To prepare a delicious side dish, dessert, first course or salad, you can use the fruits of the seed chestnut or noble chestnut - they have a brown shiny skin and wrinkled kernels. Those who want to try this delicacy should find out how European chefs prepare chestnuts.

How to eat chestnuts

Many housewives and cooks use this unique product not only as an independent dish, but also make soups, pilaf, etc. from it. The only thing that is important to take into account is that chestnuts can only be eaten hot, as soon as you take them out of the oven or from frying pan, because the taste of the exotic nut will fade as it cools.

How to peel chestnuts

To enjoy the taste of a nut, first prepare it correctly: select fruits suitable for eating, pour water over those that float, collect and throw away, and continue working with the rest. Make cross-shaped cuts from the sharp edge using scissors or a fork and send them to fry. This action determines how easy it will be to peel the chestnuts later, and this is also where any roasted chestnut recipe begins.

What chestnuts can you eat?

In cooking, roasted chestnuts are a famous dish with amazing taste. Before you roast nuts yourself, you need to know what they are. So, you can eat chestnuts that are covered with a spiky green shell. Elongated fruits are considered edible; in appearance and shape they resemble an onion with a small tail at the sharp end - as in the photo.

It is worth noting that it is strictly forbidden to use lumpy round nuts (horse nuts) for cooking, because at best this threatens you with food poisoning. Such fruits grow on trees among large, spreading leaves in central Russia, so residents of warm regions are better off not taking risks and, if desired, prepare chestnuts, select and buy them in the nearest store.

The benefits and harms of roasted chestnuts

If you want to try an exotic dish, then you need to figure out whether you should eat it. Consider the benefits and harms of roasted chestnuts:

1. Among the positive qualities, it is worth paying special attention to the composition of the fruit: vitamins (choline, beta-carotene, vitamins A, B, C, E, K, PP, including ascorbic acid) and minerals (phosphorus, potassium, calcium, zinc, iron).
2. An important role in creating a positive characteristic of a product is played by its nutritional value and composition: water, ash, saturated fatty acids, mono- and disaccharides, dietary fiber.
3. Contraindications to eating chestnuts include the fact that when fried they contain carbohydrates and a large amount of starch, and this is unacceptable for people who are prone to obesity.

Calorie content of roasted chestnuts

One of the most popular edible varieties are sweet chestnuts. The calorie content of roasted chestnuts is about 180 calories per 100 grams of weight, so eating them in small quantities will not negatively affect your parameters. When roasted, the exotic nut contains a lot of carbohydrates and vegetable protein, which will especially appeal to those people who do not eat meat.

How to roast chestnuts at home

Such an unusual ingredient can be used for different dishes: first, second, desserts, but the beginning of each recipe is heat treatment. How are chestnuts roasted? There are several ways. You can fry chestnuts in a regular or special frying pan with holes, bake in the oven, or boil. Read on for tips to help you understand how to roast chestnuts at home.

How to fry chestnuts in a frying pan

The presented method is a classic method for preparing edible fruits. Before frying chestnuts in a frying pan, you need to soak them and then use them, taking only those that have fallen to the bottom of the bowl. Step-by-step instruction:

1. Prick or cut each fruit with a fork.
2. Place the nuts in a frying pan filled with hot oil and cover with a paper towel. Wet the napkins several times during frying - this will prevent the fruit from drying out.
3. Cover the dish with a lid and fry for 30 minutes, turning the heat to medium. It is recommended to shake the nuts periodically without opening the lid.
4. Serve the dish, adding salt or sprinkling with sugar - as you wish.

Those who think that fried fruits are too dry can boil them with milk - the combination is simply excellent! To do this you need:

1. Peel the already roasted nuts from the film, pour in milk until the liquid covers them 2 cm above.
2. Add a couple of spoons of honey and a cinnamon stick.
3. Let the dish simmer until the main ingredient becomes soft. Before sending the delicacy to the fire, you can add more cedar cake - this will make the taste of the dessert even more interesting.

How to cook chestnuts in the oven

You can also bake an exotic nut using the oven - the process is even simpler than frying in a frying pan. A well-known way to cook chestnuts in the oven is as follows:

1. Preheat the oven.
2. Make cuts on each fruit.
3. Place the dough in one layer on a baking sheet and leave to bake for 35 minutes.
4. Open the oven and serve the treat. From part of the exotic nut, you can also prepare, for example, a salad: add vegetables and durum pasta to the peeled fruits, and then it is recommended to mix this whole mass with a sauce of olive oil and lemon juice.

