Learn About Chocolate

In this episode of the I Can't Sleep Podcast, fall asleep learning about chocolate. You know, the food that used to be considered currency in South America. Oh, wait! You haven't listened to the episode yet. Well, what should I say now...spoiler alert?! Happy sleeping.

Transcript

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep podcast,

Where I read random articles from across the web to bore you to sleep with my soothing voice.

I'm your host,

Benjamin Boster.

Today's episode is from a Wikipedia article titled,

Chocolate.

Chocolate,

Or cocoa,

Is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid,

Solid,

Or paste,

Either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods.

Cacao has been consumed in some form for at least 5,

300 years,

Starting with the Maya Chinchip culture in what is present-day Ecuador.

Later Mesoamerican civilizations also consumed chocolate beverages before being introduced to Europe in the 16th century.

The seeds of the cacao tree have an intense bitter taste and must be fermented to develop the flavor.

After fermentation,

The seeds are dried,

Cleaned,

And roasted.

The shell is removed to produce cocoa nibs,

Which are then ground to cocoa mass,

An adulterated chocolate in rough form.

Once the cocoa mass is liquefied by heating,

It is called chocolate liquor.

The liquor may also be cooled and processed into its two components,

Cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

Baking chocolate,

Also called bitter chocolate,

Contains cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions without any added sugar.

Powdered baking cocoa,

Which contains more fibers than cocoa butter,

Can be processed with alkali to produce Dutch cocoa.

Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate,

A combination of cocoa solids,

Cocoa butter,

Or added vegetable oils and sugar.

Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk.

White chocolate contains cocoa butter,

Sugar,

And milk,

But no cocoa solids.

Chocolate is one of the most popular food types and flavors in the world,

And many foodstuffs involving chocolate exist,

Particularly desserts including cakes,

Pudding,

Mousse,

Chocolate brownies,

And chocolate chip cookies.

Many candies are filled with or coated with sweetened chocolate.

Chocolate bars,

Either made of solid chocolate or other ingredients either made of solid chocolate or other ingredients coated in chocolate,

Are eaten as snacks.

Gifts of chocolate molded into different shapes,

Such as eggs,

Hearts,

And coins,

Are traditional on certain Western holidays including Christmas,

Easter,

Valentine's Day,

And Hanukkah.

Chocolate is also used in cold and hot beverages,

Such as chocolate milk and hot chocolate,

And in some alcoholic drinks,

Such as creme de cacao.

Although cocoa originated in the Americas,

West African countries,

Particularly Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana,

Are the leading producers of cocoa in the 21st century,

Accounting for some 60% of the world cocoa supply.

Cocoa,

Pronounced by the Olmecs as kakwa,

Dates to 1000 BCE or earlier.

The word chocolate entered the English language from Spanish in about 1600.

The word entered Spanish from the word chocolatel in Nahuatl,

The language of the Aztecs.

The origin of the Nahuatl word is uncertain,

As it does not appear in any early Nahuatl source,

Where the word for chocolate drink is kakwa,

Cocoa water.

A widely cited proposal is that it derives from unattested huacalatl,

Meaning bitter drink.

It is unsupported.

Another proposed etymology derives it from the word chicolato,

Meaning beaten drink,

Which may derive from the word for the frothing stick,

Chicoli.

Other scholars reject all these proposals,

Considering the origin of first element of the name to be unknown.

The term chocolatier for a chocolate confectioner is attested from 1888.

The cocoa bean was first domesticated at least 5,

300 years ago in Equatorial South America from the Santa Ana La Florida S.

A.

L.

F.

Site and what is present-day Southeast Ecuador by the Mayochinchip culture before being introduced to Mesoamerica.

Chocolate has been prepared as a drink for nearly all of its history.

For example,

One vessel found at an Olmec archaeological site on the Gulf Coast of Veracruz,

Mexico,

Dates chocolate's preparation by pre-Olmec peoples as early as 1750 BCE.

