The fruits, which weigh up to two kilograms, are truly magnificent to look at: their bright orange-red color puts you in a good mood just by looking at them and makes your mouth water. But how do you know when your home-grown Hokkaido pumpkins are really ripe?
When is a Hokkaido pumpkin ripe?
A Hokkaido pumpkin is ripe when it has a rich orange-red color with no green spots, sounds dull and hollow, and the base of the stem is dry and brownish in color. Harvest the pumpkin before the first frost and store it in a cool, dry and airy place.
Knock test gives certainty
Ripe fruits have a rich, orange-red color, with no green spots visible anywhere. However, there are also Hokkaido varieties that are green in color, which is why this external characteristic cannot always be used to determine ripeness. The knock test, on the other hand, is more informative: If you gently tap the shell with your knuckle, the ripe pumpkin should sound dull and hollow. The stem base also provides an indication of the ripeness of the fruit: it should be dry, possibly already dried out and brownish in color.
Harvest Hokkaido pumpkin correctly
As soon as the pumpkin is ripe, you can harvest it. Be careful not to damage the base of the stem. Otherwise the Hokkaido pumpkin would no longer be storable and would quickly rot. It is best to cut the fruit at least one centimeter above the base of the stem with a sharp knife or secateurs.
How to store Hokkaido pumpkin correctly:
- only intact fruits without any damage
- Do not remove the base of the stem (however, the stem can be shortened)
- Don’t wash the bowl!
- only store ripe fruits with hard shells
- ideal storage temperature: 10 to 14 °C
- store dry and airy, for example hanging in a net
Hokkaido pumpkins can usually be stored for around three to four months. Although many guides say that this pumpkin has a shelf life of six or even eight months, experience shows that its quality begins to suffer after just three to four months. If you don't have a cool, dry storage room (a cellar or pantry would be ideal), you can also freeze the Hokkaido pumpkin.
Freezing Hokkaido pumpkin
- Cut raw pumpkin into small pieces
- remove the seeds and stem base
- Shell does not need to be removed
- Pour portionwise into freezer bags or freezer containers and freeze
You can also freeze the Hokkaido pumpkin as a fully cooked puree so that you can then process it into soup or baby porridge all the more quickly later. To do this, cut the fruit into small pieces and let it steam in a little water for 20 minutes. As soon as the pumpkin is soft, pour off the water and mash the pulp into a coarse puree.
Tips & Tricks
Hokkaido pumpkins are best harvested before the first frost. The fruits can also quickly become damaged if they are very wet and cold. In such a case, harvest the fruits unripe and let them ripen in a warm place for another week or two.
