Beware of Hot Chestnuts

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Chestnuts02

In the autumn, trees provide us with all sorts of fruit and nuts. Just in time for Thanksgiving and Christmas, the edible chestnuts are ripe. In some countries people are lucky enough to be able to go picking chestnuts for their own consumption; the rest of us have to buy them in our grocery stores. Chestnuts are a savoury addition to the turkey stuffing, but I find them even more appealing when they’ve been roasted in an open fire, just as the song suggests.

In my twenties, and newly wed, I was visiting at the home of my in-laws. We sat on the carpet by the fireplace watching as a batch of chestnuts, enclosed in a wrapper of tinfoil, roasted in the fire.

“I’ve never tasted chestnuts before,” I said. “This will be a first for me.”

“You’re in for a treat,” everyone agreed. The room was cozy with the warm glow of the fire, lights turned low, soft music, and loving people—a perfect evening.

My father-in-law fished the hot tinfoil packet out of the embers. “I think they’re done.”

I watched to see how the chestnuts were eaten. The tough pellicle had to be taken off first, and I learned that teeth worked just fine for opening an edge of the chestnut skin. Inside was the rich meat of the chestnut, hot and fluffy like a baked potato, so delicious with its mild nutty flavour.

“These are so good,” I said, reaching for another one. More confident now, I bit into the skin of the next one. A loud pop inside my head sounded like a gun had gone off, and the steaming hot chestnut meat shot towards the back of my throat and filled my mouth.

I wanted to spit out the starchy mass that was burning my cheeks, tongue and gums, but I was a guest—a shy one—in this lovely home. I couldn’t just spit out the exploded chestnut onto the wool carpet. I leapt up, ran to the bathroom, and spat into the sink.

The family came running and hovered around me. “Are you okay? Let’s see.”

“Oh my! Quick! Have a glass of cold water.”

My husband rubbed my shoulder. “Does it hurt?”

“You should have spat it out on the floor right away.”

That night my throat swelled up so much I could hardly breathe. I thought a small child would never survive this without medical intervention.

At the clinic the next day I got some gel to take the pain away. I worried at first that I might lose teeth if my gums were too badly burned. When my cheeks healed I could feel ropy ridges of scar tissue, but at least I had my teeth.

Since then I have learned that the skin of the chestnuts should be cut before roasting to allow the steam to escape.

 

I still love chestnuts, but I’m very careful when I eat them now. I’m guessing my thoughts are different from those of most people when I hear the song, “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire.”

xmas_carol_1218

37 thoughts on “Beware of Hot Chestnuts”

        1. wordsfromanneli Post author

          It was a long time ago but it’s something people should be aware of, especially with children eating them. The chestnuts are so good you don’t want kids to miss out but you have to watch out for the steam that builds up in the chestnuts if they aren’t poked before roasting.

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  4. myquiltprojects

    I recall gathering these nuts when I was young. When we got home with them, my father did not know the nuts hitched a ride. It being fall and the garden needed to have it’s yearly burn, my father instructed that we put those nuts (we called them buckeyes) into the fire. Those things popped like popcorn. If you were within 10 feet of the burning, you could have had burning nut shrapnel embedded into clothing, hair or skin. I do have a question about these nuts. I have heard them called hazelnuts, is that what nutella is made from? Are they called hazelnuts too? This post has caused my mind to reminisce, thanks!

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    1. wordsfromanneli Post author

      If they were edible chestnuts, You might have been able to eat them if they weren’t too badly burned, but I suspect they were horse chestnuts, which ripen in the fall and look similar to the edible ones but the trees have different leaves. Hazelnuts are a different thing altogether. Unlikely that you had them in there, but possible.I just looked up Nutella and it seems there are some hazelnuts in it and some cocoa powder, but it’s mainly sugar. Check it out here: http://foodwatch.com.au/blog/additives-and-labels/item/nutella-the-full-correct-list-of-ingredients.html

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  6. Sonja Forrester

    I remember how much pain you were in after that explosion in your mouth. Poor baby. I have still never tried one of these things and I am kind of afraid of the same thing happening to me!!

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    1. wordsfromanneli Post author

      It was pure ignorance. That’s why I put this post up – so people will know to make a cut in the chestnuts before roasting them. They’re too good to miss though, and they’re perfectly safe if you don’t do what I did.

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    1. wordsfromanneli Post author

      They always import them here just before Christmas. They used to be imported from Italy, but now that they’re from China, I’m not in such a hurry to go buy them. I’m not a fan of their farming (or fishing) methods.

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