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How long to roast chestnuts. How to fry chestnuts at home in a frying pan? Video: Turkey stuffed with chestnuts

Often we are faced with such a traditional European product as . Let's figure out which ones are edible and how to cook chestnuts at home.

Which chestnuts are considered edible?

In this article we will look at which of them can be eaten, figure out what dishes made from chestnuts exist and study their recipes in detail.

This fresh edible fruit is the fruit of a tree that belongs to the Beech family. Habitat- subtropics and temperate latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.

Did you know?-it's a nut.

This plant is widespread in Balkan Peninsula and in Greece. In European countries, there is a widespread tradition of baking the fruits of this tree at Christmas.

French people who are great admirers of these fruits, grow a certain variety of real (edible) fruits, which are called kurgudons. In France they are considered a national product, to which the French have dedicated a separate holiday.

In Eastern Europe, the more common “relative” of this tree is the horse chestnut, the fruits of which are not eaten as they are poisonous.
The fruit of the edible variety can be easily distinguished from a horse nut by the small point at the tip of the capsule, which contains the cotyledon.

Now in our country you can buy these in any supermarket, but they are grown in our area exclusively for decorative purposes. Edible chestnuts are a rare product in our latitudes; few people know how to cook them.

If you cut the fruit, you will see that inside there is a dense, pale yellow nut.
Cultivated trees differ from wild ones in that their fruits contain one large nut, while the fruits of wild ones contain a few nuts, but smaller.

Important! It should be mentioned that these fruits need to be stored in a cold place, since when stored for a long time, the nuts dry out very quickly, losing their glossy shine.

Popular recipes

Most Popular Traditional chestnuts are a dish of European cuisine. The fruits must first be peeled, as well as the membrane.

Next, in order to prevent them from exploding during frying, they must be cut criss-cross. After that, place them in a frying pan and cover with a damp cloth.
With the lid of the pan closed, let the fruits roast over the coals for about 25 minutes. Stir the dish periodically and change the napkins as they dry.

Serve them with chocolate sauce and enjoy a traditional Christmas dish.

It’s no secret that the exotic chestnut diet is trending now, since the problem of excess weight is very relevant.

Soup

To prepare Portuguese-style puree soup, take:

  • 1 handful of edible chestnuts;
  • 500 ml of any meat broth;
  • 15 g sifted flour;
  • 15 g melted butter;
  • ½ cup cream;
  • 1 stem;
  • and pepper;
  • toast.
Preparation:
  1. Pour the broth over the chestnuts and chopped celery and simmer for half an hour covered over low heat.

  2. Using a blender, puree the soup.

  3. Fry the flour in butter and add to the puree. Bring to a boil, add salt and pepper.
  4. Add warm water and bring to a boil again.

  5. Serve with croutons.

  6. Fried

    To prepare cookies with roasted chestnuts you need:

  • 55 g oatmeal;
  • 50 g chestnuts;
  • 70 g flour;
  • 2 tablespoons ;
  • ½ tablespoons vegetable oil;
  • 2 tablespoons ;
  • 30 g powdered sugar;
  • 1 teaspoon;
Preparation:
  1. Roast these nuts according to the standard recipe.
  2. Grind them into flour using a coffee grinder or mortar (the structure of the cookies depends on this).
  3. Sift the flour, combine with oatmeal, salt, baking powder and soda. Add the chestnuts you chopped. Mix the resulting mixture thoroughly.
  4. Make a well in the center of the mixture and add vegetable oil and water. Stir.
  5. Add the yogurt and form the dough into a ball.
  6. Make cakes from the dough, place on a baking sheet (with baking paper and vegetable oil). Bake at 180° for 10 minutes in a preheated oven.
  7. Turn the cookies over and bake for another 5 minutes.

Boiled

To prepare lamb in Macedonian style, take:

  • 550 g lamb;
  • 320 g chestnuts;
  • 2 onions;
  • 60 g melted butter;
  • 15 g sifted flour;
  • Salt.
Preparation:
  1. Wash the nuts, cut and cook for 40 minutes covered.
  2. Drain the water, fill with cold water and let the fruits cool. Then peel the boiled chestnuts and mash them.
  3. Heat oil in a saucepan with fat bottom
  4. Cut the lamb into small pieces, place in a pan and fry until crust formation.
  5. Add some finely chopped onion and fry. Then add flour and half a glass of water. Stir and simmer with the lid closed for about 10 minutes.
  6. Add the resulting mixture to the meat, salt and pepper to taste, remove from heat. The dish is served with parsley and other herbs.