On the Pacific coast of Chiapas,

Mexico,

A Mocayac archaeological site provides evidence of cocoa beverages dating even earlier to 1900 BCE.

The residues in the kind of vessel in which they were found indicate the initial use of cocoa was not simply as a beverage.

The white pulp around the cocoa beans was likely used as a source of fermentable sugars for an alcoholic drink.

An early classic period Maya tomb from the site in Rio Azul had vessels with the Maya glyph for cocoa on them with residue of a chocolate drink,

Which suggests that the Maya were drinking chocolate around 400 CE.

Documents in Maya hieroglyphs stated that chocolate was used for ceremonial purposes in addition to everyday life.

The Maya grew cacao trees in their backyards and used the cocoa seeds the trees produced to make a frosty,

Bitter drink.

By the 15th century,

The Aztecs had gained control of a large part of Mesoamerica and had adopted cocoa into their culture.

They associated chocolate with Quetzalcoatl,

Who according to one legend was cast away by the other gods for sharing chocolate with humans,

And identified its extrication from the pod with the removal of the human heart and sacrifice.

In contrast to the Maya who liked their chocolate warm,

The Aztecs drank it cold,

Seasoning it with a broad variety of additives,

Including the petals of the Simbopetula pendula florum tree,

Chili pepper,

Allspice,

Vanilla,

And honey.

The Aztecs were unable to grow cocoa themselves as their home in the Mexican highlands was unsuitable for it,

So chocolate was a luxury imported into the empire.

Those who lived in areas ruled by the Aztecs were required to offer cocoa seeds in payment of the tax they deemed tribute.

Cocoa beans were often used as currency.

For example,

The Aztecs used a system in which one turkey cost 100 cocoa beans and one fresh avocado was worth three beans.

Until the 16th century,

No European had ever heard of the popular drink from the Central American peoples.

Christopher Columbus and his son Ferdinand encountered the cocoa bean on Columbus's fourth mission to the Americas on the 15th of August 1502,

When he and his crew stole a large native canoe that proved to contain cocoa beans among other goods for trade.

Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés may have been the first European to encounter it,

As the frosty drink was part of the after-dinner routine of Montezuma.

José de Acosta,

A Spanish Jesuit missionary who lived in Peru and then Mexico in the later 16th century,

Wrote of its growing influence on the Spaniards.

Although bananas are more profitable,

Cocoa is more highly esteemed in Mexico.

Cocoa is a smaller fruit than almonds and thicker,

Which toasted do not taste bad.

It is so prized among the Indians and even among Spaniards,

Because since it is a dried fruit,

It can be stored for a long time without deterioration.

And they bring ships loaded with them from the province of Guatemala.

It also serves as currency,

Because with five cocos you can buy one thing,

With thirty another,

And with a hundred something else,

Without there being contradiction.

And they give these cocos as alms to the poor who beg for them.

The principal product of this cocoa is a concoction which they make that they call chocolate,

Which is a crazy thing treasured in that land,

And those who are not accustomed are disgusted by it.

Anyway,

It is the prized beverage which the Indians offer to nobles who come to or pass through their lands.

And the Spaniards,

Especially Spanish women born in those lands,

Die for black chocolate.

This aforementioned chocolate is said to be made in various forms and temperaments,

Hot,

Cold,

And lukewarm.

They are wont to use spices and much chili.

They also make it into a paste,

And it is said that it is a medicine to treat coughs,

The stomach,

And colds.

Whatever may be the case,

In fact,

Those who have not been reared in this opinion are not appetized by it.

While Columbus had taken cocoa beans with him back to Spain,

Chocolate made no impact until Spanish friars introduced it to the Spanish court.

Agustín Farfán,

A former court physician and friar in New Spain,

Entrotado breve de medicina,

First introduced cocoa,

Derived from cacao,

Native to New Spain,

To Europe with a medical use,

Digestion.

