"All about Chocolate"

Who doesn't like chocolate? Almost everyone, young, old, man, and woman, mostly like chocolate. Including my own self, I like chocolate, fond of it.

Today in the food processing technology class, we discuss chocolate. Start from the history of chocolate, the chemical compound, chocolate products processing, and many more.

The history of chocolate first known came from the Mayan and Aztec tribes. The cocoa (or cacao: sometimes I confused which one is correct. But it doesn't matter) fruit was common for Mayan and Aztec people. 

They drank chocolate (first known as an extract of cacao fruit diluted in water) as a bitter and spicy beverage called "xocoatl" (means: bitter water). 

Chocolate played an important role in their social and religious life. It symbolized life and fertility and was also used as medicine. It was a drink for wealthy and important people (royalty, priests, etc). Cocoa beans were also used as money (like in a barter system, and quite have high prices).

But nowadays, chocolate is consumed world wide. Switzerland becomes the biggest consumer for chocolate, following by Austria and Ireland. Even though Europe countries never cultivate cacao plants, but they are very famous for the chocolate products. For example is the Belgian Chocolate. 

They got cacao beans imported from Indonesia. So...still the classical problem for our country. In my opinion, it might be influenced by the habits of our people, who consumed chocolate not much as European. 

Maybe because of the high prices. Maybe because our people is easily satisfied with the processing. Or maybe not many people have the authorization or knowledge to process it further, to increase the value itself.

Actually, this is one of my dreams also, to make my own chocolate factory. Just hope it will have come true. Aamin.

Next. How many chocolate products you can mention?

Most of us only familiar with the chocolate bar, for example (sorry to mention some brands) Silverqueen, Cadburry, Tobleron, etc.

Before going further, I'd like to explain the processing of some chocolate products. Then we can know, how many products can be produced through the different process. Maybe you can also develop your own way to make your own chocolate product.

Chocolate is derived form cacao beans.

It first dries in the dryer, or most traditional farmer dry it in the open area by the help from sunshine. After drying, the beans are fermented naturally, to let enzymatic reaction which is important in developing the flavor of chocolate. After that, the dried fermented cacao beans are separated into to part: shell and nibs.

The separation process called winnowing. We mostly use the nibs, crush it, and make it into liquid. It is called Chocolate Liquor. 

Chocolate liquor then processed further. It can be separated into cocoa butter and cocoa powder. Cocoa butter is very expensive. Mostly chocolate we consume (especially the cheap one), used Chocolate substitutes as the source of the fat. 

Mainly the fats derived from plant oil, example palm kernel oil. Cocoa butter and powder then can be processed again into another chocolate products and confectioneries, such as chocolate bar, chocolate paste, as wafer filling, etc, mixed with other ingredients such as milk, lecithin, sucrose, and vanilla flavor.

There are also types of chocolate: dark chocolate and white chocolate. Dark chocolate means the whole chocolate, can be processed with alkalinization that makes the color of chocolate becomes dark. Meanwhile, white chocolate isn't chocolate with milk, but white chocolate is chocolate that mostly contains the fats.

Is chocolate is a mood booster? I would say, yes. Chemically, chocolate contains Theobromine, a stimulant that makes serotonin release in our body and induces the calm and relieves effect (anti-stress hormone).