I've searched the web and don't see too many great solutions for this
problem -- when I cook chestnuts, they're invariably difficult to peel.
People say they're easy to peel when hot, but 1) it ain't true for me,
and 2) what if I want to serve it at a party, where they need to be
peelable 10 minutes after cooking?

Basically, I'm lookinng for a solution that would work for roasting
chestnuts that we can sit around and enjoy for a half hour or an hour.
I know it can be done because my first exposure to chestnuts was in
Taiwan, where they have these roadside vendors with big woks full of
gravel or something ... and they would constantly stir these things.
You buy a bag, and walk around with them for half a day, just squeezing
them to pop them open. The peels always came off super easy.

Any ideas?
Thanks!

redirr wrote:

> I've searched the web and don't see too many great solutions for this
> problem -- when I cook chestnuts, they're invariably difficult to peel.
> People say they're easy to peel when hot, but 1) it ain't true for me,
> and 2) what if I want to serve it at a party, where they need to be
> peelable 10 minutes after cooking?
>
> Basically, I'm lookinng for a solution that would work for roasting
> chestnuts that we can sit around and enjoy for a half hour or an hour.
> I know it can be done because my first exposure to chestnuts was in
> Taiwan, where they have these roadside vendors with big woks full of
> gravel or something ... and they would constantly stir these things.
> You buy a bag, and walk around with them for half a day, just squeezing
> them to pop them open. The peels always came off super easy.

Make a big X on the flat side of them before roasting. If your
incisions are big enough they'll peel easily.

You also don't have to serve them right out of the oven.
Roast and peel them a few hours earlier then reheat them.

--
Reg email: RegForte (at) (that free MS email service) (dot) com

"redirr" > wrote:
> I've searched the web and don't see too many great solutions for this
> problem -- when I cook chestnuts, they're invariably difficult to peel.
> People say they're easy to peel when hot, but 1) it ain't true for me,
> and 2) what if I want to serve it at a party, where they need to be
> peelable 10 minutes after cooking?
>
> Basically, I'm lookinng for a solution that would work for roasting
> chestnuts that we can sit around and enjoy for a half hour or an hour.
> I know it can be done because my first exposure to chestnuts was in
> Taiwan, where they have these roadside vendors with big woks full of
> gravel or something ... and they would constantly stir these things.
> You buy a bag, and walk around with them for half a day, just squeezing
> them to pop them open. The peels always came off super easy.

What I found is they do have to be peeled while quite warm. I think the
roasting method makes a difference too. I think I had more success with a
hot and quick roast over a fire (gas burner or actual fire) than I did in
the oven. I think it also matters how much initial moisture is in the nut.
The first ones I roasted this year seemed easier to peel than the last ones
a couple of weeks later. I think they were losing moisture all the while,
even though I stored them in the refrigerator in a plastic bag with a moist
paper towel to retain moisture. I got mine direct from a grower. The ones I
saw in the supermarket were out in the open and obviously lost a lost of
moisture.

When I've roasted over a fire, I then wrapped them in a towel and pressed on
them a bit to crack their shells more. I had cut the standard X in the shell
before roasting. Then I put them, towel and all in a warm ceramic bowl and
let them sit in my warm oven (warm via its pilot light) for five minutes. I
took them out of the towel one at a time to peel and eat, the remainder
staying in the towel.

Some chestnuts were extremely easy to peel, some were still a real
challenge. The hard part is getting the inner skin off the nut, not the
outer shell. Some chestnuts were one solid mass, and these were easier to
peel. The challenging ones were somewhat lobed inside (like a walnut?),
where the inner skin went down into the grooves between the lobes. I found I
had more success with a sharp skewer to pry the inner skins off these rather
than doing it with my fingernails.

I'm not sure what you would do in a party situation. Either the people
eating them have to be fond of and familiar with chestnuts, or maybe you are
going to have to pre-peel them and then keep them warm (but moist so they
don't dry out).

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

redirr wrote:
> I've searched the web and don't see too many great solutions for this
> problem -- when I cook chestnuts, they're invariably difficult to peel.
> People say they're easy to peel when hot, but 1) it ain't true for me,
> and 2) what if I want to serve it at a party, where they need to be
> peelable 10 minutes after cooking?
>
> Basically, I'm lookinng for a solution that would work for roasting
> chestnuts that we can sit around and enjoy for a half hour or an hour.
> I know it can be done because my first exposure to chestnuts was in
> Taiwan, where they have these roadside vendors with big woks full of
> gravel or something ... and they would constantly stir these things.
> You buy a bag, and walk around with them for half a day, just squeezing
> them to pop them open. The peels always came off super easy.
>
> Any ideas?

http://www.chestnutsonline.com

Sheldon

Reg wrote:
> redirr wrote:
>
>> I've searched the web and don't see too many great solutions for this
>> problem -- when I cook chestnuts, they're invariably difficult to
>> peel. People say they're easy to peel when hot, but 1) it ain't
>> true for me, and 2) what if I want to serve it at a party, where
>> they need to be peelable 10 minutes after cooking?
>>
> Make a big X on the flat side of them before roasting. If your
> incisions are big enough they'll peel easily.
>
Yep, that's the answer I've always heard. You need a sharp knife to cut the
big X in the bottom. Be careful!

I wish I could find decent chestnuts; they just aren't the thing in
Tennessee. The last time we found some they were really pitiful; hardly
anything to them at all.