Through the 17th and 18th centuries,

Doctors affirmed the healthy effects of chocolate,

Consequently boosting the import of chocolate and introducing its consumption in Europe.

After the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs,

Chocolate was imported to Europe.

There it quickly became a court favorite.

It was still served as a beverage,

But the Spanish added sugar,

As well as honey,

The original sweetener used by the Aztecs for chocolate,

To counteract the natural bitterness.

Vanilla,

Another indigenous American introduction,

Was also a popular additive,

With pepper and other spices,

Sometimes used to give the illusion of a more potent vanilla flavor.

Unfortunately,

These spices tended to unsettle the European constitution.

The Encyclopedia states,

The pleasant scent and sublime taste it imparts to chocolate had made it highly recommended,

But a long experience having shown that it could potentially upset one's stomach,

Which is why chocolate without vanilla was sometimes referred to as a healthy chocolate.

By 1602,

Chocolate had made its way from Spain to Austria.

By 1662,

Pope Alexander VII had declared that religious fasts were not broken by consuming chocolate drinks.

Within about a hundred years,

Chocolate established a foothold throughout Europe.

Despite the drink remaining the traditional form of consumption for a long time,

Solid chocolate was increasingly consumed since the 18th century.

Tablets facilitating the consumption of chocolate under its solid form have been produced since the early 19th century.

Kehler,

1819,

And Menier,

1836,

Are early examples.

In 1830,

Chocolate is paired with hazelnuts,

An innovation due to Kohler.

Meanwhile,

New processes that sped the production of chocolate emerged early in the Industrial Revolution.

In 1815,

Dutch chemist Conrad van Houten introduced alkaline salts to chocolate,

Which reduced its bitterness.

A few years thereafter,

In 1828,

He created a press to remove about half the natural fat,

Cocoa butter,

From chocolate liquor,

Which made chocolate both cheaper to produce and more consistent in quality.

This innovation introduced the modern era of chocolate,

Allowing the mass production of both pure cocoa butter and cocoa powder.

Known as Dutch cocoa,

This machine-pressed chocolate was instrumental in the transformation of chocolate to its solid form,

When,

In 1847,

English chocolatier Joseph Fry discovered a way to make chocolate more easily moldable,

When he mixed the ingredients of cocoa powder and sugar with melted cocoa butter.

Subsequently,

In 1866,

His chocolate factory Fry's launched the first mass-produced chocolate bar,

Fry's Chocolate Cream,

And they became very popular.

Milk had sometimes been used as an addition to chocolate beverages since the mid-17th century,

But in 1875,

Swiss chocolatier Daniel Peter invented milk chocolate by mixing a powdered milk developed by Henri Nestle with the liquor.

In 1879,

The texture and taste of chocolate was further improved,

When Rudolf Lind invented the conching machine.

Besides Nestle,

Several notable chocolate companies had their start in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Roundtrees of York set up and began producing chocolate in 1862,

After buying out the Toucq family business.

Cadbury of Birmingham was manufacturing box chocolates in England by 1868.

Manufacturing their first Easter egg in 1875,

Cadbury created the modern chocolate Easter egg after developing a pure cocoa butter that could easily be molded into smooth shapes.

In 1893,

Milton S.

Hershey purchased chocolate processing equipment at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago,

And soon began the career of Hershey's chocolates with chocolate-coated caramels.

Several types of chocolate can be distinguished.

Pure,

Unsweetened chocolate,

Often called baking chocolate,

Contains primarily cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions.

Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate,

Which combines chocolate with sugar.

The traditional types of chocolate are dark,

Milk,

And white.

All of them contain cocoa butter,

Which is the ingredient defining the physical properties of chocolate,

Consistency,

And melting temperature.

Plain or dark chocolate,

As its name suggests,

Is a form of chocolate that is similar to pure cocoa liquor,

Although is usually made with a slightly higher proportion of cocoa butter.

It is simply defined by its cocoa percentage.

