Chestnuts and Rice

In Japan, this is an elegant dish, in season during October and November when chestnuts are large and flavorful. The traditional manner of preparation requires shelling raw nuts, which is a difficult and time-consuming task. The nutmeats are soaked in an alum solution to prevent discoloration, then rinsed and drained before being cooked with sweetened rice.

The version I’ve given here makes use of cooked chestnuts in syrup, which simplifies the preparation tremendously yet results i