How do I roast chestnuts?
When I was in Italy (I will never tire of saying that. Sorry) I had roasted chestnuts from a street vendor. Simply divine.
They're not a big thing in Texas. surprise, surprise. When I lived in St Louis they were everywhere. I decided to make them and they weren't so good. Some were rotten and the rest just weren't so delish. I want to try it again so I need a little guidance. I'm wondering if they were so dreamy because I was in Italy.
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22 Comments:
On an open fire?
izatryt at 6:54PM on 11/30/08
In the oven
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 7:07PM on 11/30/08
Oh Iz, you're such a clever girl!
In the oven please.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 7:09PM on 11/30/08
Check out the SE HOME page and scroll down. I just read something about that very topic today
izatryt at 7:11PM on 11/30/08
Iz... You slay me.
You can roast them if you like but I find they turn out dry. Here is a thread from earlier about chestnuts. Twelfth comment down is the procedure I use for chestnuts and I'm always happy with them.
If you do go the Nat King Cole route - I hope you relive the memory of having them from a street vendor. The last time I did that was when my daughter was about 3 and my brother and I took her to Rock Center to see the tree. Couldn't resist those chestnuts al fresco. (PS - She just turned 20.)
therealchiffonade at 7:12PM on 11/30/08
We were up in NYC for girl's weekend a few weeks ago and we saw lots of vendors selling chestnuts. didn't smell so great. :-O
izatryt at 7:15PM on 11/30/08
@chiff~ I never thought of that! This area of the country is new to me. My daughter (23) just moved to NYC. I'll have to go and have some there.
You're a genius.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 7:16PM on 11/30/08
Hmmm. I don't remember a smell.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 7:18PM on 11/30/08
i'm going on the 13th. i'll let ya know about all the smells.
dearrie at 7:35PM on 11/30/08
I have a very keen sense of smell?
izatryt at 7:37PM on 11/30/08
I wanna go!!
Meet you there?
Really.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 7:38PM on 11/30/08
Score an x on the bottoms and then soak them in ouzo or red wine (optional), then broil in the oven or roast at 425 degrees for 20 minutes stirring them half way through cooking. Make sure to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't burn.
I've also heard you can put them on the bbq in a basket if the weather co-operates.
ag3208 at 7:41PM on 11/30/08
i think new york generally smells bad, and however the chestnuts might smell in a normal place, they smell better than the usual new york smells :)
billyburgwife at 7:42PM on 11/30/08
NYC chestnuts roasting is the worst smell that ever assaulted my little nose. Seriously. I had to pinch it closed as I walked the streets of Manhattan. Blech. And, I guarantee that's the first time I've used that word. It was like living in the team's dirty laundry bag after summer practice season, with no fresh air to breathe.
PerkyMac at 8:12PM on 11/30/08
Chestnuts start to 'rot' as soon as they're picked due to their high water content and airtight shells. Therfore watch where you buy them. They should be refrigerated from right after picking until you roast them. If your supplier doesn't store them refrigerated they're probably mouldy inside. Yes, before i knew thisi bought some from my local vegetable stand, kept them a couple of days in a bowl on the counter, cut the x's on them and roasted them. Well all i got was mouldy icky chestnuts. Then I looked em up and found out why. So If you already bought yours, I hope they're ok, cause they aint cheap.
nightmoon at 8:12PM on 11/30/08
Ooooooooooooogh...
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 12:20AM on 12/01/08
hahahahaha. not that we would EVER lose our train of thought... How do I roast the freakin things!!!!!!!!!!!!!?
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 12:51AM on 12/01/08
Carol - here's a WikiHow on chestnuts. Here's another from a Mediterranean food site.
Actually, I loved the aroma of the chestnuts cooking outside on that makeshift "oven." If there was a really bad smell, the vendor probably had a rotten one in the batch. OMG, they are FOUL!
Carol - when you do your "X" on each chestnut, try to peek inside. The flesh should appear pristinely light colored (like grits or oatmeal). If they look the least bit funky or moldy - adios the offender right into the garbage.
therealchiffonade at 6:46AM on 12/01/08
@izatryt .....what didnt smell good....the chestnuts...or the vendors?...LMAO
onepercent99 at 4:00PM on 12/01/08
Well 99 ~ I guess since I have no experience with roasting chestnuts (seriously, I thought that was only song lyrics), it is quite possible it could have been the vendor. ;-P
izatryt at 5:16PM on 12/01/08
I got so excited when I found this thread because I bought a bag of Chesnuts a couple of weeks ago and had neglected to use them.
Then I read the thread and learned about the freshness issue. Now I'm sad because I bought a bag of chesnuts a couple of weeks ago and neglected to use them...so into the trash they go :(
Alyrmc at 5:30PM on 12/01/08
We roasted them at 350 for 30 minutes. Cut a big X, your hands will thank you as you try to peel them. Peel when warm still. Now, that said, you can do this on the stove. Lidia B. has a recipe where you put the chestnuts in a heavy skillet with some water, cover, and steam first, then when the water dries up, continue to pan roast, dry. Add red wine ...
Still ours turned out well just roasted. I put them in the food processor, added marscapone and nutmeg, sage, bacon, apple, and made ravioli. Recipe here.
ExpatChef at 12:23PM on 12/03/08