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There are numerous books that discuss the history of chocolate, but one of the most interesting and complete is The True History of Chocolate, written by Sophie and Michael Coe (1996). If you are an avid chocolate lover, this book provides a rich, detailed history of chocolate as we know it today.
Chocolate's scientific name, Theobroma cacao, means food of the gods. The roots of chocolate stem from the cacao (pronounced kah KOW) tree. Areas in which the cacao tree is cultivated are found mostly in Central and South America, with many areas being once occupied by the Mayans and Aztecs. To these occupants, the beans of the cacao tree were so highly valued that the beans were used as currency when they were not being made into a drink. The Aztecs referred to this popular drink as xocoatl (xoco meaning better, and atl meaning water). It is reported that Montezuma, the Aztec leader, drank xocoatl from golden goblets that he then threw into the lake. Additionally, before the Aztecs performed a human sacrifice, they gave the person a last taste of xocoatl.
In the sixteenth century, Hernan Cortes (the Spanish conqueror of Mexico) brought cacao beans back to Spain. By the seventeenth century, chocolate had become the fashionable drink of Europe's wealthy. Maria Theresa, who married Louis XIV in 1660, had one servant whose sole function was to prepare her favorite chocolate drink. The English diarist Samuel Pepys, having spent the day and night celebrating the crowning of Charles II, headed to his favorite chocolate house where the owner "did give me a chocolate to settle my stomach." As more cacao beans were imported, both the taxes and the prices, fell until chocolate was no longer limited to the elite.
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| Areas in which the cacao tree is cultivated are found moutly in Central and South America. |
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Is is reported that Montezuma, the Aztec leader, drank xocoatl.
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For at least 28 centuries, chocolate had been a drink of the elite and the very rich. By the mid-20 th century, chocolate had been transformed into a solid food for the masses and available to anyone.
In 1828, a new era for modern chocolate use and modern chocolate making was achieved. It was that year in which a Dutch chemist by the name of Coenraad Johannes Van Houten requested a patent for a new manufacturing process. This new process resulted in a powdered chocolate that contained a low fat content. Van Houten’s de-fatting process then benefited the Bristol, England based J.S. Fry & Sons. In 1847, J.S. Fry & Sons discovered a way to mix a blend of cocoa powder and sugar with melted cacao butter instead of with warm water. This new process produced a thinner, less viscous paste that could be cast into a mold. By the mid-1800s, the first chocolate bar was made.
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The main ingredient used to make chocolate is the cocoa bean, which comes from the cacao tree. Cacao trees grow in South and Central America, Africa, and parts of Asia in warm, wet environments. The beans grow on the inside of cocoa pods (the fruit of the cacao tree) and are harvested by hand. Each pod contains anywhere from 20 to 60 seed (beans). In 2002/2003 the total production of cocoa beans was estimated at 2.8 to 2.9 million metric tons. 70 percent of the cocoa is produced in West Africa, 15 percent in the Americas and 15 percent in Asia (Coffee Tea, Etc.).
Once the cocoa pods are harvested and the cocoa beans removed, the beans are then fermented. This fermenting process lasts for approximately a week, upon which the beans are dried in the sun and then shipped to the chocolate maker. The chocolate maker begins by roasting the beans to bring out the flavor, similar to the way coffee beans are roasted. Different beans from different locations have their own unique qualities and flavors, so they are often sorted and blended to produce a distinctive mix. Each chocolate manufacturer has their own process or recipe for roasting the cocoa beans.
Next, the roasted beans are winnowed. Winnowing refers to the machine process that removes the meat (also known as the nib) of the cocoa bean from its shell. The winnowing machine (the winnower) first lightly cracks the beans between a set of small steel rollers, or similar apparatus. The bean and shell pieces are then sorted using a series of vibrating screens.
Once blended, roasted, and winnowed, the cocoa nibs are ground. The purpose of the grinding process is to first heat the chocolate mass so that it becomes liquid and forms what is commercially known as chocolate liquor. It should be noted that the term liquor in this case refers to “liquid” and not to alcohol.
Once the chocolate liquor has been formed, the mixture is put through giant presses, where the cocoa butter is separated out. The residue from this process is what is commonally referred to as cocoa powder or, as it is called in the chocolate trade, 'cocoa mass'. The cocoa powder or 'cocoa mass' can be sold as cocoa powder or it can be blended back with the cocoa butter (along with vanilla and soy lecithin) to produce eating chocolate.
Dark chocolate consists of cocoa mass that is combined with cocoa butter, vanilla, soy lecithin (which acts as an emulsifier) and varying amounts of sugar. Milk chocolate is a combination of the same ingredients in different proportions, plus powdered milk solids. White chocolate, a blend of cocoa butter, sugar, vanilla, milk solids and lecithin, is not really considered chocolate because it contains no chocolate liquor.
No matter which ingredients are used to make eating chocolate, the mixture must first travel through a series of heavy rollers. This process helps to refine the mixture to a smooth paste that is ready for "conching."
A conche is a type of container filled with the refined and blended chocolate mass. The process of conching develops the flavor of the chocolate through a process similar to kneading dough. In this process, heavy rollers move back and forth through the chocolate mass. The length of time given to the conching process determines the final smoothness and quality of the chocolate. Some of the finest chocolate is conched for a minimum of one week! Once this process is completed, the chocolate mass is stored in heated tanks at temperatures of 45-50°C, (113-122°F) until ready for final processing.
The final step in chocolate production is called tempering. Because cocoa butter naturally possesses an unstable crystal formation, the mass must be cooled very carefully to encourage the crystals to stabilize in the right order. For tempering, the chocolate mass is heated to approximately 45°C (113°F). This temperature can vary depending on the brand and type of chocolate (e.g., dark, milk, or white). The chocolate is then cooled to about 27°C (81°F) and then warmed up again to about 37°C (98.6°F).
The results from this process include a chocolate that has a “snap” to it when eaten, melts evenly in the mouth, and provides a gloss/shine to the finished product.
Two additional definitions pertaining to chocolate are couverture (meaning “covering” in French), and Ganache. Couverture chocolates are made with a high percentage of additional cocoa butter (generally at least 70 percent) which gives the chocolate a thinner consistency. Couvertures are used primarily for chocolate coatings (e.g., hand dipped chocolates). The term ganache is used to describe the blended mixture of chocolate, cream, and butter that is used for the filling in molded candies and truffles. Ganache is often blended with other flavors such as liquors, fruits, and nuts.
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| The principal ingredient in many of the commercially mass-produced chocolates has very little to do with actual chocolate of cocoa. |
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This process helps to refine the mixture to a smooth paste that is ready for "conching."
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In today’s global marketplace, the principal ingredient in many of the commercially mass-produced chocolates has very little to do with actual chocolate or cocoa. Often the first ingredients listed on the label of such products begin with sugar, vegetable oils, powdered milk and other additives, many of them artificial. In fact, the average cocoa content in these products is generally less than 20 percent by volume and can be as low as 7 percent. Unfortunately, such ingredients have contributed to chocolate's undeserved reputation as being fattening, tooth decaying and generally unhealthy.
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