So aromatic and tasty, you will love them if you have never had them before. Learn how to cook chestnuts and be prepared for a treat! With 3 ways to prepare them it is so easy to serve tasty chestnuts, cooked on a fire, boiled, or roasted, a traditional French fruit to be enjoyed best in the autumn months when they have dropped from the tree.
Want To Know How To Cook Chestnuts?
Cooking chestnuts is something that is so romantic, it's something that is done every Autumn when there is a supply of these beautiful fruits from the chestnut trees.
J’adore les marrons ! Yes, I love chestnuts!
In North America they are prevalent from southern Maine east through the Appalachians and around the southern Great Lakes and southwestern Ontario.
When To Serve Chestnuts
If you can gather the fresh chestnuts yourself in the autumn when they have fallen from the tree, that's fantastic as all there is to do is gather the nuts up in a basket. It is so wonderful and will bring many happy memories for your children too.
They are a great addition to your Halloween party, as well as for a Christmas or Thanksgiving feast.
If you don't have the opportunity to gather marrons (which is what they are called in French), for yourself you will find them in the grocery shops at this time of year and will continue to do so until well up to Christmas as they are part of the traditional feast at this time of year.
So having gathered your chestnuts or bought them from the supermarket, you will want to know how to cook chestnuts in order to enjoy them.
How To Prepare Chestnuts
3 Methods
- Cook on an open fire.
- Roast in the oven.
- Boil them.
📖 Recipe
How To Cook Chestnuts
Ingredients
- 1 cup ⅓ pound chestnuts per person
- butter
- salt
Instructions
Method One
- They can be cooked on an open fire but you have to be careful as they will explode. So to prevent this make a slit through to the fleshy nut inside each chestnut with a sharp knife before cooking them.
- You will need a special roasting pan for roasting them on the fire which has a long handle and holes in the bottom.
- Another good idea is to use a popcorn popper with a lid, so if they burst you will not get any hot bits flying out at you!
- They will take about 20 minutes to cook.
Method Two
- The easiest method is to roast them in the oven at 220°C/425°F on a baking tray.
- Simply slit them just as in the open fire method above or twice making an X on top. This will make them easy to peel as the corners will lift while roasting, Either way, works.
- Pop them on the tray for about 20 minutes in the oven and they will be so good everyone will want to peel their own to eat them, there and then!
Method Three
- Chestnuts can also be boiled and this is a good method if you want a chestnut purée for use in a recipe.
- To cook in this manner, simply wash the chestnut under running water.
- Then cut each chestnut in half. Checking for any signs of worms as often you will find them in fresh fruits, shows they are organic!
- Pop them in a pan of water.
- Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 to 10 minutes.
- When cooked, remove the shells.
- When cool they can be used as you want.
- A chestnut puree can be used in such things as a lovely chestnut gateaux.
- (You can also buy chestnut puree in cans or tins from good supermarkets or specialist food stores and it is very useful to have for Christmas time!)
Did you make this & like it or not, let us know?!