Stewed

Pork with chestnuts and figs.

For this dish will be needed:

  • 500 g pork fillet;
  • 250 ml white table wine;
  • 250 ml meat broth;
  • 1 onion;
  • ½ orange (zest);
  • 5 pieces. figs
Preparation:
  1. Cut the pork into pieces in portions. Marinate in white wine, adding salt, pepper, and chopped garlic. Marinate overnight.
  2. Fry the meat with onions. Add marinade and broth. Simmer for about an hour.
  3. Remove the zest from half an orange, add to the meat, add chestnuts and figs. Simmer for about another quarter of an hour.

Baked

To prepare this dish, take:

  • 10-20 pcs. chestnuts
  • 15 g white crackers
  • 30 solid
  • Black pepper
  • Parsley
Preparation:
  1. Boil the fruits for 7 minutes, then remove the hard peel and membrane from the still hot ones.
  2. Beat the egg with a pinch of salt. Separately, in a plate, make a mixture of breadcrumbs, black pepper and grated pepper.
  3. Pierce the boiled chestnuts with a toothpick, dip them in the egg and bread them in the prepared cheese mixture.
  4. Place on a baking sheet, previously covered with baking paper, at 180°C. Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown.

A little about the beneficial properties of the product

Beneficial features of this edible nut are very diverse.

Did you know? Like all nuts, they are very high in calories and surpass almost all plant products in this indicator.

An important difference from, for example, peanuts, cashews, almonds and hazelnuts is that these fruits contain much less fat.

Some of the beneficial substances in it are: The foliage and other parts of the tree, which contain pectins, glycosides, and tannins in abundance, also have beneficial properties, and they have wound-healing properties.

We learned how to prepare these unusual edible fruits at home. European cuisine widely uses chestnuts, recipes for which available for cooking and for non-professionals.

Chestnuts in a frying pan - a delicious autumn recipe.

Surely everyone has heard about such an interesting plant as the chestnut, which grows on the streets of almost any city with a more or less warm climate. They are especially famous for their wonderful soft pink blooms in early May and their cute chestnut nut fruits, which are enclosed in spiny balls. But few know that these fruits are also edible and a delicacy, not to mention their magical value. In many European countries, roasted chestnuts are a street delicacy that is tried by many tourists from all over the world, so today we will talk about the art of cooking roasted chestnuts.

Few people know how to roast chestnuts to make them really tasty. The fruits of the common or European chestnut, which grows in Asia Minor and some European countries, are eaten. Chestnuts begin to bloom in May-June, and the fruits themselves ripen by the beginning of autumn. They look like round balls with a sharp tip and a beige bottom. This is a very healthy type of nut, rich in all sorts of microelements, including zinc, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, etc. This nut is a natural source of carbohydrates and proteins, as well as simply a healthy and exotic dish.

Chestnut belongs to the beech family and usually grows on the territory of the Balkan Peninsula, which is considered its ancestor. Those chestnuts that grow on our streets are horse chestnuts, which are poisonous and are used in medicine. Outwardly, they are similar to edible chestnuts, but they are quite easy to distinguish. Edible chestnuts have a beige skin (meaning ripe fruits), and the spines are longer and softer than those of horse chestnuts. The only places in the CIS where sown chestnuts can grow are Crimea and Transcaucasia - places with a warm maritime climate, ideal for growing edible chestnuts.

In this article you will learn about which chestnuts are best to choose for cooking, why they are useful, recipes for their preparation and many secrets for achieving the ideal taste of these capricious nuts. So, first you need to understand which chestnuts you can eat at all, and which ones you should not mess with.

Which chestnuts are edible?

It is very rare to find chestnuts in Russian stores, but for true connoisseurs this is not a problem at all. But which chestnuts are best to eat and which ones should you studiously avoid? There are two main types of chestnuts:

  • Horse chestnut. This type of chestnut is poisonous, is not used for food and is used in the cosmetology and medicine industries.
  • Noble. It is also called "real".

The fruits of this type of chestnut are edible and look like hazelnuts - brown in color, round in shape with a hard shell. The contents look like a light puree that tastes like sweet potatoes.

Composition of edible chestnut:

  • Saturated carbohydrates: starch
  • High amount of fiber
  • Pectin
  • Proteins
  • Beta carotene
  • Vitamins of groups A, B, C
  • Minerals: calcium, sodium, magnesium, potassium.

