them directly to them. (Cows, pigs, etc.) I have ducks who cannot chew these up but can still eat them. We simply placed all the shells in a stockpot with water and boiled them until they were soft. The ducks loved their treat, and it was a lot of food for our small flock!
Pumpkin Seeds for Planting
Don’t forget to save a few seeds for planting in next year’s garden too! Pumpkin seeds are super easy to save. Just dry them and place them in an airtight container until next year.
Pumpkin Pie
Finally, I had some pumpkin leftover that didn’t fit in the canner. I pureed that up right away and made a yummy pumpkin pie for supper. I used my Granny’s Pumpkin Pie Filling and put it in a traditional pie crust.
Have you canned pumpkin before? Are there any more uses for pumpkin I’m missing?
Merissa Alink
Merissa has been blogging about and living the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from the Contact Page.
This blog post on How to Can Pumpkin was originally published on Little House Living in December 2025.
