Looking at chestnuts’ nutritional value, we can observe that for 100 grams, they are said to give around 180 calories. It is noted that this is in fact a lot lower than walnuts, almonds and other nuts – moreover dried fruits are said to be about 600 kcal for every 100 grams. They are said to have very little fat and what it is, is said to be unsaturated and without gluten in addition.
It is reported that their carbohydrate content is comparable with wheat and rice. Moreover, it it is said that there is double the amount of starch as potatoes have. In addition, it is said that sugars have around 8% for different sugars, that are in the majority sucrose, as well as glucose and fructose, plus to a smaller amount both stachyose, in addition to raffinose. In terms of their name, in some places they are also called “the bread tree”. At a time when they are just ripening, they may be largely starch and a lot firm to pressure by fingers, due to the high water content.
However, in regard to chestnuts’ nutritional value, as they begin to ripen, this starch is said to gradually change into sugars and also moisture content also starts to reduce. When the chestnut is squeezed. they can have a small “give” and the hull has less tension – plus in addition there is a small area between it and the flesh of the fruit. In this process, water is being substituted with sugars. Chestnuts are reported to possess vitamin C, giving around 40 mg for each 100g. When fresh, chestnuts may have approximately 52% water in relation to weight and it is said that this will quickly evaporate during storage – for instance, it is said that they can reduce by about 1% weight a day at 20 °C and with a 70% relative humidity.
As regards to how they may be eaten, they may be peeled and subsequently eaten raw – however it is asserted that they might be to some extent astringent, particularly if the pellicle is not extracted. Quite popularly, they may also be roasted which does not need peeling and once they are cooked, the texture can be said to be similar to a baked potato in addition to having a sweet flavour. Moreover, chestnuts can be made into flour. For instance in Corsica, they are made into fried fritters known as fritelli.
(reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chestnut)
