1. Chocolate Foods, Facts & Fallacies YSCN 0006

2. What is Chocolate? A brown sweet solid? A brown sweet drink? A wide range of confectionary An important flavour ingredient for food

3. Where does chocolate come from? Product of the Cacao tree Theobroma cacao Native of the American tropics Origin in the Amazon basin Widely planted to 20° from the equator

4. Chocolate Names Mayan; Xocoatl Aztec; Cacahuatl Mexican; Chocolatl God of chocolate, Quetzalcoatl

5. The spread of Cacao 1517Spaniards met chocolate 1600First introduced to Italy 1615Used in France 1650Brought to England 1670Grown in The Philippines 1800Grown in West Africa

7. The Cacao Tree Small tree 6 to 12m of the rain forest understorey Requires a lot of water Grows well in shade Dimorphic growth Cauliflorous flowers

10. Fertilisation Trees produce a vast number of flowers only 1 in 500 matures to a ripe fruit no nectar or scent, pollen sticky stigma and anthers concealed both self incompatible and compatible varieties pollination by flying midges only in 2 hours after dawn

12. Criollo –pods from green to red when ripe –cotyledons white Forastero –pods green to yellow –cotyledons purple Trinitario –Forastero x Criollo –colours variable

14. Cacao Fruit Take 5 months to develop 20-30 cm long with a thick husk contain 20 to 60 seeds seeds surrounded by a whitish acid/sweet pulp do not open or fall from tree when ripe seeds germinate rapidly, short viability

15. From Cacao to Cocoa Husk removed from ripe pods Fermented for 4 to 7 days to remove mucilage Temperature rises to 45°C Beans killed, pulp consumed by yeasts Brown colour of beans develops Loss of astringency, precursors of chocolate flavour produced

16. Processing the Cocoa Beans Drying to 20% moisture Roasting, 120°C, –further loss of water and acid, full development of characteristic chocolate aroma De-shelling Grinding to “nibs” End of process until 1828!

17. Consumption of ground Nibs Mayans & Aztecs Cold frothy drink Chilli & vanilla Europeans Hot drink with sugar Cinnamon, nutmeg 1700 milk added later added to cakes

18. Cocoa Butter Cacao beans, 30% water, 30% fat, Nibs 55% fat (1828) Van Houten –pressing, removes 80% of fat –provides chocolate powder for good drinking –treated + alkali to increase solubility –what to do with the fat, or Cocoa Butter?

19. A very special fat Solid at room temperature Melts at 35°C High content of stearate Very stable, –high content of natural antioxidants –tocopherols

20. The first solid chocolate Mix of cocoa butter, mass & sugar 1849 Fry’s chocolate bar Early products had very rough texture

21. From Cocoa to Chocolate Grinding, Cocoa Mass Roller refining Conching, 60°C, 5 days –(1870) Lindt in Switzerland –coating of particles with fat, controls viscosity Tempering, 50° - 27° - 32°C (1830) –control fat crystal sizes, critical to gloss & brittleness of finished chocolate

22. Hot Chocolate Molten chocolate is an emulsion of solid particles in a continuous phase of cocoa butter Particles mainly sugar & cocoa solids Viscosity is very sensitive to the addition of the emulsifier lecithin Low viscosity desirable for moulding

23. Milk Chocolate 1880Peter & Nestle in Switzerland –added condensed milk Cadbury in UK –added milk powder Hershey in US –added fresh milk

24. Types of Chocolate Definition, UK –minimum 18% cocoa butter, 35% cocoa solids, White chocolate, no cocoa mass added Dark or plain chocolate Milk chocolate, minimum 14% milk solids Filled chocolates (moulded) Chocolate coated products (enrobed)

25. Shaping Moulding, for traditional bars Shelling, for centred chocolates –uses mould for liquid soft centres Enrobing, (1901) coated products –centres pas on a continuous belt through a falling curtain of molten chocolate. Panning, for hard centres –mixed + chocolate in revolving drum

26. Not Chocolate Substitution of vegetable oil for cocao butter (permitted up to 5%) Adjust melting temp & viscosity with stabilisers and emulsifiers Carob chocolate –uses seed galactomannans, roasting gives brown colour.

27. Where is it eaten? 1 Switzerland10 kg pca –plain with high cocoa solids content 2 United Kingdom9 kg pca –milk with less cocoa fat 8 United States5 kg pca –dark with smokey flavour