Chestnuts in the microwave

This method is quick and safe, if you cut or pierce the food with a fork before placing it - this will allow steam to escape and avoid “explosion”. Cooking chestnuts in the microwave is easy:

1. Place the fruits in a shallow but wide microwave-safe dish.
2. Lightly salt the product and pour in 3 tablespoons of hot water. Roasting this way is not practical, but the nuts can be steamed for easy cleaning.
3. Cover the dish with a lid (not a glass plate) or film, leave the dish for 8 minutes, turning the power of the equipment to maximum.
4. Try one thing, then either continue the process, or serve the delicacy to the table by pouring your favorite sauce on the plate.

A healthy product containing many vitamins and protein, many people like it. However, not everyone knows how to cook chestnuts, and so that you can enjoy this snack at home and not in a restaurant, follow these recommendations:

1. Before cooking chestnuts in a frying pan, they must all be cut - this way they will not “jump out” when heated.
2. You need to place the raw ingredients in the pan in one layer, and the dishes should not remain on the stove for a long time, otherwise the nuts will turn out to be too hard and tough.
3. You need to remove the peel as soon as the product is cooked, otherwise it will be much more difficult to do later.
4. If you plan to store edible chestnuts, then know that fresh fruits can be kept in a cool place for just a few days, otherwise they will become dry and lose their shine. Baked, boiled or roasted nuts will last longer if you put them in the freezer.

Video: How to roast chestnuts

The mention of chestnuts evokes a variety of associations for most people, and not always gastronomic ones. In our country, edible chestnut nuts can be found only in the south, and in other places horse chestnut grows, which is unsuitable for food. Moreover, horse chestnut fruits are poisonous, so they can only be admired. Edible chestnuts are sold in supermarkets - they are brought from Krasnodar, the Caucasus, Abkhazia and other places. If you haven't tried this delicious delicacy yet, learning how to cook it is quite easy if you know the secrets and subtleties. Chestnuts are delicious, nutritious and healthy!

How chestnuts became part of gastronomic culture

Chestnut trees were already grown in Ancient Greece and Rome, but their fruits were considered more of a medicine than a delicacy. Chestnuts were used to feed livestock. It was only in the 15th century that people tasted exotic nuts and realized that they deserved to be on the dinner table. However, for a long time chestnuts were the food of the poor, and only a little later they learned to cook delicious dishes from them.

In Japan and China, the first mentions of chestnuts appeared even earlier, long before the advent of rice, and they were prepared in a simple way - fried over a fire. Until now, almost half of the world's chestnuts are eaten by the Chinese.

What types of chestnuts are there?

The most popular varieties of edible chestnuts are seed, American, Chinese and Japanese. They have a green spiky plus and look like tiny hedgehogs, while the inedible horse chestnut has sparser needles. Brown nuts are hidden under the top, and if they look like an onion with a small tail at the sharp end, then the chestnuts are definitely edible - you read that right. Horse chestnut tastes unpleasantly bitter, but the edible fruits are mealy and sweetish.

Raw chestnuts taste like unripe nuts, while cooked fruits taste like baked potatoes with nutty notes. It is believed that the most delicious chestnut is the Japanese one. In terms of satiety, nuts are close to potatoes, rice, bread and other carbohydrate products. It is no coincidence that this tree was previously called bread tree. Due to their neutral taste, chestnut dishes can be prepared with a variety of foods - they simply absorb the taste and aroma of the ingredients present, such as funchose, potatoes and rice.

How to prepare chestnuts

In Europe, there is a good tradition of having picnics in the fall and baking chestnuts on the fire. This delicacy is also sold on city streets, where the fruits are cooked in open roasting pans. They are peeled and eaten hot, washed down with grape juice, beer or cider. The main thing is to pierce the nut shells before baking, otherwise the chestnuts will explode during cooking. Chestnuts are also boiled and steamed, added to soups, sauces, salads, casseroles and side dishes, and stuffed into chicken and Christmas turkey. If you want to save chestnuts until Christmas, you can boil, peel and freeze them.