What are the benefits of edible chestnut

Chestnut is a very versatile product that is suitable for everyone who wants to try this delicacy, and it will be especially good for vegetarians, since it contains a huge amount of vegetable protein, which they exclude in the form of meat. So, the beneficial properties of chestnut:

  1. A huge dose of energy. Just 2-3 chestnuts can completely satiate a person so that he doesn’t want to eat for at least half a day. It's also an ideal late-night snack when you want to eat without gaining weight. And by the way, chestnuts are excellent helpers against fatigue and weakness.
  2. An excellent option for a side dish. Chestnuts are a versatile product to prepare; they can be boiled, fried, or baked. They are good in vegetable salads, porridges and even as an independent dish. Chestnuts give meat a spicy and delicate taste, making it unusual and juicy, so take note of this!
  3. Helper for weight loss. As mentioned earlier, chestnuts are high in protein and low in fat, making them ideal for losing a few pounds. It is especially important to add it to a vegetarian diet; it saturates the body very well. It is also recommended for athletes to eat after training as a natural source of protein.
  4. Useful medicine. Chestnut perfectly treats patients with disorders of the respiratory tract and lungs, and not only the fruits themselves are useful, but also the bark, leaves and buds. A useful chestnut decoction helps with hemorrhoids, dilation of nasopharyngeal veins, and thrombophlebitis. It also tones vascular tone, strengthens capillaries and accelerates blood circulation.

Chestnut can also cure female diseases such as mastitis and mastopathy. Chestnut fruits are also used for breast massage. However, such procedures should be carried out according to the recommendations of a doctor; self-medication should never be attempted.

Chestnut will also be useful for people suffering from spinal diseases. If you have radiculitis, you can try sleeping on chestnuts. During sleep, the body will receive a massage that will strengthen the vertebrae and relax them. For arthritis, you can make a bracelet from dried chestnuts (about 6-7 pieces) and wear it on your hand. For rheumatism, it will be useful to constantly sort chestnuts in your hand, strengthening your finger motor skills.

Chestnut decoction is also good for the skin. You need to pour boiling water over 2 tablespoons of chopped chestnut and wipe your face daily. The skin becomes elastic, wrinkles and redness disappear.

How many calories are chestnuts?

Chestnut is not a particularly high-calorie product: 165 kcal per 100 g of product. Roasted chestnuts are of course somewhat higher in calories; the energy value of such a product can be above 200 kcal. In any case, this is a much better snack option than chocolate, peanuts or seeds.

Chestnuts are harvested in the fall, when they are fully ripe. They are rich in vitamins A and C, folic acid and zinc. The French like to eat them raw, straight from the trees. They taste like Jerusalem artichoke or sweet ground walnuts.

How to peel chestnuts

Before eating chestnuts, it is important to know how to properly peel them. We will tell you how to do this now. So:

  1. Take a chestnut and cut its top, then put it in boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes.
  2. Remove from boiling water and place in the freezer for 4-6 hours.
  3. Then dip it in boiling water again and place it in a stream of cold water.

The effect after such actions is impressive - the shell will be removed completely easily and effortlessly, and you will save time on preparing new delicious dishes with chestnuts!

Perhaps this is a classic recipe for cooking chestnuts, which involves heat treating the product in the shell, which was used by the cooks of medieval France, so let's get started!

  1. First you need to buy the right chestnuts, not to confuse them with inedible ones. Edible chestnuts are flat-shaped and small in size.
  2. Having selected the desired fruits, select the good ones - throw away spoiled, dented, cracked nuts, and rinse the normal ones with a damp sponge and dry.
  3. Pour water into a large basin and add chestnuts there. Those that float are not suitable for cooking; give preference to “sunken” fruits.
  4. Leave those that have passed the test in the basin for 20-25 minutes. Then dry with napkins and pierce several holes in the shell with a knife or fork to avoid breaking the shell when frying.
  5. Prepare a wide frying pan with a thick bottom and high walls. Pour oil into it and set it to heat up; there should be enough oil to cover the beans completely. Place a couple of wet wipes on the chestnuts. this will prevent the nuts from drying out.
  6. Cover the pan with a lid to prevent the chestnuts from “jumping out” during frying when they explode. After this, set the heat to medium and fry for 25-30 minutes.
  7. Stir the chestnuts occasionally or shake the pan. After roasting, place paper towels on a plate and set aside the roasted chestnuts to cool.
  8. Pressing on the nuts will help remove the shells, after which the peel will begin to fall off on its own and you only need to remove it. Chestnuts are ready to eat.

