Ilze's Chocolat - What is Chocolate?

The Aztecs introduced cacao to the Spaniards, who took it back to Europe in the 16th century. But, as it was very expensive, only the rich could afford it, until modern chocolate manufacturing made the product cheaper, allowing more people to buy chocolate.

The flavour of chocolate differs depending on the ingredients used and how it is prepared. Real chocolate is made from cacao and its ingredients include cacao butter, an expensive part of the cacao bean. Compound chocolate is made, instead, with vegetable oils and doesn't have the same fine qualities as real chocolate.

'Theobromo cacao' - The Cacao Tree

A little like an apple tree in size and shape, the cacao tree grows best under the canopy of tropical rainforests. A native of the Central and South American rainforests, cacao trees are now cultivated in many tropical locations around the world. The cacao tree has broad, dark leaves about 25 centimeters long, and pale-coloured flowers from which bean pods grow.

Cacao beans

The cacao tree bears two harvests of cacao pods per year. Around 20 centimeters in length and half a kilogram in weight, the pods ripen to a rich, golden-orange colour. Within each pod are 40-50 beans covered in a sweet white pulp. The cacao beans are purple in colour and two centimeters long. The raw beans undergo a lengthy process to prepare them for chocolate making.

Processing the cacao bean

Processing cacao beans ready for chocolate making involves six to seven main steps:

Fermentation: After harvest, the beans are fermented in heaps or 'sweating' boxes for about two days. During fermentation the cacao pulp clinging to the beans matures and turns into a liquid.

Drying and bagging: Fermented cacao beans are dried either in the sun or artificially.

Winnowing: The dried beans are cracked and a stream of air separates the shell from the nib, which is the part used to make chocolate.

The dried beans are transported from the plantation where they were grown to a chocolate manufacturing facility. The beans are then cleaned (removing twigs, stones, and other debris), roasted, and graded. Next the shells are removed to extract the nib. Finally, the nibs are ground which releases and melts the cacao butter producing chocolate liquor.

Roasting: The nibs are roasted in special ovens at temperatures between 105 and 120 degrees Celsius. Roasting helps develop the chocolate flavour and aroma, removes moisture and darkens the colour to a rich, dark brown.

Grinding: The roasted nibs are ground to produce a fluid called cacao mass, the main ingredient for chocolate making.

Pressing: The cacao mass is pressed in powerful press machines to extract the cacao butter, vital to making chocolate. A cacao solid called presscake is left, and when this is milled it makes cacao powder, which is used for drinking chocolate and cooking.

There is a final process which is called tempering: Uncontrolled crystallization of cacao butter typically results in crystals of varying size, some large enough to be clearly seen with the naked eye. This causes the surface of the chocolate to appear mottled and matte, and causes the chocolate to crumble rather than snap when broken. The uniform sheen and crisp bite of properly processed chocolate are the result of consistently small cacao butter crystals produced by the tempering process. This provides the best appearance and texture and creates the most stable crystals so the texture and appearance will not degrade over time. To accomplish this, the temperature is carefully manipulated during the crystallization. The fats in cacao butter can crystallize in six different forms (polymorphous crystallization). The primary purpose of tempering is to assure that only the best form is present.

The cacao mass, cacao butter and cacao powder are then quality inspected and shipped, ready to be made into chocolate.

Classification of Chocolate

Pure, unsweetened chocolate contains primarily cacao solids and cacao butter in varying proportions. Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, combining chocolate with sugar. Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk.

Following is an indication of the ingredients in the various types of chocolate:

Dark chocolate: sugar, cacao butter, cacao liquor, and (sometimes) vanilla
Milk chocolate: sugar, cacao butter, cacao liquor, milk or milk powder, and vanilla
White chocolate: sugar, cacao butter, milk or milk powder, and vanilla

However this is just a guideline because different manufacturers develop their own "signature" blends based on the above formulas, but varying proportions of the different ingredients are used.

The finest, plain dark chocolate couvertures contain at least 70% cacao (both solids and butter), whereas milk chocolate usually contains up to 50%. High-quality white chocolate couvertures contain only about 33% cacao.

And because variety is the spice of life...

Ingredients like fruit, nuts, liquor, nougat and biscuit or anything your imagination desires are used in ranges of tasty treats, combined with chocolate.

Chocolate has become one of the most popular flavors in the world. Gifts of chocolate molded into different shapes have become traditional on certain holidays: chocolate bunnies and eggs are popular on Easter, chocolate coins on Hanukkah, Santa Claus and other holiday symbols on Christmas, and hearts on Valentine's Day. Chocolate is also used in cold and hot beverages, to produce chocolate milk and hot chocolate.

Storing

Chocolate is very sensitive to temperature and humidity. Ideal storage temperatures are between 15 and 17°C (59 to 63°F), with a relative humidity of less than 50%. Chocolate should be stored away from other foods as it can absorb different aromas. Ideally, chocolates are packed or wrapped, and placed in proper storage (for example, a wine refrigerator) with the correct humidity and temperature. Additionally chocolate should be stored in a dark place or protected from light by wrapping paper. Various types of "blooming" effects can occur if chocolate is stored or served improperly. If refrigerated or frozen without containment, chocolate can absorb enough moisture to cause a whitish discoloration, the result of fat or sugar crystals rising to the surface. Moving chocolate from one temperature extreme to another, such as from a refrigerator on a hot day, can result in an oily texture. Although visually unappealing, chocolate suffering from bloom is perfectly safe for consumption.

What is Chocolate?