3.3.4 Supporting Evidence: Chocolate History

Steeped in magic and mystery, the origin and etymology of chocolate is debated.  From shards of pottery, it is clear that over 4000 years ago, there were cacao ceremonies in south central Mexico.    Cacao was traditionally used exclusively medicinally and ceremonially as a beverage.   The Olmecs, apparently, were the first to cultivate orchards of cacao trees. The Mayans eventually turned it into currency demanding tribute from colonies in cacao beans.  (See The cacao economy box).
Cortes arrived in and he was the first European to encounter the elaborate cacao ritual imbuing power and aphrodisiacal effect at Montezumas palace.  Our understanding is that all of these cultures either ate the cacao bean whole or would drink after elaborate processing.  Occasionally mixed with cornmeal to thicken; cacao was a purely savory tradition.
Etymologists debate various Mayan and Aztec words that could be the predecessor of the European chocolate.  Mayan and other mesoamerican languages used the word kakaw from which Linnaeus created the Latin binomial Theobroma (drink of the gods) Cacao.   My favorite etymology for "chocolate" is the Mayan verb chokola’j — which means to drink chocolate together.  Embedded in the very word of chocolate is building relationship.

    •    Numbers are estimates unless have a > and EU or USDA then they are legislated.
    •    Milk powder, lecithin and vanilla are the only common ingredients in chocolate not on this chart
    •    In the U.S, cacao butter is the only fat that can be used in a product we call chocolate; whereas, in Europe, they can use up to 5% of “other fats : typically illipe, shea, palm, mango kernel or mangosteen.  However, in the US, up to .3% can be a synthetic derivative of castor oil used as an emulsifier .
    •    Typically for a bar of chocolate we add more cacao butter than is in the bean and EVEN more for couverture to make it slippery and good at coating.
    •    Bittersweet chocolate of 70% could be different levels of bitterness for 2 reasons: the beans themselves could be more/less bitter and the ratio of cocoa solids: cocoa butter could be different (70% cocoa mass (more bitter) to 60% cocoa mass + 10% cocoa butter.)
    •    Semi Sweet since it’s used generally for chocolate chips often has a lower content of cocoa butter to keep them from melting too much.
    •    Be careful of “made with chocolate” or “chocolatey” which is the multinationals putting hydrogenated oils in your chocolate.  The US still won’t allow any other fat.

Cocoa beans  — can only be written on the bar if the chocolatier is also a chocolate maker.   The artisan producer of the bar started with the bean.  Many chocolatiers buy cocoa liquor.
Cocoa butter —

• Edible fat in the cocoa bean that melts in our mouth (at about 94 degrees.)
• More fat is added to the cocoa liquor to make a bar of chocolate.  
• Good for cosmetics and medicinal suppositories -- melts at skin temp.
• Melts between 93 and 101 (melt in your mouth or suppository) = crucial to keep temperature below 93 once you have tempered your chocolate or you will bloom the cocoa butter
• Cocoa butter percentage and hardness vary based on the region it is grown.  Generally, the closer to the equator, the harder the cocoa butter and easier to work with after tempering because slightly wider range.

Cocoa liquor/ Cocoa mass/ Unsweetened Bakers chocolate/ Cocoa paste—
This is how we refer to the bean or nib after it has gone through Fermentation, Roasting, Dehulling and Grinding process
No sugar, no alcohol, nothing but ground fermented, roasted cacao.
Liquor is liquified after the grinding referred to as paste or mass
Cocoa solids / cocoa powder —
The solids (brown part) after the cocoa butter (50%-100%) has been pressed out
Dutch process (first) uses a hydraulic press developed in 1828  — the alkalizing (potassium or sodium carbonate) agent changes the color and mils out some of the bitterness. Dutching is often believed to harm some of the antioxidants
Broma process (Ghiradelli 1853) is a slightly less industrial separation process of fat and solids and removes more of the cocoa butter.
This separation of fat and solids paved the way for eating chocolate rather than simply drinking it had been the fashion until now.
Compound Chocolate/Chocolate coating — Adulterating chocolate solids with other fats largely created to ease the coating process (rather than mastering tempering).  This greatly affects flavor and mouthfeel.
Soy lecithin -  an emulsifier, lipophilic and hydrophilic so it can help join oil and water.