Roasting Chestnuts

Needed: A chestnut-roasting pan, which is a thin-guage skillet with quarter-inch holes punched through the bottom -- quite a few.

Make a cut in the rounded side of each chestnut to keep them from exploding as they heat, put them in the pan, and set the pan over coals or a gas burner (low-medium flame; I've found it's much easier to clean up if you put a sheet of aluminum foil on your stove under the burner). Sprinkle the chestnuts with a little water, cover, and shake often to keep them from burning. They'll be done in about 8 minutes or so -- the skins pull back from the cuts and they look done. Wrap them in a couple of old towels, squeeze them to crush the skins, and let them steam in their own heat for 3-5 minutes.

From: Kyle in rec.food.cooking on Oct 26, 1998.