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This study develops an effective method for the in situ synthesis of palladium nanoparticles (PdNPs) using Cyclea barbata pectin as a green reducing and stabilizing reagent. The PdNP@pectin nanocomposite was well characterized by analysis techniques such as UV-vis, FTIR, EDX, XRD, SEM, HR-TEM and STEM-mapping. Crystalline PdNPs were found to be distributed in the size range of 1–25 nm with the highest frequency of 6–12 nm. PdNP@pectin exhibited excellent recyclable catalysis activity for the Heck coupling reaction in water medium. The kinetics and recyclability of nanoparticles were investigated for the catalytic reduction of o-, m- and p-nitrophenol. The result showed a good catalysis efficiency with five successful recycles without compromising much. In particular, the nanocomposite was used as a catalyst for the conversion of alkynes into cis-alkenes with KOH/DMF as a hydrogenation source. The reaction was also utilized effectively for the synthesis of sex pheromones, including Plutella xylostella ((Z)-11-hexadecen-1-yl acetate) and Cylas formicarius ((Z)-3-dodecen-1-yl(E)-2-butenoate) with the total yields of 70% and 68%, respectively. Therefore, PdNPs supported on C. barbata pectin are promising catalysis materials for application in various fields.