How to cook chestnuts in the oven

An equally popular method of roasting chestnuts is baking them in the oven, which retains a lot of useful substances and is cooked without a lot of oil.

  1. Turn the oven to 200-210 degrees and leave to preheat for 5-10 minutes.
  2. Prepare the chestnuts - discard the spoiled and cracked ones, rinse the good ones with water and soak for 10 minutes in cool water. Then remove and dry.
  3. Make a cross-shaped cut on the flat surface of the nut or pierce it 2-3 times with a fork. This will help release the accumulated steam during baking and prevent the shell from splitting.
  4. Grease a baking tray with vegetable oil and place the chestnuts, cut side up. Sprinkle everything with cool water.
  5. Roast the beans for 15-20 minutes until soft. Move them occasionally while baking to prevent them from burning. When the shell cracks easily when pressed, turn off the oven.
  6. Cool the chestnuts and peel them. To make it easy to separate, wrap the fruit in a napkin and press on it. When completely cool, remove any remaining peel.
  7. Remove the inner shell of the product along with the shell. It is important to peel chestnuts within the first 10 minutes after roasting, while they are still warm. After cooling, the shell hardens and will be more difficult to remove.

If you still can’t peel the chestnuts, put them back in the oven for 5 minutes, then try peeling them again. Do not prick the fruit with a knife; the shell should peel off on its own.

The simplest and fastest recipe for preparing these delicate fruits at home.

  1. Remove spoiled and rotten specimens, and wash whole ones and soak for 15 minutes. Then dry and leave until completely dry.
  2. Pierce the chestnuts in several places with a knife or needle and place in a deep microwave-safe dish. Cover with damp wipes or cloth.
  3. Set the timer to maximum power and cooking time for 3-5 minutes. Every 1.5 minutes, remove the dish and stir.
  4. After the signal about the end of cooking, pour vegetable oil into the container with chestnuts and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Continue stirring every 1.5 to 2 minutes until the beans are completely cooked.

How to cook chestnuts on coals

A very unusual way of preparing chestnuts that can surprise your friends and acquaintances at a picnic or get-together.

  1. Examine the purchased fruits for cracked or damaged ones, then wash the selected chestnuts, soak for 10 minutes and leave to dry.
  2. Take a huge frying pan with a thick bottom and a cauldron. On each chestnut, make a cross-shaped cut in the flat part of the nut.
  3. Light the fireplace or barbecue so that you get a high layer of coals. Place a frying pan on it and place the chestnuts cut side down, cover with a lid and fry for 6-7 minutes. Shake the chestnuts occasionally every 2 minutes to ensure they roast evenly.
  4. Once fully cooked, remove the pan from the coals, turn all the chestnuts over and cook for another 5 minutes. After removing the chestnuts from the frying pan, leave them to cool, then remove the shell and shell and serve to the guests.

Is it possible to give chestnuts to children?

There are no completely reliable sources on permission or prohibition of adding chestnuts to the diet of children, but doctors are inclined to believe that it is better to give chestnuts to children at least 5-7 years of age. At an earlier age, the child’s stomach is simply not able to digest such high-calorie food. Since chestnuts are a very poorly digestible product, it can harm primarily the baby’s gastrointestinal tract, as well as create problems with the liver, kidneys and other internal organs. Due to improper use of chestnuts, bloating or constipation may occur, so if you still want to treat your child to such an unusual product, grind the chestnuts into a homogeneous puree and add to vegetable mixtures or broths.

Popular recipes with chestnuts

Vegetarian roast with chestnuts

This dish will be useful for those who do not eat meat, or rather vegetarians who eat very little protein and are deficient in it. The protein contained in chestnuts can replace meat in composition. This completely easy and satisfying recipe will be useful to all housewives who want something tasty and unusual.

Ingredients:

  • 500 g champignons
  • 300 g chestnuts
  • 50 ml cognac
  • 70 g hazelnuts
  • Half an onion bulb
  • A couple of garlic cloves
  • Spices

Preparation:

Fry the mushrooms with cognac until the liquid has completely evaporated. Peel and chop the chestnuts along with the hazelnuts. Chop and fry the onion and garlic, add spices. Mix everything and place on a baking sheet, adding a little water. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 40-50 minutes at 180 degrees.

