CHOCOLATE AND COCOA

Chocolate and cocoa are derived from cocoa or cacao beans.When the beans
are fermented, roasted, and ground, the resulting product is called chocolate
liquor, which contains a white or yellowish fat called cocoa butter.

Cocoa
Cocoa is the dry powder that remains after part of the cocoa butter is
removed from chocolate liquor. Dutch process cocoa, or dutched cocoa, is
processed with an alkali. It is slightly darker, smoother in flavor, and more
easily dissolved in liquids than is natural cocoa.
Natural cocoa is somewhat acidic. When it is used in such products as
cakes, it is possible to use baking soda (which reacts with acid) as part of the
leavening power.
Dutched cocoa, on the other hand, is generally neutral or even slightly
alkaline. Therefore, it does not react with baking soda (see table below).
Instead, baking powder is used as the sole leavening agent. If you are
substituting dutched for natural cocoa, you must increase the baking powder
by 1 oz (30 g) for each 1⁄2 oz (15 g) soda omitted.
If not enough soda is used in chocolate products, the color of the finished
product may range fromlight tan to dark brown,depending on the quantity used.
If too much is used, the color will be reddish brown. This color is desired in
devil’s food cakes, but it may not be wanted in other products.When switching
from one kind of cocoa to another, you may have to adjust the soda in your
recipes.
Baking Soda Needed to Balance the
Acidity of Typical Cocoa Products
Amount of Amount of
baking soda baking soda
per lb per kg
Natural cocoa 1.25 oz 80 g
Dutched cocoa 0 0
Bitter chocolate 0.8 oz 50 g
Sweet chocolate 0.4 oz 25 g
Bitter Chocolate
Bitter or unsweetened chocolate is straight chocolate liquor. It contains no
sugar and has a strongly bitter taste. Because it is molded in blocks, it is also
referred to as block cocoa or cocoa block. It is used to flavor items that have
other sources of sweetness.
In some less expensive brands, some of the cocoa butter may be replaced
by another fat.

Sweet Chocolate
Sweet chocolate is bitter chocolate with the addition of sugar and cocoa butter
in various proportions. If the percentage of sugar is low, sweetened chocolate
may be called semisweet or, with even less sugar, bittersweet. Both of these
products must contain at least 35% chocolate liquor, and their sugar content
ranges from 35 to 50%. A product labeled sweet chocolate may contain as little
as 15% chocolate liquor. Do not confuse sweet chocolate with milk chocolate
(described below). In this book,when sweet chocolate is specified in a recipe,
any sweetened chocolate may be used, although the results will, of course,
vary.Bittersweet chocolate is specified if a good grade of chocolate with a high
chocolate liquor content is essential for the best results.
Because sweet chocolate has only half the chocolate content of bitter
chocolate, it is usually not economical to add it to products that are already
highly sweetened because twice as much will be needed. For example, it is
better to use bitter chocolate when making chocolate fondant from plain
white fondant.
Good-quality chocolate products—including not only dark chocolate but
also milk chocolate and white chocolate (see below)—are often called
couverture, which means “coating” in French.When couverture is used to coat
candies, cookies, and other products, the chocolate must be prepared by a
process called tempering.This involves carefully melting the chocolate without
letting it get too warm, then bringing the temperature back down to a certain
level.The process requires a fair amount of skill.
Less expensive chocolates, which have part of the cocoa butter replaced
by other fats, are easier to handle and don’t require tempering. However, they
do not have the flavor and eating qualities of good chocolate.These products
are sold under such names as cookie coating, cake coating, baking chocolate,
and coating chocolate. Do not confuse coating chocolate with couverture.
These two products are entirely different, even though couverture means
“coating.” It would be less confusing if this lower-quality chocolate were
referred to only as baking chocolate, without using the word coating.

Milk Chocolate
Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate to which milk solids have been added. It is
usually used as a coating chocolate and in various confections. It is seldom
melted and then incorporated in batters because it contains a relatively low
proportion of chocolate liquor.

Cocoa Butter
Cocoa butter is the fat pressed out of chocolate liquor when cocoa is
processed. Its main use in the bakeshop is to thin melted couverture to a
proper consistency.

White Chocolate
White chocolate consists of cocoa butter, sugar, and milk solids. It is used
primarily in confectionery. Some inexpensive brands, in which another fat is
substituted for the cocoa butter, don’t deserve the name chocolate at all, as
they contain neither chocolate nor any of its components.

