Chestnuts - spikey shells

[BigShot]

Other than stamping on them with some stout clodhoppers is there a good way to get chestnuts out of their spikey shells?

I've only got a small haul at the moment - will be heading back to my nearby trees for some more when I get a chance this week (hopefully tomorrow) - so stamping is fine, but is there another way to try? Preferably one that doesn't end up with hands full of holes.

 

[Kepis]

Gloves? .

 

[BigShot]

Well yes... but gloves and what? Just cut them open or some other fancy method?

 

[Scots_Charles_River]

They have fallen down onto blacktop and opened at my parents house. Throw them 50ft up in the air then watch them hit the tarmac and open.

I have 6 Creme de Marron tubes left form the Ardeche this year, bootiful stuff, consistancy of nutella paste.

Nick

PS http://www.brandchannel.com/features_profile.asp?pr_id=164

 

[Kepis]

pair of gloves, cut the chesnuts open if they are not already open and remove the kernals

 

[Toddy]

Hit them with a stick and leave them somewhere dry for a day. They'll open up mostly by themselves. They're supposed to do this anyway. Fall from the tree = bashed around, leave for a short time and the outer shell breaks down a little and opens up to reveal nice undamaged nuts.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[wasteoid]

Other than stamping on them with some stout clodhoppers is there a good way to get chestnuts out of their spikey shells?

I've only got a small haul at the moment - will be heading back to my nearby trees for some more when I get a chance this week (hopefully tomorrow) - so stamping is fine, but is there another way to try? Preferably one that doesn't end up with hands full of holes.

I always found that bringing them in the house and leaving them near a radiator meant the spikey shells would just split open.

Give it a go.

Chris

 

[Big Geordie]

Hi Guys,

Can we eat Horse Chestnuts? uppy_dog And in what way can we prepare them?
George

 

[Scots_Charles_River]

google search

http://www.chestnutsonline.com/recipes.htm

 

[Shambling Shaman]

google search

http://www.chestnutsonline.com/recipes.htm

The pic in the top left corner looks like a sweet chestnut?? not a horse chestnut..

Still a good link

 

[BigShot]

Hi Guys,

Can we eat Horse Chestnuts? uppy_dog And in what way can we prepare them?
George

As I undersatand it - no.
Horse Chestnut is a very different beast (well, not a beast at all, but I like it as a turn of phrase) and as I understand it - it's not an eater.

 

[Shambling Shaman]

As I undersatand it - no.
Horse Chestnut is a very different beast (well, not a beast at all, but I like it as a turn of phrase) and as I understand it - it's not an eater.

Thats the way I understand it the link is for sweet chestnuts..

 

[BigShot]

Scots_Charles_River
The chestnut trees near me are in a wood with very soft ground around them, dry leaves on mud. I can't imagine they get much impact when they land in there.
It's certainly a long way from blacktop.


Kepis
Nice and simple eh? I'll have to get some gloves, the only suitable ones around here are FAR too small for me to get them on.
That or I'll have to convince the owner of the smaller hands to do the cutting.


Toddy and Wasteoid
They sound like suitably passive approaches.
My haul is now 2 days indoors, I'll go and check on them now and see how they are looking. I'll be quite pleased if they've kindly opened up so to save me the effort of doing it myself.


Well - they are still being stubborn - I'll try the hit-with-a-stick and throw-them-in-the-air methods on my next haul - I think I'll probably stomp or cut this lot though.

 

[BigShot]

Thats the way I understand it the link is for sweet chestnuts..

Yep - it's a fairly good site.
Seeing the price of their chestnut roasting pan has made me want to get hold of a super cheap frying pan and a good sharp drill bit. Should save a few quid!

My Opinel #8 will probably stand in for a chestnut knife for now. I'd use one of my chef's knives but I never like having my hands too close to the business end of those, much harder to control than a nice small blade.

 

[Rebel]

Hi Guys,

Can we eat Horse Chestnuts? uppy_dog And in what way can we prepare them?
George

No we can't eat them directly. However read this:

The nuts contain high concentrations of a saponin-class toxin called aesculin, which is toxic to many animals including humans because it causes hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells). The saponin can be eliminated by leaching the pulverized nuts in multiple changes of boiling water, to yield a wholesome starchy porridge once important to some Native American peoples. Some animals, notably deer and squirrels, are resistant to the toxins and can eat the nuts directly.

I haven't tried preparing them myself and I reckon it's more trouble than its worth for a dubious result. Stick to sweet chestnuts.

 

[BigShot]

No we can't eat them directly. However read this:

The nuts contain high concentrations of a saponin-class toxin called aesculin, which is toxic to many animals including humans because it causes hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells). The saponin can be eliminated by leaching the pulverized nuts in multiple changes of boiling water, to yield a wholesome starchy porridge once important to some Native American peoples. Some animals, notably deer and squirrels, are resistant to the toxins and can eat the nuts directly.

I haven't tried preparing them myself and I reckon it's more trouble than its worth for a dubious result. Stick to sweet chestnuts.

I was sure I'd heard about them being eaten before.
Thanks for posting that.

I imagine they may prove useful in a pretty dire survival situation, or maybe in long term living off the land, but as far as I'm aware, sweet chestnuts can be found in almost everywhere I'd be likely (and I use the term likely very liberally there) to face such a situation.

That said - I may well try it at some point.

If one got it wrong and didn't leech enough aesculin out - what would happen? Would you just be "a bit ill" or would it be one of those "really bad mistakes" that make you so ill even atheists start praying to get out alive and healthy?

 

[mortalmerlin]

We just wait and after a few days, the cases split and it's easy to get the nuts out.