Who needs an open fire to roast chestnuts? You can do it yourself using your oven! Roasting and peeling chestnuts is a relatively simple process. Homemade roasted chestnuts will fill your home with a wonderful aroma– they smell like the winter holidays!
Did you know that chestnuts are sometimes referred to as the “bread of the mountain”? This is because, unlike other fatty tree nuts, chestnuts are much higher in carbohydrates. In northern Italy, before the arrival of corn, ground chestnuts were a key component in making polenta. In early 19th century America chestnuts were very common; so common, in fact, that farmers would allow their pigs to fatten up by eating the extra chestnuts that had fallen to the forest floor. The high quality lumber produced from chestnut trees was often used in furniture making and construction. During the first half of the 1800s a blight that arrived with Asian-imported trees nearly wiped out the American chestnut. Those trees were eventually replaced with heartier and more resistant chestnut trees, which are the type we see most often today. Chestnuts are now viewed as more of a seasonal holiday luxury. If you’ve ever traveled to New York City, you’ve surely noticed the sweet smell of chestnuts being roasted and sold by street vendors. It’s intoxicating!
If you would rather not go through the work of roasting and peeling your own, you can generally find pre-roasted and shelled chestnuts at major supermarkets and gourmet shops. Keep in mind that roasted chestnuts are best eaten right away, as they mold and spoil fairly quickly. NOTE: edible chestnuts are very different from horse chestnuts (commonly found in back yards), which are terribly bitter and toxic. Only use edible culinary chestnuts for roasting!
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How to Roast and Peel Chestnuts
Ingredients
- 1 pound raw chestnuts, in shell
- sharp knife, pot and strainer, large bowl
NOTES
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. To prepare your chestnuts, grasp them firmly between your thumb and index finger and carefully make a long slice across the rounded top of the chestnut with a sharp serrated bread knife. Careful, the shell is slippery. You should be able to slice it in one motion. If you have trouble cutting through, use gentle sawing motions, don't force the blade down or you run the risk of cutting your hand.
- Be sure to cut all the way through the shell.
- Once all of your chestnuts have been cut, place them into a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer.
- Once the water begins to simmer, remove the chestnuts from the water using a mesh strainer or slotted spoon and transfer them to a baking sheet.
- Roast for 15 minutes, or until the shells begin to peel back where you cut into them.
- Remove the chestnuts from the oven. Place them into a bowl and cover with a towel for 15 minutes. Allowing them to steam a bit will make them easier to peel.
- Once the 15 minutes have passed, simply pull on the shell and slip the chestnut out. Some will be easier to peel than others. Both the outer shell and the tough brown skin around the chestnuts should be peeled off. If you run into any nuts that seem gooey or disintegrated inside, it means that they have spoiled. Chestnuts tend to have a short shelf life, spoiled nuts should be tossed.
- Voila! You now have freshly roasted and peeled chestnuts. They're not the easiest things to peel, but these tender, sweet and fragrant nuts are a welcome treat during the winter months.
Jin says
Worked perfectly! When I made them before I just roasted (never thought I’d have to boil first) and it was almost impossible to peel.
How should these be stored and for how long? Thanks!
Tori Avey says
Hi Jin, they don’t last very long… enjoy them within 1-2 days if possible and keep them in a sealed Tupperware in the refrigerator.
Ilke says
Thanks for the simmering trick. I soak them in water but I don’t think I kept them long enough or I cut them deep enough as well. Last batch we made ended up exploding in the oven. Will try simmering next time.
Dave S says
Hi Tori!
Like other who commented, we’ve always cut an “x” on the side. We never boiled them. Is that to help open up the shells or does the boiling serve another purpose?
Putting them in the oven always did a great job opening up the shells. As a kid I remember my dad rigging up an old coffee can…punching holes in the bottom, and roasting the chestnuts in the fireplace.
Also, like a few of the others who left comments, I have fond memories of my parents buying me the chestnuts from the carts in NYC.
Dave
Tori Avey says
Hi Dave, the quick boil helps to create steam and separation inside the shell, making some of the nuts with stickier shells easier to peel. I prefer the cross cut to the X because it’s less fussy and produces the same result, without as much risk of slipping and hurting your hand.
Janeen says
I’m so thrilled to learn the boiling trick! That made it so easy to peel. One question- I got distracted and left the bits boiling for about 5 minutes. Since I had cut some crosses on some of them- the way my father always did- many of the shells peeled off as soon as I took them out of the water. Is there any harm- to the flavor- in boiling them that long? Should I still roast them? Is roasting them outside the shell going to dry them out too much? I’m trying the roasting now I a 425 degree oven in a covered pan- hoping that will mimic the roasting inside the shell. I will let you know how they turn out.
Amy K. says
Interesting way to do it; I’ll try it to see if they’re easier to peel this way than the way we’ve done it for decades. We’ve always cut an “x” on the flatter side of the shell, oiled a rimmed cookie sheet, & baked at 375 or 400 for maybe 10 or so minutes (when we smell them cooking, we check them), until the shells peel back. Then as soon as they aren’t too hot to handle, we peel & eat.
A couple of years ago, I bought a gadget I’d read about called the chesnutter. It cuts the “x” and now my nephew loves to do the job! So much easier than when my parents used to use a paring knife.
Marnie Schwartz says
Roasted Chestnuts were my #1 favorite street food when I lived in NYC. Soft pretzels ran a very close second and were available all the time. I’m looking forward to recreating this delicious treat with its fond memories.
Susan Linn says
I have never tasted a chestnut! The next time I go grocery shopping I am going to pick up a pound and roast them. Thanks for the information.
Marge says
Great tutorial & pictures, Tori. Thank you! I did a batch this way recently and they came out great. I learned about how bone-healthy these are right here:
http://saveourbones.com/the-nutrient-rich-alkalizing-nut-thats-in-season-for-the-holidays/
Donna Kingman says
We do this every year.. Yummy
art says
how do u do them?
Rachelle Fenton says
If you don’t buy them while they are still fresh, you will find that many are bad or molded when you crack them. If they feel very hard or the shell is loose, they tend to be spoiled. I got to bad batches at two different stores this season.
Barbara Bouton says
We always cut an X on the chestnut and boiled them, pealed them (I helped as a kid, eating as many as I peeled!), broke them into pieces and added them to our cornbread dressing! It was delicious, although good chestnuts were often hard to find and took effort to peel once cooked. They were worth the effort!
Linda Walter says
i love roasted chestnuts…
Shawn Cady says
No way!!!!! Ok this is weird because I just saw some chestnuts at Sprouts and was wondering how to roast them. Then I see this post! Awesome! Thank you!!!!!
Valentina M. Kenney Wein says
nothing like the scent of roasting chestnuts! 🙂
Bianca Rauch says
My dad roasted chestnuts every winter. Love them still.
Lauren Brewer Clark says
Yeah don’t forget to pierce them like I did the first time. LOL
Karalyn Eckerle says
Please make sure you pierce them first — either the way listed here or by cutting an X in the bottom. A good friend (and gourmet cook) forgot to do it once — the blew up all over her oven. She sent me an email that was so funny it circulated through 2 cars of the commuter train!!!!
Nancy Henderson says
Love chestnuts!! Don’t forget the melted butter to dip them in before eating!
Bonnie Salzberg says
Thank you very much.
Jenine Christopher says
I needed help with this, thanks!
Ruth Okon says
My dad used to roast them in the toaster oven. I’ve also had them off a cart in NYC piping hot.