Chestnuts with milk

A very delicate and simple dessert with the addition of piquant chestnuts in sweet milk with cinnamon will delight any gourmet with a sweet tooth!

Ingredients:

  • 500 g chestnuts
  • 500 ml milk
  • 2 tbsp. l. honey or sugar
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon

Preparation:

Peel the chestnuts and boil for a couple of minutes in water, then peel off the film. Place chestnuts in milk, add honey, cinnamon and place in a water bath. Simmer for about 30 minutes until the chestnut kernels soften.

Never pour boiling water over chestnuts to get rid of the film. When you start cooking them, be sure to place them in cold water; with a sharp change in temperature, the chestnut will deteriorate and become limp.

⦁ Royal chestnuts

Royal is a dish of monarchs, which was served for the first time at the court of the French monarch. This dish is steamed and is a classic of French cuisine.

Ingredients:

  • 300 g chestnuts
  • 100 ml cream
  • 100 g meat broth
  • 5 pieces. eggs
  • Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Beat the eggs with a mixer with salt until smooth, then add the cream and broth in a thin stream. Peel the chestnuts, fry in a frying pan, and cool.

Beat until pureed without lumps. Add the puree to the egg-cream mixture and mix thoroughly. Grease a baking dish with butter and pour the chestnut mixture into it.

Place the mold in the oven at 200 degrees. The finished royal is served in portions with broth or puree soup.

Chestnut as an additive to ice cream

Hearty and sweet chestnut will decorate any ice cream with its taste, especially vanilla or cream.

Ingredients:

  • 500 g chestnuts
  • 3 tbsp. l. butter
  • 80 ml wine or cognac
  • 2 tsp. Sahara

Preparation:

Boil the chestnuts for 5 minutes in boiling water, peel, mix with the butter-sugar mixture and place on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven at 200 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.

Cool, cut into pieces and add to ice cream. Drizzle with liqueur to taste.

Well, we got acquainted with such a wonderful delicacy as chestnut, learned its benefits and nutritional value. And most importantly, we learned how to cook this delicate and capricious nut. However, despite its whimsical nature in cooking, chestnut can be added anywhere: in soups, side dishes, desserts and, of course, as an independent dish. Be sure to try to cook this exotic fruit and treat it to your family and friends. We are sure they will definitely like it!

The beautiful plant - chestnut - is familiar only to a certain part of the world's population, since due to its natural characteristics it can grow and reproduce only in special climatic conditions. But despite this, roasted chestnuts today can be tasted in any part of the world. It will not be difficult for travel lovers to find at least one establishment in any city in Europe, Asia, America and the countries of the former post-Soviet space, where they would not treat you to this delicacy or show you how to roast chestnuts.

What's good about chestnuts?

The chestnut belongs to the beech genus, but there are only a few edible species that can be eaten.

If you choose the wrong type of chestnut for food, you can seriously harm your health.

The mineral composition of the edible species of this plant includes:

  • starch;
  • carbohydrates;
  • protein;
  • cellulose;
  • tannins;
  • beta-carotene;
  • vitamins A, C and group B.

The energy value of chestnut is 170 kcal per 100 g of product. In addition, roasted chestnuts, the benefit of which also consists in the presence of a number of useful substances - potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, manganese and selenium, are very much in demand as part of the dietary menu of the product. The fats and proteins that chestnuts contain make them very nutritious and especially popular among athletes.

The benefits of chestnuts in the treatment of the upper respiratory tract, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, leg fatigue and swelling are known. Roasted and baked chestnuts should not be consumed by people with gastrointestinal diseases, people with diabetes and blood problems, as well as those who care about their figure.

In appearance, edible and decorative chestnuts do not differ from each other in external features.

How to roast chestnuts correctly

Due to the popularity of this special product, many are interested in how to roast chestnuts at home. To begin with, you should choose from the available chestnut fruits that are not spoiled and of good quality. To check which of them can be eaten, you need to fill them with water. Those chestnuts that float should be removed, and those that settle to the bottom can be cooked.

There is a standard method for roasting chestnuts at home, the recipe for which is as follows:

  1. Before frying the fruits, you need to pierce them in several places with a fork or cut them. This will prevent them from exploding.
  2. The chestnuts are placed in a deep frying pan filled with oil, and several wet wipes are placed on top of them. This is one of the tricks on how to roast chestnuts at home so that they are not hard and dry. The frying pan must be covered with a lid - this is another feature of how to properly fry chestnuts. If the chestnuts start to burst and explode, then they will not jump out of the pan.
  3. How long to fry chestnuts should not exceed 30 minutes. Periodically during frying, chestnuts should be shaken with the lid closed.
  4. The finished dish is lightly salted and served cooled.

