Pumpkin Jerky

Enjoy this chewy and intensely flavored jerky as a snack or use to finish dishes with beautiful color and pumpkin flavor. You’ll need half of a pumpkin: Use a cleaver to cut a medium pumpkin crosswise in half. (Roast the other half for puree and caramelize the seeds.) Yield will depend on the size and meatiness of the pumpkin.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons kosher salt

• 1/2 medium (2-pound or 7-inch) pumpkin, scraped of seeds

Scraps, Wilts + Weed by Mads Refslund & Tama Matsuoka Wong

Directions

Set the dehydrator at 150°F.

Spread the salt with your hands evenly around the inner (flesh) side of the pumpkin half.

Dehydrate the pumpkin half
at 150°F for 5 to 7 days, until the flesh feels like a shriveled apricot and is chewy rather than crisp.
 It may take longer depending on the size of the pumpkin. You can shorten the drying time by cutting the pumpkin into large steak-size slices to create more surface area. (The pumpkin may collect some water in the bottom while dehydrating as a result of the salting. If so, pour out this liquid.)

When the pumpkin jerky is ready, slice or pull it into shreds. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.