Let’s Taste the Dark Chocolate
December 17th, 2015
Do you love dark chocolates..? Then you are doing some good for yourself. The dark chocolates are truly delicious. Consuming these chocolates can fetch you a bunch of other assets as well. It is highly nutritious and consists of iron, magnesium, copper, manganese, potassium and phosphorus. Dark chocolate can stimulate the production of nitric acid in our body. NO plays a dominant role in improving blood flow and regulating blood pressure. Minute amounts of dark chocolate are capable enough to minimize the risk of heart attack. It is also a good source of anti oxidants, which helps us to fight diabetes.
Manufacturing of dark chocolate
Ever wondered, why the dark chocolates are so delicious..? Having a closer look at their manufacturing process and ingredients used can let us know the ‘dark’ secrets. The production process is broadly divided into four phases, which are detailed below.
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- Cocoa beans:
Cocoa beans form the major ingredient of dark chocolates. After harvesting the cocoa pods, the beans are extracted by split opening the pods. Large boxes or baskets, which are lined with banana leaves, are used to store the beans and their surrounding fruit pulp. They are left undisturbed for 2 to 8 days. In this fermentation process, the beans absorb the fruity taste of the pulp. Further the beans are sun dried and the dying process is carried out where the pulp gets separated. The beans are packed into sacks and are prepared for shipping.
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- Roasting:
After shipping the beans to the chocolate factory, the cleaning process is carried out. The cleaned beans are roasted for some time period of 30 minutes to 2 hours at an elevated temperature of 250 to 350 degrees F. This entire roasting process is carried out in revolving drums. The range of time period and temperature has to be carefully chosen according to the moisture content in it. The bean shells are removed and resultant product is broken down to form nibs.
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- Chocolate liquor:
The nibs are made into fine powder and heated to form chocolate liquor, which is a thick paste. Cocoa powder is formed by removing the cocoa butter from the liquor. Low quality chocolates can be manufactured by the mixture of cocoa powder, sugar and vegetable fat. A mixture of cocoa butter, chocolate liquor, milk and sugar is used in the preparation of high quality chocolates. It is recommended to maintain at least 35 percent cocoa solids in the dark chocolate.
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- Finishing process:
A smooth texture is obtained by rolling process. Steel rollers are employed for this purpose of smoothing out the chocolate. The conching process is carried out in the last phase. The chocolate loses any traces of bitter ort acidic flavours in this process. Continuous mixing at an elevated temperature followed by grounding process increases the smoothness of the chocolate. The molten chocolate is cooled in a mould, where it takes the required shape.
Are you ready to taste the dark chocolate..? Oh wait..! Don’t you feel like sharing it with your loved ones..? You don’t have to worry if they are not with you right now. Send chocolates by post to them. It sends the gestures of your love and care for them.