But the use of chestnut fruits in cooking is not limited to this. The nuts are used to make amazing chestnut flour, which is used to make savory pies and dessert pastries. You don’t even need to add sugar to sweets, because the flour already has a sweetish taste. Chestnut and jam, pancakes, biscuits, muffins and cookies are very pleasant. In France, chestnuts are used to prepare a delicious delicacy called maroon glace, for which peeled chestnuts are boiled in sugar syrup and dried until crisp. No less tasty are chestnuts with chocolate sauce and chestnut puree made from boiled nuts with sugar. They say these are real delicacies!

Both tasty and healthy

Chestnuts also have healing properties. They are rich in vitamins C, A, B, potassium, iron and calcium. Nuts reduce fever, treat coughs and cleanse bronchi, relieve pain, have anti-inflammatory properties and stop diarrhea. Chestnuts are good for digestion and kidneys, while they have a slight diuretic effect. Chestnuts are especially useful for hypertensive patients, as they normalize blood pressure and strengthen blood vessels.

If you have varicose veins, you can alleviate your condition with a chestnut diet. Arthritis, radiculitis, gout - even such serious diseases can be treated if you feast on these useful gifts of nature more often.

Since chestnuts have a low concentration of fat (1 g per fruit), they can be eaten by anyone on a diet. This is what distinguishes this variety of nuts from its “brothers”. If we also take into account that chestnut improves blood circulation, removes excess fluid from cells and removes swelling, this product becomes invaluable in the fight against cellulite. Tinctures are made from chestnuts to burn fat, and anti-cellulite creams are prepared using its oil.

It is better to give chestnuts to children from the age of four or five, since their delicate digestive system may not be able to digest this nut.

How to roast chestnuts

Now it’s time to learn how to cook chestnuts at home. Sort through them and discard bruised, spoiled fruits and nuts with cracked shells. Pour the chestnuts into the water and take only the sunken fruits for subsequent cooking - those that float are not suitable for food, as they are most likely spoiled. Keep the remaining chestnuts in water for 15 minutes, dry with a towel and make cross-shaped cuts on the sharp edge so that the shell does not burst during frying and the chestnuts can then be easily peeled.

Fill a large frying pan with vegetable oil, place the chestnuts in it and fry for half an hour over medium heat with the lid closed. Shake the pan occasionally without opening the lid. Peel the chestnuts immediately, otherwise it will be problematic to do so later. Serve with sugar or salt - it's incredibly delicious!

Chestnuts baked in the oven

This cooking method is even simpler, and you can experience it in your own kitchen. First, sort and wash the chestnuts, removing any that are unsuitable for eating, and then make cuts.

Preheat the oven to 200 °C, setting the convection mode. Place the nuts in a cast iron or ovenproof dish, cut side down, and cook for 15 minutes, then stir in the chestnuts and bake for another 15 minutes. It all depends on what kind of nuts you like - softer or crispier.

Cool the chestnuts, sprinkle them with salt and serve with beer or wine. You can cut the shelled nuts into pieces, add any vegetables, pasta or rice to them, and then season with olive oil and lemon juice.

“Quick” chestnuts in the microwave

Prepare the chestnuts for roasting as described above, and be sure to make cuts. Place the nuts in a microwave-safe bowl, add salt and add a little water - 4-5 tbsp. l. for 10 fruits. Mix well.

Turn on the most powerful mode and cook for exactly 8 minutes. If the chestnuts are too large and the microwave is not very powerful, the cooking time can be increased. Some gourmets claim that nuts in the microwave do not turn out as tasty, but this is not an acquired taste. Try it and decide for yourself!

Candied chestnuts

This is a very simple and incredibly tasty dessert that will surely take root in your family. Peel 0.5 kg of chestnuts and boil them in water until softened so that they do not lose their shape.

Boil the syrup from 2 glasses of water and 0.5 kg of sugar - after boiling, it should cook for about 10 minutes. Dip the finished chestnuts into the syrup and cook for another half hour. Let the dish brew a little and keep it on the fire for another half hour. The chestnuts should become almost transparent. After this, add 50 ml of rum and transfer the dessert to a beautiful bowl. Decorate the delicacy to your taste and serve to your amazed family and guests.

Chestnut flour pancakes with ricotta

Everyone loves pancakes, but chestnut pancakes are exotic for most. But what prevents you from appreciating their delicate nutty taste?