In milk chocolate,

The non-fat cocoa solids are mostly replaced by milk solids.

In white chocolate,

They are all replaced by milk solids,

Hence its ivory color.

Other forms of eating chocolate exist.

These include raw chocolate,

Made with unroasted beans,

And ruby chocolate.

An additional popular form of eating chocolate,

Janduja,

Is made by incorporating nut paste,

Typically hazelnut,

To the chocolate paste.

Other types of chocolate are used in baking and confectionery.

These include baking chocolate,

Often unsweetened,

Coverture chocolate,

Used for coating,

Compound chocolate,

A lower-cost alternative,

And modeling chocolate.

Modeling chocolate is a chocolate paste made by melting chocolate and combining it with corn syrup,

Glucose syrup,

Or golden syrup.

The sequencing in 2010 of the genome of the cacao tree may allow yields to be improved.

Due to concerns about global warming effects on lowland climate in the narrow band of latitude where cocoa is grown,

20 degrees north and south of the equator,

The commercial company Mars,

Inc.

And the University of California,

Berkeley,

Are conducting genomic research in 2017 and 18 to improve the survivability of cacao plants in hot climates.

Chocolate is made from cocoa beans,

The dried and fermented seeds of the cacao tree,

A small 4 to 8 meter tall evergreen tree native to the deep tropical region of the Americas.

Recent genetic studies suggest the most common genotype of the plant is the Recent genetic studies suggest the most common genotype of the plant originated in the Amazon Basin and was gradually transported by humans throughout South and Central America.

Early forms of another genotype have also been found in what is now Venezuela.

The scientific name Theobroma means food of the gods.

The fruit called a cocoa pod is ovoid,

15 to 30 centimeters long and 8 to 10 centimeters wide,

Ripening yellow to orange,

And weighing about 500 grams when ripe.

Cacao trees are small,

Understory trees that need rich,

Well-drained soils.

They naturally grow within 20 degrees of either side of the equator because they need about 2,

000 millimeters of rainfall a year and temperatures in the range of 21 to 32 degrees Celsius.

Cacao trees cannot tolerate a temperature lower than 15 degrees Celsius.

The three main varieties of cocoa beans used in chocolate are Criollo,

Forastero,

And Trinitario.

Cocoa pods are harvested by cutting them from the tree using a machete or by knocking them off the tree using a stick.

It is important to harvest the pods when they are fully ripe because if the pod is unripe,

The beans will have a low cocoa butter content or low sugar content,

Reducing the ultimate flavor.

The beans which are sterile within their pods and their surrounding pulp are removed from the pods and placed in piles or bins to ferment.

Microorganisms present naturally in the environment ferment the pectin-containing material.

Yeasts produce ethanol.

Lactic acid bacteria produce lactic acid,

And acetic acid bacteria produce acetic acid.

In some cocoa-producing regions,

An association between filamentous fungi and bacteria,

Called cocobiota,

Act to produce metabolites beneficial to human health when consumed.

The fermentation process,

Which takes up to seven days,

Also produces several flavor precursors that eventually provide the chocolate taste.

After fermentation,

The beans must be dried to prevent mold growth.

Climate and weather permitting,

This is done by spreading the beans out in the sun from five to seven days.

In some growing regions,

For example,

Tobago,

The dried beans are then polished for sale by dancing the cocoa,

Spreading the bean onto a floor,

Adding oil or water,

And shuffling the beans against each other using bare feet.

Moist incubation.

In this alternative process,

The beans are dried without fermentation.

The nibs are then removed and hydrated in an acidic solution.

They are heated for 72 hours and dried again.

Gas chromatography mass spectrometry showed that the incubated chocolate had higher levels of strecker aldehydes and lower levels of pyrazines.

Grinding and blending.

The dried beans are then transported to a chocolate manufacturing facility.

The beans are cleaned,

Removing twigs,

Stones,

And other debris,

Roasted,

And grated.

