Shouchang Chestnuts

Shouchang Chestnuts

　　　Product origin: Jiande, Hangzhou City

　　Product features: Large and plump, glossy and reddish in color, with white, sweet, soft, and glutinous flesh—offering a unique and delicious flavor.

　　Product composition: 70.1% sugar and starch, 10.7% protein, 2.7% fat, along with various vitamins and minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, and iron. In particular, their content of vitamin C, vitamin B1, and carotene is higher than that of most other dried fruits.

　　Product benefits: Sweet in taste and warm in nature, non-toxic, these chestnuts strengthen the spleen and stomach, nourish kidney and bones, promote blood circulation, and help stop bleeding. They are suitable for chronic diarrhea due to a weak and cold spleen and stomach, weakness and soreness in the waist and knees, difficulty in movement, frequent urination caused by kidney deficiency, as well as sores, cuts, and swelling pains. Therefore, those with kidney deficiency may benefit from eating more chestnuts.

Product introduction: Chestnuts are one of the main forest specialty products in our city, cultivated in all towns and villages. Currently, the city has 60,000 mu of chestnut forests, with 30,000 mu under cultivation and an annual yield of over 1,300 tons. The main production areas include Shouchang, Yao Village, and Xin’anjiang, among others, with Shouchang chestnuts being the most famous—large, plump, glossy, reddish, with white, sweet flesh—and the highest quality.

　　As a woody grain, chestnuts are highly nutritious. Their fruit contains abundant carbohydrates, protein, and fat, roughly on par with rice and wheat, featuring fine flour texture and high amylopectin content. They can be eaten raw or cooked and stir-fried. When eaten raw, they are sweet, crisp, and refreshing; when air-dried, their sweetness intensifies. When cooked, they can be used in dishes such as chicken or meat, offering a delicious, fragrant, and sweet taste. As for candied or sugar-roasted chestnuts, they are sweet, soft, glutinous, and uniquely flavorful.

　　Product history: Chestnuts are a major agricultural and local specialty of Shouchang Town. By 1998, their cultivation had expanded to over 11,000 mu. Through collaboration with Zhejiang University and the use of CC33 preservation technology, the chestnuts remain sweet and fresh even by the time of the Spring Festival. They are popularly sold in cities such as Shanghai and Hangzhou.