Use Your Hand Mixer To Remove The Guts Of A Pumpkin With Ease
Whether you're carving a jack-o'-lantern, making a punch bowl, or are just trying to get to those tasty little pumpkin seeds, each of these activities requires you to fully clean out a pumpkin. A task that's easier said than done, gutting the gourd can be messy and fairly time-consuming, especially if you're dealing with a particularly large pumpkin. Thankfully, there is a way to simplify the process. All you need is the help of a hand mixer.
There is definitely no shortage of tips and tricks for cleaning and carving pumpkins. Some swear by cutting the gourd from the bottom for easier access to seeds and guts. Others instead claim that there's no need to invest in dedicated pumpkin carving tools and that a kitchen knife and ice cream scoop are more than capable of getting the job done. Yet, of the many suggestions to take into consideration, we're big fans of the hand mixer hack to remove pumpkin guts with ease.
Essentially, when an electric hand mixer is inserted into a pumpkin, the beaters (or whisk attachments) are able to loosen up all those stringy bits and seeds in a mere matter of seconds. The result is a smooth and seed-free gourd without the hassle of scraping and scooping for what can seem like an eternity. Like we said, this method is our favorite!
What to remember when using the hand mixer hack
First and foremost, safety is a top priority. Always start by placing your pumpkin on a sturdy surface. Likewise, make sure to anchor the gourd as you work so it won't tumble away once you fire up the hand mixer. Speaking of which, it's also important to remember to exercise caution when the appliance is in use, keeping fingers and clothing away from the moving parts.
Hollowing out a pumpkin starts with carving an opening that's large enough to accommodate the width of your hand mixer. Then, you can insert the mixer deep inside the pumpkin and turn on the appliance. To prevent seeds from spewing everywhere, it's best to use the lowest speed on your mixer and work in short intervals of time. Additionally, make sure to angle the mixer slightly, moving from the bottom to the top, so that you can reach all sides of the pumpkin.
Within a minute or so, you'll notice that the pumpkin guts will have gathered at the bottom of the gourd. At this point, you can turn off the hand mixer and scoop everything out. As for what to do with the goopy insides, you can just toss everything into the compost bin. But, given all the extra time you gain by using a hand mixer, why not repurpose pumpkin scraps by using the stringy bits to make broth and making the seeds into a crunchy snack, like chili-roasted pumpkin seeds?