What is chocolate?
- Chocolate – raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree.[1] The seeds of the cacao tree have an intense bitter taste, and must be fermented to improve the flavour. Chocolate is a popular ingredient in confectionery items and candies.
What type of thing is chocolate?
Chocolate is a type of:
- Food – substance to provide nutritional support for the body, ingested by an organism and assimilated by the organism's cells in an effort to produce energy, maintain life, and/or stimulate growth.
- Confectionery – the set of food items that are rich in sugar, any one or type of which is called a confection. Modern usage may include substances rich in artificial sweeteners as well.
- Candy – confection made from a concentrated solution of sugar in water, to which flavourings and colourants are added. Candies come in numerous colours and varieties and have a long history in popular culture.
- Ingredient – substance that forms part of a mixture (in a general sense). For example, in cooking, recipes specify which ingredients are used to prepare a specific dish. Chocolate is often used as an ingredient in dessert items, such as cakes and cookies.
- Confectionery – the set of food items that are rich in sugar, any one or type of which is called a confection. Modern usage may include substances rich in artificial sweeteners as well.
What is chocolate made of?
Necessary ingredients
- Cacao bean – Fatty seed of Theobroma cacao which is the basis of chocolate
- Chocolate liquor, also known as chocolate mass – Pure cocoa mass in solid or semi-solid form
- Cocoa butter – Pale-yellow, edible fat extracted from the cocoa bean
- Cocoa solids – Mixture remaining after cocoa butter is extracted from cocoa beans
Substances found in cacao
- Antioxidants – Compound that inhibits the oxidation of other molecules
- Caffeine – Central nervous system stimulant
- Phenethylamine – psychoactive drug that is usually inactive when orally ingested because most of it is metabolized into phenylacetic acid by monoamine oxidase (MAO), preventing significant concentrations from reaching the brain[2][3]
- Theobromine – also known as xantheose,[4] it contains no bromine[5] and has a similar, but lesser, effect to caffeine
- Theophylline – methylxanthine drug found in tea leaves
Source of the cocoa bean
- Child labour in cocoa production – Controversial use of children in the production of cacao beans
- Côte d'Ivoire – Country in West Africa
- Theobroma cacao, also known as Cacao tree – Species of tree grown for its cocoa beans
- Criollo cacao tree variety – A high quality but less productive variety of cacao tree
- Cacao bean – Fatty seed of Theobroma cacao which is the basis of chocolate
- Forastero – 80% made with this tree group
- Criollo cacao tree variety – A high quality but less productive variety of cacao tree
Optional ingredients
- Caramel – Confectionery product made by heating sugars
- Lecithin – Generic term for amphiphilic substances of plant and animal origin
- Milk – White liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals
- Peanuts – Legume cultivated as a grain and oil crop
- Sugar – Sweet-tasting, water-soluble carbohydrates
- Vanilla – Spice extracted from orchids of the genus Vanilla
Ingredients of white chocolate
- White chocolate – Confectionery made from milk solids without cocoa solids