SUBSTITUTING COCOA
AND CHOCOLATE
Because cocoa is the same as bitter chocolate, only with less cocoa butter, it is
often possible to substitute one product for the other. Shortening is usually
used to take the place of the missing fat. However, various fats behave
differently in baking. Regular shortening, for example, has about twice the
shortening power of cocoa butter, so only half as much is needed in many
products, such as cakes. The procedures below take this difference into
account.
Because of these varying factors, as well as the different baking properties
of cakes, cookies, and other products, it is recommended that you test-bake a
small batch when making a substitution in a formula. You can then make
additional adjustments, if necessary. No single substitution ratio is adequate
for all purposes.

Starch Content of Cocoa
Cocoa contains starch, which tends to absorb moisture in a batter.
Consequently, when cocoa is added to a mix—for example,to change a yellow

Procedure for Substituting Bitter Chocolate for
Natural Cocoa
1. Multiply the weight of the cocoa by 8⁄5. The result is the amount of chocolate to use.
2. Subtract the weight of cocoa from the weight of chocolate. Divide by 2. Reduce the
weight of shortening in the mix by this amount.
Example: Substitute bitter chocolate for 1 lb natural cocoa.
8⁄5 × 16 oz = 26 oz chocolate (rounded off)
= =5 oz less shortening
10
_2
26 oz – 16 oz
__
2
Procedure for Substituting Natural Cocoa in Place of
Bitter Chocolate
1. Multiply the weight of the chocolate by 5⁄8. The result is the amount of cocoa to use.
2. Subtract the weight of the cocoa from the original weight of chocolate. Divide this
difference by 2. The result is the amount of shortening to add to the formula.
Example: Replace 1 lb chocolate with natural cocoa.
5⁄8 × 16 oz = 10 oz cocoa
= = 3 oz shortening
6 oz
_2
16 oz – 10 oz
__
2
cake to a chocolate cake—the quantity of flour is reduced to compensate for
this added starch. Exact adjustments will vary depending on the product.
However, the following may be used as a rule of thumb:
Reduce the flour by 3⁄8 (37.5%) of the weight of cocoa added.
Thus, if 1 lb cocoa is added, the flour is reduced by 6 oz. Or, if 400 g
cocoa is added, reduce the flour by 150 g.
Chocolate,of course,also contains starch.When melted chocolate is added
to fondant, for example, the fondant gets stiffer because of this starch and
usually requires thinning. Often, however, the drying effect of the starch is
balanced by the tenderizing effect of the cocoa butter.

Types of Chocolate

Cacaoaka Cacao Nibs, Raw Cacao, Roasted Cacao, Ground Cacao
This is the cacao bean, minus the shell, and nothing else. You can buy cacao raw or roasted. Whole cacao is the whole bean, cacao nibs are crunched up pieces of bean, and ground cacao is powdered. Really the healthiest form of chocolate there is, cacao can sometimes be quite bitter.
Chocolate Liquor
This is the basis of all types of chocolate, formed by grinding cacao nibs into a smooth, liquid paste. Nothing is added, and it is not alcoholic. It naturally contains about 53% cocoa butter (fat).
Unsweetened Chocolateaka Chocolate, Baking Chocolate, Pure Chocolate, Bitter Chocolate
Chocolate liquor that has been allowed to cool and harden. It is used for baking and to make other types of chocolate. Many bakers prefer this type of chocolate for baking because they have more control over the flavor and sweetness.

