Place chestnuts in a colander and rinse under cold running water. Drain.

Place the flat side of the chestnut down on a cutting board with the rounded side facing up. Hold the chestnut firmly and using a sharp knife (or a chestnut knife, if you have one) cut it horizontally across the rounded side to make a small incision (about ½ to 1 inch). Turn it 90 degrees and score once again, making an X. As you are cutting, make sure you are cutting through the inner skin without going too much into the yellow flesh. Continue with the rest of the chestnuts.

Fill a saucepan with water and bring it to a rolling boil. Place the scored chestnuts into the boiling water and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the scored section opens up and the inside of the chestnut is exposed.

To check doneness, carefully remove one chestnut and peel to check if the yellow nut inside is fully cooked. If it is not fully cooked, cook it for another 3-4 minutes, checking doneness during the boiling process once or twice.

Do not discard the hot water.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer boiled chestnuts into a bowl and let them cool for 10 minutes. When still hot, but somewhat cool enough to handle, peel chestnuts one by one first starting with the outer shell and then removing the inner skin. If you have a hard time removing the fuzzy skin, put them back in the hot water for a few more minutes or use a paring knife to remove it as much as you can.

Alternatively, if it is hard to peel, you can cut it in the middle and remove the flesh using a small spoon and collect the boiled chestnuts in a bowl. You will end up with broken pieces but it will still be delicious.