Prepare a dough from 2 eggs, 230 ml of milk and 100 g of chestnut flour, which you can add a little more if the eggs are large. The dough should be homogeneous, without lumps. Leave it on for 15 minutes.

Prepare the filling from ricotta and honey - the amount of ingredients to your taste. Some people like it sweeter, while others can add a little salt and herbs instead of honey.

Fry the pancakes in olive oil, place 2 tbsp on each. l. ricotta, fold in half and place on a plate. Top them with yoghurt, honey or any sauce you like. It has a pleasant color and delicate texture and will certainly not disappoint you when tasting.

Chestnut soup "You'll lick your fingers"

This one is a little reminiscent of potato, but looks unusual and appetizing.

Boil the meat broth and allocate about 1 liter or a little more for the soup, taking into account that some liquid will boil away during cooking. Chop the carrots and onions into cubes and fry them in vegetable oil until golden brown. Throw 300g of peeled chestnuts from the supermarket and vegetables into the broth, add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer until chestnuts are soft, about 15 minutes.

Blend the soup with a blender, but leave a few chestnuts floating in it. This will make the dish look much more interesting.

Season the chestnut puree soup with 2 tbsp. l. cream and serve with fresh herbs.

Draniki with chestnuts

You've probably never tried such an unusual dish. Well, you have such a unique opportunity!

Make cuts on 7 chestnuts and boil them in water for 10 minutes.

Grate 3 raw peeled potatoes. Peel the chestnuts and also chop them on a grater, and then mix with the potatoes. Add 1 raw egg, a clove of chopped garlic, salt, 2 tbsp. l. flour and a little finely chopped dill.

Mix the dough well and fry the potato pancakes in vegetable oil on both sides. Serve with sour cream. The taste of these potato pancakes is very subtle, slightly nutty and original.

Chestnuts protect against depression and stress, calm you down and give you sound sleep. Sometimes treat yourself to these delicious nuts, without which something is missing in the fall. Chestnuts lift our spirits, and when we wash down these crunchy nuts with aromatic cider, it seems to us that life is inexpressibly beautiful, especially among those closest to us.

If you want an unusual dish, you can buy chestnuts and fry them. The result is an original, tasty and completely versatile dish. For Europeans, this has long been both an independent snack and a savory addition to salads, soups and side dishes. Just don’t eat these nuts raw. In our country, not everyone understands how to fry chestnuts so as not to spoil the ingredient.

Knowledgeable housewives and experienced chefs claim that there is nothing complicated in the process of preparing chestnuts.

How to fry in a frying pan?

When the nuts are purchased, they need to be prepared. The edible fruits have only one flat surface and are small compared to wild horse chestnuts. Raw chestnut fruits should be stored in dark and cool rooms and pantries. It should be remembered that Teflon pans are not used when frying.

First way

Before frying chestnuts in a frying pan, the selected raw materials will need to be processed by sorting out the nuts and getting rid of bruised, cracked and spoiled ones. Each whole fruit is washed with a dish sponge.

Tip: You can check the suitability of chestnut beans by pouring them into a wide bowl of water. An edible chestnut will certainly sink, and unedible fruits will float.

Selected raw materials are soaked for 15 minutes in cool water. The nuts are wiped with a soft towel or clean cloth. To prevent the shell from breaking during frying and the product from spoiling, you will need to make several punctures of the fruit surfaces with a fork, knife or awl.

Tip: Choose a deep frying pan so that its walls and bottom are thick.

There are some tricks on how to properly roast chestnuts. There should be a lot of oil in the pan so that it covers the nuts almost completely. To prevent the product from drying out during frying, you will need to take thick wet wipes (a few pieces are enough).

When chestnuts are fried, it happens that the raw material explodes; to prevent the product from scattering around the kitchen, there should be a lid on the frying pan. The burner is turned on to medium heat. The period of time when the fruits are fried should not exceed half an hour. Sometimes 25 minutes is enough.

Professionals know how best to roast fresh chestnuts. They shake the container covered with a lid several times during the cooking process. But if you don’t want to take risks, you can take a slotted spoon or a wooden spatula and use this to stir the product.