Roasted chestnuts, the recipe for which is described above, is a classic way of preparing them, which resembles the taste of this dish offered in some countries - France, Spain and others right on the street. The above method shows how to fry chestnuts in a frying pan. But there are other ways that suggest doing this in the oven or even on an open fire, on a campfire during a picnic.

Before frying chestnuts, you should take into account that the edible type is much smaller in size than horse chestnuts, and also has a flat surface on one side. Roasted chestnuts, the recipe for which involves soaking them, can be easily peeled after cooking - you just need to press on them from above and they will begin to crack and peel.

It is better to peel the chestnuts right away, as it will be much more difficult to do later.

Knowing how to fry chestnuts in a frying pan, you can cook a large number of dishes with them. Roasted chestnuts are often used as an addition to salads and an additional ingredient for meat and fish dishes.

Recipes with baked chestnuts

At home, you can prepare delicious baked chestnut fruits. We offer a recipe on how to roast chestnuts in the oven without spending a lot of time. To do this, chestnuts in the amount of 20 pieces, which are placed in a preheated oven, are baked for 35 minutes. They are cleaned while still warm.

Since you can bake chestnuts in the oven at home even before guests arrive, this will be a pleasant surprise especially for those who love unusual and exotic dishes. Baked chestnuts can be added to salads and other types of dishes. We offer a recipe for one of the salads with baked chestnuts, which is prepared according to the following principle:

  1. Peel the chestnuts baked in the oven, add arugula, cherry tomatoes, sweet peppers and partially cooked durum pasta.
  2. The sauce is prepared separately - olive oil is mixed with lemon juice.
  3. The ingredients are mixed and seasoned with sauce.

Vegetarian roast with chestnuts

This dish is popular among people who do not eat meat - vegetarians. Protein, which predominates in chestnut fruits and mushrooms, can replace meat. The method of preparing this dish is completely easy and will not take much time from the hostess.

Preparation

  1. Mushrooms are fried and stewed with the addition of cognac until the liquid has completely evaporated.
  2. Chestnuts are cleaned and crushed with hazelnuts.
  3. Garlic and onion are fried in olive oil. Add caraway seeds and thyme.
  4. All contents are mixed and placed in a mold, adding a little water.
  5. Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for about 40 minutes.

Chestnuts in milk


For this dish you will need:

    Ingredients

  • chestnuts - 500 g;
  • milk - 0.5 l;
  • sugar (honey) - 2 tbsp. l.;
  • cinnamon - 1 pc.

Preparation

  1. Peel fresh chestnuts.
  2. Boil chestnut kernels in water for several minutes, then peel off the film.
  3. Place the kernels in milk and add sugar or honey and a cinnamon stick.
  4. Place the container with milk and chestnuts in a water bath and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes until the chestnuts soften.

This wonderful dessert will delight lovers of roasted and baked chestnuts with its unusual taste and original preparation.

Roasted chestnuts are rightfully considered a universal dish. It is served in many European countries as a stand-alone snack or added to salads, soups, and side dishes. Many people still don’t know how to roast chestnuts at home, let’s try to figure it out together. We will give practical recommendations and consider different cooking methods.

Positive features of chestnuts

  1. Not many people know that chestnut is a legume. However, in nature there are several types of fruits suitable for consumption. Other types threaten serious complications, so you should be careful when choosing raw materials.
  2. A standard (healthy) product includes the following ingredients: carbohydrates (simple and complex), starch, protein, Beta-carotene, fiber, vitamins A, B, C, tannins. The fat and protein contained in chestnuts are especially valued by athletes, whose main goal is to gain muscle mass and improve performance.
  3. If we talk about the energy value of the product, it varies between 165-175 Kcal/100 g. In addition, roasted chestnuts contain potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium and manganese. Due to this, the product is often used by people with diseases of the cardiovascular system, diabetes, and kidney failure. Roasted chestnuts are also a dietary dish, which is why ladies on a diet love them so much.
  4. The undeniable benefit of beans is that they have a beneficial effect on the respiratory tract, help relieve swelling of the limbs and the body as a whole, alleviate varicose veins and reduce pain. The product is valuable for those who suffer from gastrointestinal disorders, have sagging skin and wrinkles.