Next,

The shell of each bean is removed to extract the nib.

The nibs are ground and liquefied,

Resulting in pure chocolate liquor.

The liquor can be further processed into cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

Chocolate liquid is blended with the cocoa butter in varying quantities to make different types of chocolate or couverture.

The basic blends of ingredients for the various types of chocolate,

In order of highest quantity of cocoa liquor first,

Are dark chocolate,

Sugar,

Cocoa butter,

Cocoa liquor,

And sometimes vanilla.

Milk chocolate,

Sugar,

Cocoa butter,

Cocoa liquor,

Milk or milk powder,

And vanilla.

White chocolate,

Sugar,

Cocoa butter,

Milk or milk powder,

And vanilla.

Usually an emulsifying agent,

Such as soy lecithin,

Is added,

Though a few manufacturers prefer to exclude this ingredient for purity reasons and to remain GMO-free,

Sometimes at the cost of a perfectly smooth texture.

Some manufacturers are now using PGPR,

An artificial emulsifier derived from castor oil that allows them to reduce the amount of cocoa butter while maintaining the same mouthfeel.

The texture is also heavily influenced by processing,

Specifically conching.

The more expensive chocolate tends to be processed longer and thus has a smoother texture and mouthfeel,

Regardless of whether emulsifying agents are added.

Different manufacturers develop their own signature blends based on the above formulas,

But varying proportions of the different constituents are used.

The finest,

Plain dark chocolate couverture contains at least 70% cocoa,

Both solids and butter,

Whereas milk chocolate usually contains up to 50%.

High quality white chocolate couverture contains only about 35% cocoa butter.

Producers of high quality small batch chocolate argue that mass production produces bad quality chocolate.

Some mass-produced chocolate contains much less cocoa,

As low as 7% in many cases,

And fats other than cocoa butter.

Vegetable oils and artificial vanilla flavor are often used in cheaper chocolate to mask poorly fermented and or roasted beans.

In 2007,

The Chocolate Manufacturers Association in the United States,

Whose members include Hershey,

Nestle,

And Archer Daniels Midland,

Lobbied the Food and Drug Administration,

FDA,

To change the legal definition of chocolate to let them substitute partially hydrated vegetable oils for cocoa butter,

In addition to using artificial sweeteners and milk substitutes.

Currently,

The FDA does not allow a product to be referred to as chocolate if the product contains any of these ingredients.

In the EU,

A product can be sold as chocolate if it contains up to 5% vegetable oil and must be labeled as family milk chocolate rather than milk chocolate if it contains 20% milk.

According to Canadian food and drug regulations,

A chocolate product is a food product that is sourced from at least one cocoa product and contains at least one of the following chocolate,

Bittersweet chocolate,

Semi-sweet chocolate,

Dark chocolate,

Sweet chocolate,

Milk chocolate,

Or white chocolate.

A cocoa product is defined as a food product that is sourced from cocoa beans and contains cocoa nibs,

Cocoa liquor,

Cocoa mass,

Unsweetened chocolate,

Bitter chocolate,

Chocolate liquor,

Cocoa,

Low-fat cocoa,

Cocoa powder,

Or low-fat cocoa powder.

The penultimate process is called conching.

A conch is a container filled with metal beads,

Which act as grinders.

The refined and blended chocolate mass is kept in a liquid state by a frictional heat.

Chocolate before conching has an uneven and gritty texture.

The conching process produces cocoa and sugar particles smaller than the tongue can detect and reduces rough edges,

Hence the smooth feel in the mouth.

The length of the conching process determines the final smoothness and quality of the chocolate.

High quality chocolate is conched for about 72 hours and lesser grades about 4 to 6 hours.

After the process is complete,

The chocolate mass is stored in tanks heated to about 45 to 50 degrees Celsius until final processing.

The final process is called tempering.

Uncontrolled crystallization of cocoa butter typically results in crystals of varying size,

Some or all large enough to be 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 results of consistently small cocoa butter crystals produced by the tempering process.