Paper towels are laid out on a plate and the prepared nuts are poured onto them. When they cool down a little, they are ready to eat. The fruits are peeled by lightly pressing on the shell. The peel that has begun to crack can be easily removed.

Second way

The fastest and easiest recipe, when you only need to fry the nuts for a few minutes, involves pouring water (a third of a glass) into a frying pan and pouring the fruits into it. When the water boils, continue cooking the product over low heat for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring. When the fruits can be easily squeezed, they are ready.

In cooking, there is a nuance about which chestnuts can be fried without water. Young nuts are suitable for this. A dry frying pan is heated, the fruits are poured into it, fried over medium heat for about 30 minutes, cooled, peeled and separated, and can be served a hundred, sprinkled with a pinch of sugar or salt.

How to cook in the microwave?

There is a wonderful recipe for roasting chestnuts in the microwave. When the maximum power is set in the microwave, products are baked for no more than five minutes. First, salted water is poured into a special bowl for the microwave oven, and the chestnuts must be cut on the sides before being roasted.

You can fry nuts effectively by stirring them every minute and a half during the process. To get tasty, perfectly prepared products, you need to know how to fry healthy chestnuts at home according to the rules.

How to roast in the oven?

You should take into account the specifics of how to roast chestnuts in the oven. The stove needs to be heated to 210 degrees. The cuts in the fruit are made cross-shaped, as deep as possible, and on the flat side. This is necessary for steam to escape.

Corn or sunflower oil is used to lubricate the sheet. The nuts are placed in one row in the middle of the baking sheet, with the cuts facing up. The chestnuts are sprinkled using clean water. The fruits are baked for 15 to 20 minutes, during which time they should soften. After every two minutes, you will need to move the product to prevent burning. The oven turns off when the chestnut shells begin to crack.

The fruits should cool down within three minutes. To properly remove the shell, wrap each specimen in a cotton towel, press on the fruit and wait about five minutes, then remove the peel. The inner shell is also taken out and removed.

Peel the chestnuts within a ten-minute period of time after the end of frying, while the beans are still warm. Later, the shell hardens, and manipulation will no longer be so easy.

Tip: Nuts that cannot be peeled are re-roasted in the oven for five minutes and tried to be peeled. They cannot be split with a knife.

After peeling the nuts, you can add a few cherry tomatoes, sweet peppers, a little arugula and hard, undercooked pasta.

How to fry in an air fryer?

There are many recipes for frying chestnuts at home. In an air fryer you can roast chestnuts just like in an oven. The taste of the nuts is approximately the same as that of baked ones. Beans with half-centimeter or centimeter cuts are laid out on a sheet and in a special pan. The temperature of the device should be set to 180 degrees. Frying will take about half an hour.

Tip: If you scatter the fruits on the bottom rack of the air fryer over foil and cover the top rack with foil, you will get the effect of a double boiler.

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Previously, this delicacy could only be tasted abroad. It so happens that in our latitudes only horse chestnut grows, which, by the way, even horses don’t eat. But the French, Spaniards and Italians were luckier - they have edible fruits falling from trees right on the streets, and in some places there are still chestnut forests, where whole families go during the season, just like our mushroom pickers. But if the latter needs to know, even a 3-year-old child can easily fill a basket of chestnuts.

Fortunately, today there is no need to travel far away to experience the taste of this delicacy. Take the time to look in the nuts section of the supermarket, and we’ll teach you how to cook chestnuts at home.

You will need:

How to choose chestnuts

It is quite easy to distinguish noble species from inedible ones. They have green skin, densely studded with small thorns, and the box contains several fruits at once.

The nuts are shiny, smooth, dark brown in color with elongated tails, slightly reminiscent of an onion. May have sizes similar to a walnut, chicken egg or tangerine, depending on the variety and country of origin.

At room temperature, fresh chestnuts are stored for no more than 4 days, in the refrigerator - about two weeks, so you should discard wrinkled or very dark fruits - they will taste bitter. The ideal choice is firm, round fruits, without damage or stains on the shell.

If you buy a frozen product, also pay attention to the expiration date - it should not exceed 5-6 months.

You can also find pickled chestnuts on sale. They do not require additional processing, but are immediately used for food.

Heat treatment

Fill the fruits with water. Those that immediately float up are not suitable for food, they need to be thrown away, then use only those that have settled to the bottom. Wash them thoroughly and dry them on a towel.

