jmcquown wrote:
> "brooklyn1" > wrote in message

>>>
>>> I was always given to understand chestnuts should have an X cut in
>>> the base
>>> (with a sharp knife but not some thing designed to peel them while raw).
>>> Then you boil them (briefly) or bake them (again, briefly) to soften the
>>> shell so it can be peeled away by hand. I'm glad you had a nice bowl of
>>> chestnuts, but you could have spared your fingers.
>>>
>>> Jill
>>
>>
>> I think the OP is speaking of removing the thick tough husk that one
>> rarely sees when shopping for chestnuts... check out the image at the
>> Home Page:
>> http://www.chestnutsonline.com/
>
>
>
> Didn't sound like that to me. I saw no mention of a prickly outer husk
> to get to the tough nut shell inside. I could be wrong. <shrugs>
>
> Jill

Of course,as you thought, I was refering to the smooth brown shell of
the nut, not the prickly outer husk. There are as many different ways
to remove this smooth brown peel as there are countries in which it is
done. Boiling is perhaps the most common, but as it removes quite a bit
of the flavor of the chestnut often it is preferable to take off the
shell before any cooking takes place. The clipper that I mention is the
easiest way to do this quickly (so long as one is VERY careful!) It is
designed to peel raw chestnuts but would work for boiled ones too. The
teeth on one side of the clippers grips the shell as the razor on the
other side shaves it off.

I went looking for an Internet image of this peeler but could only find
one small one. Judging from the writing on the package, it is made in Japan.