The fats in cocoa butter can crystallize in six different forms.

The primary purpose of tempering is to assure that only the best form,

Type 5,

Is present.

The six different crystal forms have different properties.

Crystal 1,

Melting temperature 17 degrees Celsius,

Soft,

Crumbly,

Melts too easily.

Crystal 2,

Melting temperature 21 degrees Celsius,

Soft,

Crumbly,

Melts too easily.

Crystal 3,

Melting temperature 26 degrees Celsius,

Firm,

Or snap,

Melts too easily.

Crystal 4,

Melting temperature 28 degrees Celsius,

Firm,

Good snap,

Melts too easily.

Crystal 5,

Melting temperature 34 degrees Celsius,

Glossy,

Firm,

Best snap,

Melts near body temperature,

37 degrees Celsius.

Crystal 6,

Melting temperature 36 degrees Celsius,

Hard,

Takes weeks to form.

As a solid piece of chocolate,

The cocoa butter fat particles are in a crystalline rigid structure that gives the chocolate its solid appearance.

Once heated,

The crystals of the polymorphic cocoa butter can break apart from the rigid structure and allow the chocolate to obtain a more fluid consistency as the temperature increases the melting process.

When the heat is removed,

The cocoa butter crystals become rigid again and come closer together,

Allowing the chocolate to solidify.

The temperature in which the crystals obtain enough energy to break apart from their rigid conformation would depend on the milk fat content in the chocolate and the shape of the fat molecules as well as the form of the cocoa butter fat.

Chocolate with a higher fat content will melt at a lower temperature.

Making chocolate considered good is about forming as many type 5 crystals as possible.

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.

Generally,

The chocolate is first heated to 45 degrees Celsius to melt all six forms of crystals.

Next,

The chocolate is cooled to about 27 degrees Celsius,

Which will allow crystal types 4 and 5 to form.

At this temperature,

The chocolate is agitated to create many small crystal seeds,

Which will serve as nuclei to create small crystals in the chocolate.

The chocolate is then heated to about 31 degrees Celsius to eliminate any type 4 crystals,

Leaving just type 5.

After this point,

Any excessive heating of the chocolate will destroy the temperature and this process will have to be repeated.

Other methods of chocolate tempering are used as well.

The most common variant is introducing already tempered solid seed chocolate.

The temper of chocolate can be measured with a chocolate temper meter to ensure accuracy and consistency.

A simple cup is filled with the chocolate and placed in the unit which then displays or prints the results.

Two classic ways of manually tempering chocolate are working the molten chocolate on a heat absorbing surface,

Such as a stone slab,

Until thickening indicates the presence of sufficient crystal seeds.

The chocolate is then gently warmed to working temperature.

Stirring solid chocolate into molten chocolate to inoculate the liquid chocolate with crystals,

This method uses the already formed crystals of the solid chocolate to seed the molten chocolate.

Chocolate tempering machines or temperers with computer controls can be used for producing consistently tempered chocolate.

In particular,

Continuous tempering machines are used in large volume applications.

Various methods and apparatuses for continuous flow tempering.

In general,

Molten chocolate coming in at 40 to 50 degrees Celsius is cooled in heat exchangers to crystallization temperatures of about 26 to 30 degrees Celsius,

Passed through a tempering column consisting of spinning plates to induce shear,

Then warming slightly to remelt undesirable crystal formations.

Reviews

As a chocoholic I was worried that I would not get to sleep 😴 however I was wrong 🤭🥱😴

Extremely enjoyable yet boring subject!! Thanks again!

Great and please may you do a l LGBTQ+ meditation for pride Month?

Thankfully it didn’t make me crave chocolate!! 😂
Thank you!!☺️

Being a chocoholic I thought this one might cause me to get up and find some to eat, but no, it was boring and repetitive enough to put me to sleep. Thanks so much, Ben.