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Kabocha Pumpkin Salad

Name: Kabocha Pumpkin Salad
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 500 gram (1.1 lb) kabocha pumpkin flesh; 1 small apple, cored and diced (Note #1); 2 tablespoon shelled kabocha pumpkin seeds (Note #2); 2 tablespoon pomegranate seeds (Note #3); 2-3 tablespoon mayonnaise, preferably Kewpie; 1-2 teaspoon mustard, classic yellow or dijon; 1-2 teaspoon honey; 1/4 teaspoon salt

Last updated: Jan 14, 2020 — Published: Jan 14, 2020 — By: Anita — 8 comments

Sweet and creamy kabocha pumpkin salad, with apple, pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds. This bright and colorful salad is perfect for your holiday table.

Do you know you can turn kabocha pumpkin into a creamy, sweet, and delightful salad? Kabocha pumpkin salad is super common in both Japan and Korea, and you can learn how to prepare this super easy and delicious salad from my recipe. I am pairing this with apples and pomegranate seeds since they are abundant and in season right now, but you can customize this kabocha salad and come up with your own creation.

Ingredients for kabocha pumpkin salad: kabocha pumpkin flesh, apple, kabocha pumpkin seeds, pomegranate seeds, mayonnaise, mustard, and honey.

What goes into this kabocha pumpkin salad?

You will need:

500 gram (1.1 lb) kabocha pumpkin flesh
1 small apple
2 tablespoon shelled kabocha pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoon pomegranate seeds
2-3 tablespoon mayonnaise, preferably Kewpie
1-2 teaspoon mustard, classic yellow or dijon
1-2 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt

If you need a guide to prepare a whole kabocha pumpkin, please take a look at my simmered kabocha in shio koji recipe for a detailed step-by-step guide to cut a kabocha. And if you want to use homemade roasted pumpkin seeds, please take a look at my soy sauce roasted kabocha pumpkin seeds recipe.

Steamed and mashed kabocha pumpkin flesh mixed with mayonnaise, mustard, honey, and salt. Then add diced apples, shelled kabocha pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds.

How to prepare kabocha pumpkin salad?

A kabocha pumpkin salad takes about as much effort as a potato salad, meaning, almost no time at all. Here is my step-by-step:

Steam kabocha. Cut kabocha pumpkin into wedges and place in a basket steamer. Steam until the pumpkin is soft enough to be mashed with a fork.
Season kabocha. Transfer steamed kabocha to a mixing bowl, mash with a fork, but leave some big kabocha chunks. Add mayonnaise, mustard, honey, and salt. Stir and adjust the amount of seasoning as needed.
Add the rest of the ingredients. Add diced apples, shelled kabocha pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds. Fold gently to mix evenly.
Chill and serve. Chill the salad mixture in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Serve the kabocha salad cold.

Variations to this kabocha salad

This kabocha salad is quite versatile. You can play around with what you want to add in step 3. For this recipe, I use apple, pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds. But you can easily use some of these instead:

diced cucumber or diced Asian pear (those crunchy ones!) instead of apple
raisin or dried cranberries instead of pomegranate seeds
chopped nuts (walnut, almond, pecan, pine, e.t.c.) instead of pumpkin seeds

You can even add some crumbled cheese and thinly sliced onion if you wish. So go ahead and use what you have at home to make your own version of kabocha salad.