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Chestnuts, their glossy shells a reddish-brown shade that launched a thousand hair dyes, look like the acorn's voluptuous, glammed-up cousin. The starchy nut of the Castanea sativa tree, they're often viewed as a Christmas-only food in America ("chestnuts roasting on an open fire" and all that). But back in the day, chestnuts were so prevalent they were considered a poor man's food, a staple of everyday early American cooking. The nut, which matures in fall, is still used in all kinds of dishes around the world, but has become much rarer and more expensive in America due to a blight that killed off most of the country's chestnut trees in the early 20th century.
In Italy, chestnuts are ground into flour to make breads and cakes, and fermented into beer. In New England., they're sometimes still used in stuffing (check out this recipe for chestnut and mushroom stuffing).
In France, marrons glacés, or candied chestnuts are a popular winter treat, often wrapped up in frilly layers of gold and silver paper to be given as presents. In China, they're eaten roasted and salted as snacks, or used in stir-fries (see The New York Times' The Minimalist's recipe for shrimp and chestnut stir-fry).
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10-25-2008 @5:17PM Matt said... I love a holiday side dish of peeled chestnuts, cippolini onions, pearl onions, and garlic cloves slow roasted together with olive oil and salt. Wrap it all up in foil and bake for about 40 minutes. And yes, I am a New Englander.
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10-25-2008 @6:01PM Ereader said... Old England here! And chestnut stuffing, with or without sausagement, is an absolute necessity at Christmas (bearing in mind in this country stuffing actually goes IN the bird!)
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