Long ago, chestnut trees were plentiful in North America. In fact, they made up about a quarter of the native forest when European settlers arrived on these lands. The chestnuts were plentiful, delicious and free. This is the reason why the chestnut was so prominent in early American cooking. I love reading old cookbooks and recipe collections. I often try to adapt those recipes to modern kitchen ingredients and equipment, as well as our evolved taste buds. That’s exactly what I did with an old recipe for pork wrapped chestnut fritters.
Where are the chestnuts now? The North American variety is on the verge of extinction. It was wiped out by a disease carried by an imported tree in the early 20th century. Those abundant wild chestnuts no longer fill our forests. There are, however, many varieties of hybrid chestnuts that are grown on farms. So while you can’t pick chestnuts for free from the forest like early Americans did, you can find fresh chestnuts at many health food and specialty stores. This recipe is a bit complicated and time consuming, so it’s something I only make on holidays and other special occasions.
I have tried many different ways to cook these delights. I finally settled on my toaster oven. Why the toaster oven? The close proximity of the heating elements makes the bacon deliciously crispy. I tried to mimic this on my broiler, but the direct heat was too strong and didn’t offer enough ambient heat. The toaster oven provides an ideal cooking environment, with sufficient browning and sufficient ambient heat.
The ancient method of cooking bacon-wrapped chestnut fritters was to fry them in a pan over a fire in copious amounts of lard. Feel free to try if you are brave enough, the final product is spectacular. However, it is incredibly greasy and absolutely loaded with fat. There are also inherent dangers when using grease near an open flame. I’d like to think that early American cooks would have made their bacon-wrapped chestnut fritters in a toaster oven, if given that option.
Ingredients
2 dozen fresh chestnuts
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (you’ll get enough salt from the bacon)
1 small red onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound plus 16 slices of bacon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Addresses
Heat your toaster oven to 400 degrees F. Use the tip of a small paring knife to cut a small “x” into the flat side of each chestnut. Bake the chestnuts for 40 minutes. Remove them from the toaster oven and allow them to cool.
Heat the butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Cook onion and garlic until lightly browned; this should take about 3 minutes.
Place the cooled chestnuts in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a multi-purpose blade. Pulse until chopped. Add the cooked onions and garlic and freshly ground black pepper. Chop about a pound of bacon and add to the work bowl of the food processor. Process until everything is very well combined.
Cut each of the 16 slices of bacon in half and arrange them in an “X”. Divide the chestnut filling evenly among the 16 “X’s” of bacon and fold the bacon over to enclose the filling. Gently flatten each frit to 3/4-inch thickness. Cover the fritters tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. I like to prepare these fritters the day before and leave them in the fridge overnight.
Heat your toaster oven to 400 degrees F, with a baking sheet in the oven. Carefully place the bacon-wrapped chestnut fritters in the hot skillet and bake until golden brown and crisp; this should take about 45 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before serving. Enjoy!
The Best Toaster Oven for Making Bacon Wrapped Chestnut Fritters
This recipe involves raw pork, so having a toaster oven that cooks evenly is crucial. Check out Toaster Oven Reviews to find the best toaster oven for this recipe and much more. Look for a model that has been proven to cook evenly with no hot spots. Never cook raw pork in an appliance that has problems with hot and cold spots; it could lead to food poisoning.