Chestnut

Chestnuts date back to prehistoric times and have a remarkable history. Chestnuts are believed to have been planted by Romans and Alexander the Great during their European campaigns and it is believed that the Greek army survived by eating chestnuts during its retreat from Asia Minor from 401-399 B.C.

In America, the entire chestnut population was nearly wiped out by a fungus in the early 20th century. The devastation of the chestnut trees is known as the chestnut blight and the American production of chestnuts never regained its form as America is responsible for roughly one percent of the world’s chestnut production today.

All of the chestnut plants, however, are deciduous and its fruit is enclosed in a spiny yellow covering known as a cupule.

Chestnuts are commonly peeled and eaten raw but are also very often roasted where they develop a texture similar to a baked potato. Chestnuts can also be prepared deep-fried, candied, boiled, steamed or grilled.

Coming from the same family as oak, chestnut can be used as a timber which has a light brown coloring and is considered to be decorative. However, it is not as strong timber as oak and has a tendency to split.