Before you boil, fry or bake chestnuts, you need to make holes in them to allow steam to escape, otherwise the nuts will simply explode. Using kitchen scissors or a thin knife, make a thin cut on the side or a cross on the top, catching a little of the flesh. You can also poke a few shallow holes in the peel using a fork.

After cooking, pour cold water over them and immediately remove the shell along with the film and black veins. Cooled fruits are much more difficult to clean, so wear gloves or use a towel.

The following methods will help facilitate the cleaning process:

• cut the peel in a circle and boil the chestnuts for 3 minutes in boiling water with a tablespoon of vegetable oil;
• put the nuts in the freezer overnight, then throw them in boiling water and immediately run them under cold water.

Chestnuts can also be eaten raw, after removing the shell and film. However, their taste and aroma in this case will be much inferior to cooked fruits.

Serve as a separate dish or make salads, desserts, snacks, purees, soups and other delicacies from them. But first, let's learn how to cook chestnuts in the simplest ways.

How to fry in a frying pan

To begin with, here is a classic cooking recipe. To fry chestnuts at home, it is enough to have a large, thick-walled frying pan with a tight-fitting heavy lid in which it is convenient to cook popcorn. A grill pan is also suitable for this purpose, but in no case a Teflon container.

Take exactly the amount of fruit that you plan to eat, since they do not last long when cooked. After cooling, the taste decreases significantly.

• Heat the frying pan over medium heat without adding oil.
• If a darkish core is visible in the cut made, add a tablespoon of water or place a damp towel under the lid. The steam will soften the chestnuts and make them juicier.
• Do not add heat during cooking. Moderate heat is more than enough.
• Don't forget to stir.
• After they begin to burst with a characteristic sound, just shake the pan from time to time without opening the lid.
• The dish is ready when the shell darkens, it is easy to remove, and the split expands. This will take approximately 15-25 minutes.

Roasted chestnuts go perfectly with both salt and sugar. If you are preparing snacks for beer, simply sprinkle them with sea salt. If you want dessert, add chocolate or sweet sauce.

In the oven

You will get a similar taste if you cook chestnuts in the oven, and it will take much less effort.

• Place the nuts on a dry baking sheet, cut side up.
• Preheat the oven to 210-220 degrees and place the chestnuts for about 20 minutes.
• Again, check to see if the incision has opened. If yes, it's time to take it out.
• Leave the peeled pulp on a towel for 5 minutes and serve hot.

Try not to overheat the kernels, otherwise they will become dry and hard.

Roasted chestnuts are served hot with beer or new wine.

Microwave

The main advantages of this method are that you don’t need to spend a lot of time, and the process itself is extremely simple.

• Place the chopped nuts in a special container for use in the microwave.
• Lightly salt and add a few tablespoons of boiling water (the water should not cover the fruit).
• Cover with cling film and place in the oven for 6-8 minutes at full power.
• Cook the chestnuts until tender, adding a few minutes if necessary.

As a result, you will get steamed nuts, which can then be peeled and cooked in a frying pan with or without heated oil.

In a convection oven

• Place a layer of nuts on a tray. You can cover them top and bottom with foil.
• Place a suitable container of boiling water on the grill below.
• Set the temperature to 200-205 degrees.
• Cooking time: 15-20 minutes until the kernels turn yellow.

Serve hot and lightly salted.

How to cook chestnuts

• Pre-prepare the fruits - wash, peel and sort.
• Place them in boiling water.
• Cooking time depends on the size of the nuts - from 10 minutes to half an hour.
• Remove from heat and peel, removing from water one at a time.

Among the many famous cities in the world, Paris stands out especially, where thousands of loving couples come. They admire the beauty of architectural buildings, and also try roasted chestnuts, which only experienced chefs know how to cook. This exquisite dish is considered one of the national products of France. Every year in Paris there is a national festival dedicated to the edible chestnut. At this time, right on the street, sellers fry an amazingly tasty delicacy in huge frying pans. It is not difficult to imagine how the air is filled with the pleasant aroma of heated fruits, and couples in love treat each other with them.

But not everyone can go to Paris, but many can learn how to cook chestnuts. The main thing is to listen to the advice of experienced chefs. In addition, it is important to find out what benefits regular consumption of the product brings and possible contraindications. Let's try to understand these issues.

