Chestnut is as Chinese-y as dim sum is. But then, it is also as Christmas-sy as Santa Claus is to the Westerners.  I have tasted roasted chestnuts locally, in Hong Kong and China but never tasted roasted chestnuts from European/American countries. So, I do wonder if we are talking about the same kind of chestnuts?
Do they taste the same? I wonder and hope someone can enlighten me? There is a Christmas carol with the title ‘Chestnut roasting on open fire’ which you can here the midi from this site. Meanwhile this site teaches you how to roast chestnuts. It warns – Cut open the chestnuts before roasting or they will explode. Wowser!
I got my chestnuts from the traditional roadside stall which ‘fry/roast’ the nuts using hot sands. It smells heavenly but I don’t really fancy chestnuts. But for the sake of blogging, anything goes. I ended up with two huge zits on my forehead and I believe it is due to these chestnuts that I had to consume. LOL.
I hope the Chestnut roasting on open fire song/midi puts you in a Christmas mood. If you are a Penangite or are coming to Penang during Christmas, please mark your calendar. My church choir will be singing at Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa on 17th December for the tree lighting ceremony and on 24th and 25th December as well. (I won’t be there on 25th but the rest of the days, do say hi if you are there). Here’s a site with some Christmas fun.
I kinda like chestnuts and only have tasted Malaysian ones. I so like the ones that they used (they may still, I’m not sure) to sell at Petaling street. Bought some at tesco’s recently … dah ler kecik .. so small … smaller than biji getah and cold. Some more got chestnut opener and packed in some fancy paperbag ..No shiok anymore. Hubby tried it for the first time and he said he was better off chewing on a biji cempedak rebus!!!
hey lilian, i dunno if u’ve noticed that pictures of saddam hussein and fergie in bikini (those u replaced the kuihs to kenakan orangeworld) had been appearing on this blog’s picture banner, LOL! it was good laugh but what will ur advertisers think? heheheeh…
sooi2 – Yalor, I notice too but didn’t change it. That bugger never check his blog oso, tiu.
lyza – Previously, there was the craze for these small chestnuts but lately, I see less of these stalls already. What do you call chestnuts in BM? Berangan?
Lilian, chestnuts in UK and Aust are roasted plain. There is a special chestnut pan (re my food blog in Oct) whereby you put the chestnuts in the pan to roast in open fires. The taste is natural unlike the ones in Malaysia where it is sweet from the sugar and stones.
Hallo, yes the chestnuts are the same but over here so small leh…. and they used the black gravelly hot sand to roast it as well. Syiok on a cold day to have a packet of chestnuts in your hands.
err aunty ar … the thing they roast the chestnut in is actually coffee beans + sugar, i mean quite a lot of sugar …
and yes the part where u are adviced to open the nut before roasting is true, the thing is damn kau hot and can fly really high wan … haha
lyza: dont quite gree with u, if u are a fan of this expensive nuts … then u will find that those smaller ones sold in Jaya Jusco, Tesco ones are actually sweeter than the ones from the roadside, yeah the one by the roadside are like twice the size, but its not really sweet, maybe the ones u bought were not sweet, but i always get from the JJ at Mid Valley, the ones there are sweet, last time i also say like that, why la go buy the smaller ones, more exp and smaller, but tried it and its is indeed sweeter …
Love eating them. Tapi my husband kena kopek for me lah 😀
Oooh I absolutely love chestnuts. My absolutely must ingredient in bak changs in fact, and herbal chicken. Chestnuts have seasons I think, as I only see them available during certain times of the year.
Yeah, Lillian, they are indeed very heaty and my thumbs are usually sore after eating a whole bagful of them, but what’s a few zits and sore thumbs when eating them is so pleasurable right?
Aunty,
Another way to roast it what my dad used to do when we were basically coffee addict and that was to buy coffee beans, add the chestnuts that you want to roast into a big wok and stir fry it with lots of golden churn butter!! yummy!!!
Is it true eating chestnut is “heaty”?
I love chestnut too. But only the Malaysian style. Used to buy a lot of in from the roadside hawker in SS14 PJ and also the small one from opposite Giant in Sunway Pyramid.The Aussie and the UK chestnut doesnt taste as good.
So more or less, belilah barangan buatan Malaysia.
I keep thinking of roasted chestnuts in Chicken Biryani Kurma (Like walnuts). Sure nice coz got smoky flavour.
Lilian mari cipta nasi beriani roasted chestnuts, or nasi minyak roasted chestnuts… mmmmm
Peeps remember you heard it here first (the roasted chestnut biryani/ nasi minyak).
I’m confident can!!!