Well I thought it was about time that we took a closer look at some of the biggest chocolate producing countries. As Ghana produces somewhere in the region of one-quarter of the world’s cocoa beans, I figured this would be a good place to start. Cocoa is an extremely important part of the country’s economy [...]
Unfortunately, chocolate production isn’t something that can really be done in a domestic kitchen very easily. It’s a shame as it would be great to be able to whisk up a batch of chocolate bars on demand. For the time being though, I think we’ll need to leave it to the experts and make do [...]
Obviously, cocoa beans are a pretty important ingredient in chocolate but what else is required to produce your favourite sweet treat? Well, this isn’t actually a straightforward question to answer and it really depends on the variety and quality of chocolate. Chocolate now takes on so many different forms that’s it’s possible to include any [...]
So, how exactly does a knobbly looking pod, filled with a load of little beans end up being a delicious bar of smooth, creamy chocolate? Well, there’s a pretty complicated process involved and I’m happy to leave it to the professionals and just enjoy the end results.
Cocoa pods are ready to pick when they’ve turned [...]
Despite originating in Central and South America, cocoa is now grown in a much larger area and the biggest producers are actually in West Africa. This is due to the expansion of production and the opening of new markets. It’s all down to supply and demand really and people will always want chocolate. It’s one [...]
Over the years the cocoa trees have merged and mingled in the process called cross-pollination and this has resulted in a diverse range of beans that have distinct characteristics. These produce a diverse range of flavours and are used for different types of chocolate production. There are three main varieties so we’ll just deal with [...]
As we’ve already discovered, the cocoa tree is native to the forests of Central and South America, enjoying a hot, humid environment but also a little shade. It’s now grown in many more regions but it is still limited to a relatively thin area around the equator, as pretty specific conditions are required for the [...]
For many years, chocolate remained a secret of the Americas as the Mayan and Aztec cultures enjoyed the fruits of the cocoa tree and supped away on cups of frothy chilli chocolate. However, with the arrival of the Spanish Conquistadors, life for these civilisations became a little more fraught. As cities were pillaged for their [...]
The mighty Aztecs reined supreme over vast tracts of Mesoamerica and cocoa can take at least some of the praise for the later success of this great civilisation. In these days before bank accounts and dollar bills, cocoa was actually used as a form of currency. I don’t think I would have been a particularly [...]
There can’t be many people who can resist the temptation of a delicious bar of chocolate. It’s one of life’s great pleasures and, if you ask me, it should be given out free of charge just to make people’s lives that little bit more enjoyable. Sadly, we have to pay for it, but it’s worth [...]