Jill

thanks for the replies. i do cut a big X on one side ... although it
seems to matter also how deep you cut them. if you don't cut deep
enough, you don't get thru the inner skin. if you cut too deep, when
you try to squeeze them to crack them open, they just split in half
instead with the inner skin stuck on.

so far, my best success has been with broiling for a few minutes (5
seemed a bit too much, with a bit of burning and smoking), then cooking
covered with a couple spoons of water for another 15 minutes. problem
is, i think because the inner skin peels away from the nut, the nut
ends up drying on the outside into a hard rind. any less though, and
you don't get that nice, cooked, soft, starchy nut.

point is, i don't think the big ol' X is enough in and of itself.
again, i just wonder how they did it in taiwan ... i don't think they
even put an X on the nuts, and they all just popped open easily.

jmcquown wrote:
> Reg wrote:
>
>>redirr wrote:
>>
>>
>>>I've searched the web and don't see too many great solutions for this
>>>problem -- when I cook chestnuts, they're invariably difficult to
>>> peel. People say they're easy to peel when hot, but 1) it ain't
>>>true for me, and 2) what if I want to serve it at a party, where
>>>they need to be peelable 10 minutes after cooking?
>>>
>>
>>Make a big X on the flat side of them before roasting. If your
>>incisions are big enough they'll peel easily.
>>
>
> Yep, that's the answer I've always heard. You need a sharp knife to cut the
> big X in the bottom. Be careful!

Yes, that is what we do and it works. For people who are all thumbs I
saw a press in a gadget store that makes the X without a knife. It
looked like a pliers/nutcracker. One side had a "X" die in it that made
the X when the chestnut was squeezed.



>
> I wish I could find decent chestnuts; they just aren't the thing in
> Tennessee. The last time we found some they were really pitiful; hardly
> anything to them at all.


Maybe online? The best chestnuts I have found are at a big Korean market
that we occasionally visit. They have small ones that are marked "sweet
chestnuts" and the large normal sized ones. Next best are at a local
Italian market.

>
> Jill
>
>

redirr wrote:
> thanks for the replies. i do cut a big X on one side ... although it
> seems to matter also how deep you cut them. if you don't cut deep
> enough, you don't get thru the inner skin. if you cut too deep, when
> you try to squeeze them to crack them open, they just split in half
> instead with the inner skin stuck on.
(snippage)
> point is, i don't think the big ol' X is enough in and of itself.
> again, i just wonder how they did it in taiwan ... i don't think they
> even put an X on the nuts, and they all just popped open easily.

Maybe they par-boiled them before roasting? I think I've heard of this.
And the X should be cut in the flat bottom part, not on the side.

Jill

> Maybe they par-boiled them before roasting? I think I've heard of this.
> And the X should be cut in the flat bottom part, not on the side.
>
> Jill

hmmm, interesting idea. what kind of a parboil process would you
suggest? and do you think that allows one to forgo cutting the X?
like i said, they don't cut that X in Taiwan ...

j

"redirr" > wrote:
>> Maybe they par-boiled them before roasting? I think I've heard of this.
>> And the X should be cut in the flat bottom part, not on the side.
>>
>> Jill
>
> hmmm, interesting idea. what kind of a parboil process would you
> suggest? and do you think that allows one to forgo cutting the X?
> like i said, they don't cut that X in Taiwan ...

I wonder if you can roast the chestnuts without cutting the X. In the Joy of
Cooking (at least the older editions), there's the implication that you can
cook chestnuts without cutting them. In the description of roasting them
over a fire, there is no mention of cutting them, and it talks about them
"popping". Though they do split in a way even with the X cut in them, I
wouldn't call it "popping". Then there's that old Christmas song "Sleigh
Ride" with the following lines:

At the fireplace while we watch
The chestnuts pop; Pop! Pop! Pop!

I also wonder what the "flat side" is. To me, the flat side is not the
bottom, which is of a lighter color and not really flat. There is a flat
side, resulting from there being multiple nuts inside the burr. The flat
side is where one nut sits against its neighbor. I think you cut on the flat
side because it's easier. Take a look at the photos at
http://www.chestnutsonline.com/peel.htm.

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

usually if they stick it mean that they are past their prime. A lot of
chestnuts come from Italy and are no good by the time they get here. I
found a source on the net that has great, but pricey, chestnuts. I am not
affilated with them. here is the link.
http://chestnutsonline.com/

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
.. .
> redirr wrote:
>> thanks for the replies. i do cut a big X on one side ... although it
>> seems to matter also how deep you cut them. if you don't cut deep
>> enough, you don't get thru the inner skin. if you cut too deep, when
>> you try to squeeze them to crack them open, they just split in half
>> instead with the inner skin stuck on.
> (snippage)
>> point is, i don't think the big ol' X is enough in and of itself.
>> again, i just wonder how they did it in taiwan ... i don't think they
>> even put an X on the nuts, and they all just popped open easily.
>
> Maybe they par-boiled them before roasting? I think I've heard of this.
> And the X should be cut in the flat bottom part, not on the side.
>
> Jill
>
>

redirr wrote:
>> Maybe they par-boiled them before roasting? I think I've heard of
>> this. And the X should be cut in the flat bottom part, not on the
>> side.
>>
>> Jill
>
> hmmm, interesting idea. what kind of a parboil process would you
> suggest? and do you think that allows one to forgo cutting the X?
> like i said, they don't cut that X in Taiwan ...
>
> j

I don't really have a clue. I'd cut the X and throw them in boiling water
for a minute or two. Fish them out, strain them, roast them... ?