[willnbirdie]

Hi

My daughter grew some sunflowers this year - I have cut the heads off and they are relatively dry.  We would like to harvest the seeds and eat them - does anyone know if you can eat the seeds of all varieties of sunflower and if so what is the best thing to do with them - currently they are still in the flower heads

cheers

willnbirdie

[Springlands]

Sunflower seeds are edible however they should only be eaten in moderation and there will always be cases of individuals not being able to tolerate individual seeds or nuts. I enjoy them toasted and sprinkled over salads. Don't forget that you need to remove the seed from the husk - there have been cases of people eating the husks and finding that that causes digestion problems.

[willnbirdie]

Hi springlands

Thanks for the reply.  So do you toast them whole and then hull them.  How long do you toast them for

chees

willnbirdie

[Springlands]

Have never grown them in the garden - usually buy from a well known health food store already shelled and then toast lightly in the oven on a medium heat for about 10 minutes. Need to be careful not to over do them - do not taste the same.

[orchardlady]

I would offer that it is possibly cheeper to buy them in the supermarket for culinary purposes and enjoy you dried, husk on sunflower seeds as a tasty time consuming snack. To 'shell' them will take forever and you will rapidly bore of the monotony of the task.

In my far distant youth I spent a good deal of time in Greece and was taught how to eat sunflower seeds by the Greeks I stayed with. The knack is to put the seed in between your front teeth pointy end facing into your mouth and the 'edges' resting on your top and bottom front teeth. Continuing to hold the husk, press down gently increasing the pressure and 'nibbling' at the seed back and forth until you feel the husk split open. Then either tip the seed into your mouth or remove it from your mouth and open the husk with your fingers.

To dry the husk on seeds place on a baking tray in a thin layer and dry them either in an airing cupboard for a few days, the bottom oven of an AGA for a few hours, sitting on a floor standing boiler or even on a radiator for a few evenings.

Or if you are totally fed up with your sunflowers and their seeds and think it's going to be just too much of a faf find someone who has chickens. They will demolish a sunflower head very very quickly. Have a look at this video!


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Happy sunflower eating!

[JohnB47]

Sunflower seeds, dehusked, toasted in a pan with a few squirts of soy sauce added are delicious. Once you start eating them you can't stop.

[JayG]

Last year I left the sunflower heads on the plants for the birds but a particularly agile grey squirrel scoffed the lot! 

Surely life's too short to de-husk your own sunflower seeds!

They are tasty when toasted in a dry pan though, so I buy mine ready-dehusked from the pet food shop and share them with the birds if I'm in a good mood!