how is chocolate made.?

Question

what ingredients are used and in what countries are they made.

Answer 1

Harvesting

First, the pods, containing cacao beans, are harvested. The beans, together with their surrounding pulp, are removed from the pod and left in piles or bins to ferment for three to seven days. The beans must then be quickly dried to prevent mold growth; weather permitting, this is done by spreading the beans out in the sun.

The beans are then roasted, graded and ground. Cocoa butter is removed from the resulting chocolate liquor either by being pressed or by the Broma process. The residue is what is known as cocoa powder.


Chocolate liquor is blended with the butter in varying quantities to make different types of chocolate or couvertures. The basic blends of ingredients, in order of highest quantity of cocoa liquor first, are as follows:

1. Plain dark chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, and (sometimes) vanilla
2. Milk chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, milk or milk powder, and vanilla
3. White chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, milk or milk powder, and vanilla

U.S. chocolates have a lower percentage requirement of cocoa liquor for dark chocolate, so some dark chocolate have sugar as the top ingredient.

Usually, an emulsifying agent such as soya lecithin is added, though a few manufacturers prefer to exclude this ingredient for purity reasons and to remain GMO-free (Soya is a heavily genetically modified crop), sometimes at the cost of a perfectly smooth texture. Some manufacturers are now using PGPR, an artificial emulsifier derived from castor oil that allows them to reduce the amount of cocoa butter while maintaining the same mouthfeel.

The texture is also heavily influenced by processing, specifically conching (see below). The more expensive chocolates tend to be processed longer and thus have a smoother texture and "feel" on the tongue, regardless of whether emulsifying agents are added.

Different manufacturers develop their own "signature" blends based on the above formulas but varying proportions of the different constituents are used.

The finest plain dark chocolate couvertures contain at least 70% cocoa (solids + butter), whereas milk chocolate usually contains up to 50%. High-quality white chocolate couvertures contain only about 33% cocoa. Inferior and mass-produced chocolate contains much less cocoa (as low as 7% in many cases) and fats other than cocoa butter. Some chocolate makers opine that these "brand name" milk chocolate products can not be classed as couvertures, or even as chocolate, because of the low or virtually non-existent cocoa content.
Chocolate, with enough cocoa butter, flows gently over a chocolate fountain to serve fondue.
Chocolate, with enough cocoa butter, flows gently over a chocolate fountain to serve fondue.


The penultimate process is called conching. A conche is a container filled with metal beads, which act as grinders. The refined and blended chocolate mass is kept liquid by frictional heat. The conching process produces cocoa and sugar particles smaller than the tongue can detect, hence the smooth feel in the mouth. The length of the conching process determines the final smoothness and quality of the chocolate. High-quality chocolate is conched for about 72 hours, lesser grades about four to six hours. After the process is complete, the chocolate mass is stored in tanks heated to approximately 45–50 °C (113–122 °F) until final processing.


The final process is called tempering. Uncontrolled crystallization of cocoa butter typically results in crystals of varying size, some or all large enough to be clearly seen with the naked eye. This causes the surface of the chocolate to appear mottled and matte, and causes the chocolate to crumble rather than snap when broken. The uniform sheen and crisp bite of properly processed chocolate are the result of consistently small cocoa butter crystals produced by the tempering process.

The fats in cocoa butter can crystallize in six different forms (polymorphous crystallization). The primary purpose of tempering is to assure that only the best form is present. The six different crystal forms have different properties.
Crystal Melting Temp. Notes
I 17°C (63°F) Soft, crumbly, melts too easily.
II 21°C (70°F) Soft, crumbly, melts too easily.
III 26°C (78°F) Firm, poor snap, melts too easily.
IV 28°C (82°F) Firm, good snap, melts too easily.
V 34°C (94°F) Glossy, firm, best snap, melts near body temperature (37°C).
VI 36°C (97°F) Hard, takes weeks to form.

Making good chocolate is about forming the most of the type V crystals. This provides the best appearance and mouth feel and creates the most stable crystals so the texture and appearance will not degrade over time. To accomplish this, the temperature is carefully manipulated during the crystallization.

Generally, the chocolate is first heated to 45°C (113°F) to melt all six forms of crystals. Then the chocolate is cooled to about 27°C (80°F), which will allow crystal types IV and V to form (VI takes too long to form). At this temperature, the chocolate is agitated to create many small crystal "seeds" which will serve as nuclei to create small crystals in the chocolate. The chocolate is then heated to about 31°C (88°F) to eliminate any type IV crystals, leaving just the type V. After this point, any excessive heating of the chocolate will destroy the temper and this process will have to be repeated. However, there are other methods of chocolate tempering used-- the most common variant is introducing already tempered, solid "seed" chocolate.

Two classic ways of tempering chocolate are:

* Working the melted chocolate on a heat-absorbing surface, such as a stone slab, until thickening indicates the presence of sufficient crystal "seeds"; the chocolate is then gently warmed to working temperature.
* Stirring solid chocolate into melted chocolate to "inoculate" the liquid chocolate with crystals (this method uses the already formed crystal of the solid chocolate to "seed" the melted chocolate).

[edit] Storing

Chocolate is very sensitive to temperature and humidity. Ideal storage temperatures are between 15 and 17 degrees Celsius (59 to 63 degrees Fahrenheit), with a relative humidity of less than 50%. Chocolate should be stored away from other foods as it can absorb different aromas. Ideally, chocolates are packed or wrapped, and placed in proper storage with the correct humidity and temperature. Additionally chocolate should be stored in a dark place or protected from light by wrapping paper. Sunlight may warm up the surface of the chocolate and cause it to turn 'grey' from the formation of cocoa butter crystals; the taste may be slightly different due to the altered cocoa butter.

Answer 2

Cocoa originated in Mexico, though it's now grown in some other tropical areas.

Remove cocoa from the pod, which is a big brown thing that looks like a football (or rugby ball.) It grows on the trunk of the cacao tree.

Roast the nibs and grind them. Add sugar and milk if desired (usually evaporated or condensed milk, which is milk that has been cooked down to about half the volume of fresh. Condensed milk is evaporated milk with sugar added.)

Sometimes, another fat is added to the cocoa and sugar, and sometimes, there's no sugar, as with unsweetened baking chocolate.

The name "chocolate" is from the Aztec word xocolatl, which means "bitter water." Chocolate in Mexico was originally made with roasted cocoa, water, and some hot chile peppers. A little chile added to chocolate, especially hot chocolate, really rounds out the flavor and adds a spicy kick.

When chocolate was brought to Spain, they thought of adding sugar. Chocolate producers Cadbury and Nestle came up with adding milk products and making candy bars. Hershey was an early chocolate producer in the US.

In Mexico, chocolate generally has canela, which is cinnamon or cassia bark, and sometimes vanilla, which is an orchid seed pod, which also comes from Mexico originally.

The New World gave the culinary world chocolate, vanilla, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, and corn. Way to go, Western Hemisphere!

Answer 3

ChocNut, Flat Tops and Curly Tops! Yum yum.

Answer 4

cocoa beans, butter, just loook on the hersheys rappers! lol