Hemp seeds can be eaten whole or hulled, raw or lightly toasted — the whole seed is edible, including the fibre-rich hull. They can be sprinkled over food, blended or sprouted. There is no official daily recommendation; the amount is governed by diet and taste.
Can you eat hemp seeds raw?
Yes. Hemp seeds do not need to be cooked. Botanically, the hemp seed is an achene — a small fruit with a thin hull enclosing the oil-rich kernel. Raw seeds retain the fatty acids and the fat-soluble substances in their original form, because nothing has been heated. The same principle that allows unheated raw hemp to retain its cannabinoids in acid form — but note that the seed itself contains only trace levels of cannabinoids; they sit in the flower, not in the seed.
Can you eat hemp seeds with the hull?
Yes. Whole (unhulled) seeds still have the hull, and the hull is edible dietary fibre. The difference from hulled seeds (hemp hearts) is above all texture and nutritional concentration: unhulled seeds give more fibre and a longer shelf life, hulled seeds are softer with a higher proportion of protein and fat per gram. More on the composition in hemp's nutritional profile.
Can you toast hemp seeds?
Yes — light toasting gives a nuttier flavour and a crunchier texture. But the fat of the hemp seed consists largely of polyunsaturated fatty acids with an unusual omega-6:3 balance of around 3:1 (see hemp's nutritional profile). Polyunsaturated fat is sensitive to heat, so heavy or prolonged toasting affects the quality of the fat. Gentle toasting preserves more of the profile.
Can you sprout hemp seeds?
It requires whole, unhulled and viable seeds — hulled seeds, where the kernel is exposed, will not germinate. Industrial hemp seeds are not always intended for sprouting, so germination rates vary between batches. Sprouting is one of several ways to use whole seeds; the most common is still to eat them whole or hulled.
How many hemp seeds per day?
There is no official daily recommendation for hemp seeds. As with other seeds, the amount is governed by the rest of the diet and individual needs. Helsama states no doses or portions — hemp seed is a raw material, not a food supplement with a prescribed amount.
Hemp seed is not hemp flower powder
A common confusion: hemp seed and flower powder are different parts of the plant. The seed is the nutritional source; the flower powder is milled inflorescence (CBDA-rich raw hemp). We sort out the difference in hemp protein or flower powder.
Source: Callaway, J.C. (2004), Hempseed as a nutritional resource: An overview, Euphytica 140:65–72.
The type of seed you choose affects both nutrition and texture — read hulled or unhulled hemp seeds.
For storage so that the fatty acids do not have time to go rancid, see how long do hemp seeds keep?.