How to roast chestnuts in the microwave

The recipe for cooking chestnuts in this way saves time, so it makes sense to consider the technology in more detail.

  1. Sort through the chestnuts, eliminating any that are damaged or cracked. Wash whole specimens, then soak them in water for 15 minutes. After this period, dry the beans with towels and leave until the moisture has completely evaporated.
  2. Make 3-4 holes in the surface of the chestnuts with a knife or awl, prepare a deep plate for the microwave. Place the beans in a container in one row, cover with wet wipes or a cloth soaked in water.
  3. Set the microwave to maximum power and time for about 3-5 minutes. Every 1.5 minutes, pause the oven and stir the chestnuts.
  4. After the expiration date, pour a little vegetable oil into the microwave container and set the time for another 10-15 minutes. As in the previous case, remove the chestnuts every 1.5-2 minutes and stir.

The classic cooking recipe is to fry chestnuts in a frying pan, nothing else. Later, experienced chefs found an analogy for baking a product in the oven or microwave; we will also consider these methods below.

  1. Before you start cooking, purchase chestnuts that are safe to eat. The edible fruits have one flat surface and are much smaller in size than wild (horse) chestnuts.
  2. After selecting suitable raw materials, begin processing. Sort through the fruits, throw away all bruised, cracked and spoiled specimens, leave only whole chestnuts. Wash them thoroughly with a kitchen sponge.
  3. Pour room temperature water into a wide bowl and place the beans in it. If chestnuts float, they are not suitable for cooking. Give preference only to those products that sink.
  4. After selection, place the beans in a container with cool water and leave for a quarter of an hour. Dry the food with cotton towels and poke several holes all over the surface with a knife, fork or awl. Such a move will prevent the shell from breaking and, as a result, spoilage of the product.
  5. Select a deep frying pan with thick walls and bottom. Pour a large amount of oil into the bowl so that it covers the beans almost completely. Place a few thick damp cloths on the chestnuts, this step will prevent them from drying out.
  6. Cover the pan with a lid to prevent the beans from “popping” if they start to explode. Turn the burner to medium, fry the chestnuts for about 25-30 minutes, no longer.
  7. Shake the dish periodically without opening the lid, or stir the mixture with a slotted spoon/wooden spatula. At the end of cooking, spread a few paper towels on a plate, place the chestnuts, and cool to an acceptable temperature.
  8. Peel the chestnuts by lightly pressing them. You will see the beans begin to crack; all that remains is to remove the skin. Serve the finished product as a snack or add it to salads, first and second courses.

How to roast chestnuts in the oven

Recently, cooking chestnuts in the oven has become especially popular. This process involves baking the fruits, preserving their beneficial properties.

  1. Turn on the oven, preheat it to 200-210 degrees. Adjust the appliance's groove so that the temperature is maintained at the same level.
  2. While the oven is preheating, prepare the chestnuts. Go through them, remove any cracked or damaged ones, and wash them thoroughly under the tap. Place in a container, soak in water for about 10 minutes, then dry with a towel.
  3. After this, make a cross-shaped cut in the flat part of the fruit (can be replaced by 2-3 punctures with a fork). This move will prevent the beans from cracking and will also allow the steam that forms under the shell to escape.
  4. Wash the baking sheet, grease it with vegetable or corn oil, place the chestnuts in one row, keeping to the middle. Place the raw material with the flat part facing up (where the cut is). Sprinkle the fruits with clean water.
  5. Frying/baking time is about 15-20 minutes. During this period, the beans should become soft. While cooking, move the chestnuts from one place to another every 2 minutes to prevent them from burning. When the shell becomes pliable (it will crack easily), turn off the oven.
  6. Cool the chestnuts for 3 minutes, then peel them. To properly remove the shell, wrap the fruit in a cotton towel, apply pressure, then leave to cool for 5 minutes and remove the peel. Repeat the previous manipulations with each instance.
  7. Don't forget to remove the inner shell along with the peel. Chestnuts should be peeled within the first 10 minutes after cooking, while the product is still warm. After the allotted time, the shell hardens, which greatly complicates the task.
  8. If one or more fruits are difficult to peel, put them in the oven for another 5 minutes, then repeat the procedure again. Do not try to split the fruit with a knife; the peel should come off easily.

If you want to have a picnic or surprise your friends with an original dish, use the technology of cooking chestnuts over coals.