Bittersweet Chocolateaka Semisweet Chocolate, Dark Chocolate
Contains at least 35% chocolate liquor, plus cocoa butter and sugar in varying amounts. There is no technical difference between bittersweet and semisweet types of chocolate, and they are often referred to as "dark." Note that there is such a thing as "bittersweet (or semisweet) baking chocolate," which is sweetened cocoa liquor without the added cocoa butter.
Sweet Chocolate
Contains at least 15% chocolate liquor, plus cocoa butter and sugar in varying amounts. Some people mistakenly refer to this as "bittersweet."
Milk Chocolate
Contains at least 10% chocolate liquor, plus cocoa butter and sugar in varying amounts, and at least 12% milk (milk, cream, milk powder, etc).
White Chocolate
White chocolate is not technically one of the types of chocolate because it does not contain any chocolate liquor. It must contain at least 20% cocoa butter and 14% milk, plus sugar in varying amounts.
Cocoaaka Cocoa Powder, Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, Unsweetened Cocoa
Is made by slamming chocolate liquor with a hydraulic press to expel the fat, i.e. the cocoa butter. What's left is allowed to harden, and then it is crushed into a powder. There is roughly 10-20% fat remaining in the powder. Cocoa powder is often used in low fat cooking because it retains the chocolate flavor but has much of the fat removed.
"Dutched" cocoa is formed by washing cocoa powder with an alkali solution of potassium carbonate. This darkens the color and neutralizes the acidity of the powder. Very alkalized cocoa is called black cocoa, which gives Oreos their unique look.
How do you know which to use in a recipe? Most American recipes use plain cocoa powder - good ol' Hershey's is plain cocoa. If a recipe needs Dutch cocoa, it will usually specify it. In general, regular cocoa is used in recipes with baking soda (which is alkaline), and Dutch cocoa is used in recipes with baking powder (which is acidic).
Ground Chocolateaka Powdered Chocolate
Not to be confused with cocoa powder, this is regular eating chocolate that's been ground to make a powder. It is generally used for making drinks, and should not be used in place of unsweetened cocoa powder in recipes.
Baking Chocolateaka Baker's chocolate (Baker's is also a brand name)
What is up with baking chocolate? Does it have sugar added or not? ARRRRG! Well, here's the thing: although the FDA sets the guidelines for what types of chocolate can be labeled "unsweetened, bittersweet, semisweet, milk, and white," they don't specify what can be labeled baking chocolate.
You can find all of the following types of chocolate labeled "baking chocolate":
1) unsweetened chocolate2) bittersweet baking chocolate (chocolate liquor + sugar, but no cocoa butter added)3) bittersweet chocolate (chocolate liquor + sugar + cocoa butter) Most chefs wouldn't consider this true baking chocolate because of the added cocoa butter, though you might find it labeled as such.4) baking-resistant chocolate, i.e. chocolate chips (bittersweet chocolate with less cocoa butter added, so that it won't melt easily)
So how do you know which to use? Hopefully your recipe specifies! In general, recipes will usually specify at least "unsweetened baking chocolate (#1 above)" or "bittersweet baking chocolate (#2 above)." Whether there's cocoa butter added or not probably isn't going to make or break your recipe.
One thing you should avoid, though, is using chocolate chips in place of other types of chocolate when the recipe calls for melting. The low cocoa butter content makes chips bad for melting.Chocolate Coatingaka Compound Chocolate Coating, Summer Coating, Chocolate Flavored Coating
These are vegetable fat-based coatings that contain sugar and some amount cocoa powder, chocolate liquor and/or cocoa butter for flavor. They are not true chocolate. The advantage to using them is that they typically do not "bloom" in high heat. They are best used in making chocolate decorations.
Couvertureaka Coating Chocolate
Chocolate coating or coating chocolate? Aaaaaaah! Couverture is the good stuff - usually some type of dark chocolate with extra cocoa butter added to make it melt nicely for enrobing (drizzling onto the outside of a chocolate confection). Because the high cocoa butter content (roughly 35-45%) makes it melt well, it is ideal for chocolate fountains, and usually no oil need be added.
Giandujaaka Gianduia, pronounced zhahn-DOO-yuh
Chocolate made with toasted hazelnuts ground into powder. It still has a smooth, chocolatey texture, but has the wonderful flavor of hazelnuts. An Italian or Swiss invention, depending on whom you believe. Who cares? It's yummy.
Single Bean Chocolateaka Origin Chocolate, Single Origin, Estate Chocolate, Grand Cru, Single Cru
In general, these types of chocolate that are made from a single type of bean that's grown in a specific region, or even a specific plantation. But not always. We might be talking about a bunch of types of beans all grown on the same plantation. Or a single bean from a bunch of different plantations in the same geographic region. Or heck, a blend of the finest of the same exact type of bean from locations around the globe. It's hard to say.
The point is the manufacturer is carefully selecting the beans to create a unique flavor, but some people argue this is a gimmick. After all, Hershey's selects its beans to create a unique flavor too! In general, however, these types of chocolate are of high quality.
Cocoa Butter
When chocolate liquor is pressed to expel the fat and make cocoa powder, the fat expelled is cocoa butter. Cocoa butter is added to chocolate liquor to make the type of chocolate we enjoy eating; it gives chocolate that smooth, melt-in-your-mouth texture we love.
Cocoa butter is also used in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. Because it melts at about 97° F, it smoothes into the skin nicely. Also, it has healing properties and is resistant to spoilage.
Chocolatesaka Chocolate Candies, Truffles, Creams, Pralines, etc.
When people speak of "chocolates" in the plural, they are typically referring to chocolate candies, like truffles, chocolate creams, chocolate-covered nuts, and that sort of thing. "Chocolates" are candies made from other types of chocolate.
Chocolate Extract
Chocolate extract is a good way to add chocolate flavor to your cooking without adding fat, but the flavor can be a bit strong. It is made like vanilla extract; cacao beans are soaked in alcohol.
Chocolate Oil
Alas, there is no such thing as a chocolate oil. If you see chocolate oil, it's most likely a chocolate perfume oil, entirely manmade, and not for cooking.