I have been forced to flee my kitchen

[rachelmanija]

I attempted to roast some chestnuts. You will be unsurprised to hear that they exploded.

(Yes, I cut the little X into them.)

Comments

[lilacsigil]

The song didn't say anything about exploding! (I've never eaten a roasted chestnut, though, so I may not be an authority here.)

[st_aurafina]

Omg, they can make a fairly brutal kind of projectile, too. I hope you're okay!

[rachelmanija]

Oven door was closed. I turned it off, stood to the side, opened it, and fled to the other room before anything could hit me.

[mildred_of_midgard]

Chestnuts 'sploding on an open fire
Shrapnel nipping at your nose

[rachelmanija]

Ha ha ha.

[mildred_of_midgard]

I'm glad the shrapnel did not actually nip at your nose. Better luck next time!

[likeadeuce]

I tried this on Christmas and was not impressed with the results, although looking back I can now be grateful they did not explode.

[thistleingrey]

I haven't figured out the roasting, either. (Usually now I boil them.)

[rachelmanija]

Wise of you. That didn't even occur to me.

[karalee]

My parents do the same. Possibly for this reason, I wonder...

[eglantiere]

only you, dude :D

[princessofgeeks]

YIKES

[yhlee]

Oh man, I'm so sorry!

If you ever visit Seoul in the winter, buy roast chestnuts from the street vendors. They are universally wonderful. (I don't know what their non-explosion secret is, though.)

[rachelmanija]

I love them from vendors! Hence my total fail attempting to recreate that delightful experience.

[yhlee]

I think my mom used to make them sometimes (but it was usually so much easier just to buy them from the street vendors--Korean street vendors are delightful). I will email her and ask her what her secret was, although I can't guarantee that I will be able to translate the response. (She emails me in Korean.)

[mme_hardy]

Last week I went to the local Japanese stripmall (sort of a Japantown in a mall) and they were selling hot roast chestnuts from a cart outside. You might check that out sometime if they're seasonal for winter.

[rachelmanija]

I got them at the Japanese market but they only had them uncooked, alas.

cutest cooking video: exploding gnocci

[marycontrary]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkXy12xVnRs

no one is injured. his laugh is my favorite

[twistedchick]

It's been a few years since I roasted them, but I cut through the outer skin -- not a small X but a long slice -- and soaked them in water for an hour or two -- because they are always a bit dehydrated -- and then covered the hot chestnuts with a wet towel so they steamed. It worked. I don't have temperatures and times immediately available but I can find them if you want. I also steam-cooked them in the microwave, same principle. They always came out delicious and none exploded.

[rachelmanija]

Hmm. We'll see how brave I am.

[twistedchick]

You may also be able to get pre-cooked chestnuts at Trader Joe's or World Market or other places with European food imports -- if I had a steady supply of them I'd be tempted to live on chestnut mousse, chestnut cookies and chestnut-flour nutbread.

[movingfinger]

I bet soaking/freshness matters a lot. They get pretty husky and dried-out sitting in US groceries.

[mme_hardy]

"It could only happen to Rachel...."

[movingfinger]

That happened to me too when I tried it! uh I guess the X has to be really deep? What a mess.

I buy the pre-done peeled ones now if I need them for a recipe.

[dhampyresa]

Rachel arrives at kitchen
Fire: On
Chestnuts: Exploding
Rachel is forcibly removed from kitchen

[lovepeaceohana]

I managed to smoke the shit out of some chickpeas the other day, so, yay kitchen fails?

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Were you using a microwave or an oven? (Which interior is now covered with fluffy chestnut innards?)

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

Oven.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

The stuff you peel off the oven walls will still be delicious, probably.

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

No, it overcooked. This was not one of my better efforts. I got half exploding and half failed to crack.

[thornsilver]

I love the tag to this post. Do you have a separate tag for exploding diary products?

[lorata.livejournal.com]

since you asked... XD

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

Yes, and I added it to its other inspiration, which was even more dramatic.

[lorata.livejournal.com]

I am very sympathetic but also giggling because the title of this post is very Aaron Burr vs. the bedbugs.

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

I know. By the way, the tag you mention has now also been applied to its other inspiration for convenient searching.

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

Eep! Glad it sounds like there was no serious damage to anything important!

[carbonel]

I don't know if this was what caused your problem, but I discovered (yes, the hard way) that the little x has to be cut pretty darned deep in the chestnut to have any efficacy.

The third batch of chestnuts was delicious.