Cosy up with a tray of roasted chestnuts straight out of the oven. Prepared and roasted in just 30 minutes, this simple method will have you roasting chestnuts all throughout autumn and winter.
The most important step in this process, before you do anything, is to slice into the chestnut shells. Use a serrated knife and firmly hold the nut between your thumb and fingers (making a bridge over the knife). Slice one way and then the other to create a cross in the shell. Then turn over and do the same on the other side. Repeat for all nuts.
Next place the prepared chestnuts into a small pan and cover with boiling water. Place on a medium heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes.
Drain the nuts and transfer to a tray then place in a preheated oven (200°C/392°F) and roast for 15 minutes.
Remove the nuts from the oven and transfer to a bowl. Cover with a towel and leave for 10 minutes to continue steaming. Uncover the bowl after 10 minutes and check that the shells are starting to open.
Peel and remove the shells, discarding any that won't de-shell or that appear to be bad.
Serve with the shells on or off and place in a brown paper bag for that extra touch of authenticity.
Notes
Chestnuts: Select chestnuts that are firm with a nice rounded shape. Buy double the amount of what you like to end up with.(Once chestnuts are roasted and peeled and ones that won't peel or are bad have been discarded, you are left with around half the weight of what you started with).Water: Simmering the chestnuts in water before roasting will help to separate the shells from the nut and will allow the chestnuts to steam once in the oven.Do you have to soak chestnuts before roasting? Strictly speaking you don't have to soak and simmer chestnuts before roasting. However, skipping this step will make it much harder to remove the shells from the nuts.Storage: Uncooked and unpeeled chestnuts will keep for 2-3 weeks when stored in a dry and well ventilated place. Cooked chestnuts should be stored in the fridge and will keep for 2-3 days.What else can I do with roast chestnuts? Chestnuts can be a great addition to autumnal and winter dishes. Try in a salad or add to a stuffing mix. I also use roasted chestnuts in my spiced pumpkin soup recipe.