How To Substitute Fresh Pumpkin For Canned (And Vice Versa)

Fresh pumpkin takes some time to prepare in comparison to cracking open a can, but depending on what you are making it might be worth the extra effort — especially around Thanksgiving, when the whole idea is to celebrate the season's harvest. Swapping fresh pumpkin for canned is as easy as a 1:1 substitution ratio, as they are both made of 100% pumpkin. The main differences will be in the color and texture. Canned pumpkin tends to have a more vibrant orange hue and is uniformly smooth  whereas homemade pumpkin puree will have a different texture and color depending on the type of pumpkin you use.

Fresh puree is ideal for savory dishes like pasta and soup or for baking pumpkin bread and muffins. Some people prefer to use the smoother canned variety for making pumpkin pies, but at the end of the day, it's all a matter of personal preference. Sometimes making fresh puree is all about using those pumpkins you successfully grew in your garden over the summer or bragging rights that your pumpkin cake was truly made from scratch. Whatever the reason, it's easy to swap fresh for canned, or vice versa, as they can be used interchangeably in recipes. 

If you do replace canned pumpkin with fresh, first thing is first: do not go for one of the large carving pumpkins that pile up at grocery stores around Halloween. The insides of these pumpkins tend to be stringy, watery, and less flavorful than their smaller cousins. For pumpkin puree, you want to go for a sugar pumpkin (also called baking or pie pumpkins), which are significantly smaller and tend to have sweeter, more dense flesh.  

The smell of roasted pumpkin in your kitchen might be worth it in and of itself when trying to decide between fresh and canned. To make fresh puree from a pumpkin, first cut it in half and remove the seeds (which can also be roasted separately). Pumpkin halves should be placed skin-down in the oven and roasted for 35 to 45 minutes. Once your pumpkin is roasted you can scoop out the flesh and blend it up in a blender or food processor until smooth. Fresh pumpkin puree may be thinner than the canned variety so you may have to place it in a cheese cloth to squeeze out the excess water, or you can spread it out over some parchment paper on a baking sheet and pop it in the oven at low heat until it thickens up.