Makes: 10 portions of garnish. Cooking time: 30 minutes. Oven temperature: 175 °C.
Ingredients:
— 1½ kg prepared chestnuts
— 50 grams butter
— ½ liter white stock
— 1 stick celery
— salt and pepper
Method:
(1) Butter a shallow sided saucepan and add the chestnuts. Barely cover with the stock and add the stick of celery and seasoning. Bring to the boil and cover with buttered greaseproof paper and a lid.
(2) Braise the chestnuts for the prescribed time until the nuts are soft yet remain whole.
(3) Remove the chestnuts from the liquor and place them in a basin to one side.
(4) Boil and reduce the liquor until it forms a syrupy glaze. Replace the chestnuts and carefully incorporate them into the glaze.
Notes:
(1) Once cooked and retained in the glaze they will disintegrate, especially if retained in a bain-marie for any length of time.
(2) It is prudent to retain the chestnuts in the stock in a refrigerator for further use rather than in the glazed stock. Reheating in the glaze may be difficult and cause them to fall to pieces.
(3) Reheating should be slow and carefully carried out to avoid breaking or puréeing the chestnuts.