  1. Carefully sort through the fruits, excluding unnecessary ones (spoiled, cracked, with mold and dents). After this, wash whole specimens under cold water, soak them for 10 minutes, and dry them with towels or napkins.
  2. Prepare a thick-walled frying pan with a dense bottom (cast iron is suitable) or a cauldron. Make a cross-shaped hole in the flat part of each chestnut.
  3. Light a fireplace or barbecue so that you have a high layer of smoldering coals. Place a cast iron frying pan on them, place the chestnuts cut side down, cover with a lid, and fry for about 5-7 minutes. Shake the pan every 2 minutes during cooking to ensure the chestnuts cook evenly on all sides.
  4. After the specified period (5-7 minutes), remove the container from the coals, turn the chestnuts over to the opposite side, fry for another 5 minutes until cooked. After cooking, cool the fruit for 3 minutes, wrap in a towel and crack, removing the shell and inner lining.

Soups, salads, roasts and even bread are prepared using chestnuts. The benefits of beans are legendary, and the product has a relatively cheap price and availability. Use methods for cooking fruits in a frying pan, in the oven or microwave, or over coals.

Video: how chestnuts are roasted in Turkey

Roasted chestnuts recipe It depends entirely on what taste you want in the final product.

Chestnuts taste good with both salt and sugar. They absorb the taste of the ingredients used in cooking and can add variety to any dish or table.

Due to their neutral taste and weak aroma, chestnuts are often used in the preparation of appetizers, main courses, salads, soups, baked goods and desserts.

The main problem of people who want to try chestnuts for food is ignorance of the fact that not all chestnuts are suitable for eating. Forest chestnuts and those growing in cities are not suitable for human food, with the exception of the Caucasus.

Chestnuts for cooking can be bought in stores (supermarkets) or markets. You need to understand chestnuts, just like mushrooms, although they are not poisonous. The external distinctive feature of the edible chestnut is the brown shell, the chestnut kernel is shiny.

Edible chestnuts are heat-loving. You can find them on your own, but they grow in the Caucasus region. Fresh chestnuts appear on sale in the fall.
In areas where chestnuts are traditionally consumed, they are treated as a staple food product. This is due to their “fullness” and nutritional characteristics, which are comparable to rice and potatoes.

The taste of roasted chestnuts difficult to describe clearly. It largely depends on the ingredients used in preparation.

Raw chestnuts taste similar to unripe nuts, but are less oily. Roasted chestnuts taste like potatoes.

How to cook over an open fire

This recipe for roasted chestnuts is often used during outdoor recreation. They are fried in a metal bowl until cooked to taste, from 10 to 20 minutes. Serve hot, peeling off the shell.

The main rule when frying chestnuts, which must always be remembered and observed, is processing the chestnut shell before frying. When heated, their shell bursts and destroys the core. Therefore, the shell is always cut along the diameter, crosswise, or simply pierced in several places.

Recipe for roasted chestnuts in the oven

If necessary, wash and dry the chestnuts. Be sure to process the shell with a sharp knife, cutting deep crosses on one side of the chestnut. Place chestnuts on a prepared baking sheet, cut sides up.

The oven oven should be preheated to 190 degrees. The baking tray with chestnuts is placed in a preheated oven. They can be considered ready after they release their juice. This will take approximately 20 minutes. After this, you can treat the roasted chestnuts with any ingredients you like and keep them in the oven for another 5 minutes to get a delicious dish.

Recipe for roasted chestnuts in a frying pan

It is necessary to process the shell, which can be done with a fork, piercing the shell a third of the thickness of the chestnut, or making deep cuts with a knife, using a cross. This will prevent them from exploding when overheated. The chestnut contains a lot of juice, which turns into steam when heated and tends to burst the chestnut. It is for steam to escape that the shell is processed.

You need to prepare a frying pan, several napkins and half a glass of water. Chestnuts are loaded into a frying pan and covered with a layer of napkins moistened with water. Frying occurs over low heat for about 22 minutes. The frying pan is covered with a lid. Stir the chestnuts periodically. Dried wipes are re-hydrated. This is done to prevent the chestnuts from drying out and becoming too hard. If the processing of the shell was carried out poorly, some chestnuts may explode, this is not a problem.

At the end of cooking, you can treat the chestnuts with salt or sugar, or other ingredients to taste.

To check if the chestnuts are done, you can squeeze them. If the shell breaks down and comes off with light effort, the chestnuts are ready.