A close encounter with lovers' delicacy

To learn how to cook chestnuts, you first need to get to know them better. Each fruit contains many useful substances, namely:

• fiber;
• sugar;
• proteins;
• starch;
• oils;
• tanning elements;
• series of vitamins

The fruit is widely used in folk medicine in the form of tinctures and decoctions. In addition, it has an exquisite taste, for which it has received recognition all over the world. So, if you know how to cook edible chestnut, the benefits and harms of the product, you can safely get down to business.

In order not to harm yourself, you should distinguish an edible fruit from a horse chestnut. Only the type of chestnut “Castanea sativa”, which grows in the coastal areas of the Black Sea, is suitable for preparing the delicacy.

Often people who lack understanding confuse sweet chestnut with “Acorn”. It is this plant that can cause harm to the body. On the other hand, excessive consumption of the product leads to food allergies, bloating, intestinal upset and nausea. Eating roasted chestnuts is contraindicated for people suffering from the following diseases:

• hypotension;
• renal failure;
• urolithiasis disease.

It is not advisable to include chestnuts in the diet of pregnant women and nursing mothers. Since the nut is considered a high-calorie product, it is contraindicated for people who are overweight.

Culinary secrets of creating a dish

French chefs widely use chestnuts for their culinary masterpieces. They prepare them in various ways:

• baked in the oven;
• fry in a frying pan;
• boil in a saucepan;
• added to sweet desserts;
• used as an excellent snack for alcoholic drinks;
• the dried product is placed in baking dough.

In any case, the dish comes out with an exotic taste and aroma. But how to cook chestnuts at home to feel like a Parisian? It turns out that everything is much simpler than it might seem.

There are several ways to create this amazing delicacy. For example, to fry fruits efficiently, take a wide frying pan. Then put nuts on it.
Stirring constantly, they will be ready in half an hour. When the chestnuts have cooled, remove the peel and sprinkle with sugar or salt. In this form, the delicacy is served to the table.

It is advisable to cook the fruits in a frying pan without fat. The fire should be medium.

Another way to roast chestnuts consists of the following steps:

1. Fruits are poured into a frying pan without fat. Turn on moderate heat and fry, stirring constantly.
2. When the nuts are warmed up, they are covered with wet cotton napkins.
3. Some cooks simply pour water into the pan. Then reduce the fire level to a minimum. Cover with a lid and fry for 30 minutes.

Check the readiness of the treat by pressing on the product. Soft specimens are removed from the heat and served. Many chefs know how to fry chestnuts in a frying pan and are happy to share their experience. But the product can also be cooked in the oven.

You can fry nuts in any frying pan, just not one with a Teflon coating.

You can bake the product correctly by performing the following operations:

1. First, cut off a miniature tip from each fruit.
2. Place on a baking sheet, spreading evenly over the entire area.
3. Place in the oven for 15 minutes.
4. The finished nuts are peeled while they are warm.

The main rule of how to roast chestnuts in the oven is to preheat the oven to 240 degrees. In addition, it is necessary to carefully monitor the process. As soon as the fruits lose moisture, they can only be baked for 7 minutes after that.

French notes on the dining table

Unfortunately, most of us will not have the opportunity to walk the streets of Paris and taste roasted chestnuts. But any cook can learn how to cook chestnuts at home and feel like a Frenchman. Let's look at several dishes that include fried fruits. They are used as a semi-finished product, adding to vegetable stew. Chestnuts can be thoroughly mashed with a rolling pin or chopped with a blender. Then stir with milk and add to:

• various sauces;
• souffle;
• pies;
• cakes;
• cupcakes;
• ice cream.

Since the product has universal properties, it is easy to experiment with it. Let's look at a recipe for how to cook chestnuts at home using additional products.

Chestnut pie

Ingredients:

• chicken;
• milk;
• butter (a piece for greasing);
• salt.

The process of creating a dish:

The finished dish is cut into small portions. Serve with hot broth or puree soup.

As you can see, the “Roasted Chestnuts” delicacy, the recipe of which is available to everyone, can be easily prepared at home. The main thing is to follow the instructions of specialists. And then, enjoying the taste of exquisite French food, you are mentally transported to the streets of the glorious city - Paris.

Secrets of cooking chestnuts - video