Chocolate Flashcards
How is chocolate made?
Dried fermented beans are roasted ar 110-140 degrees for 46-60 minutes.
Roasted beans are either pressed into cocoa butter and powder or ground to make cocoa solids.
Cocoa solids are conched for 3-4 days and ground with sugar with heat to remove volatiles.
Extra cocoa butter is added to coat the cocoal solids and sugar to make chocolate liqour.
descirbe the process of conching and what does it produce.
Sugar cyrstals + cocoa milk and molten cocoa butter and leathin
These are conched at 54 degrees for 72 - 96 hours
This produces a stable dispersion of chocolate liquour.
How does the size of the solid partcles affect the sensory feel of chocolate
If particles are too large (>30 nanometres) chocolate feels gritty.
Smaller particles make chocolate more viscous and smoother
what is the preferred size of chocolate in the UK and Europe
In the UK 15-25 nanometers
In europe 2 nanometers
what determines the size of the chocolate
The time spent conching, longer periods means smaller particles but longer conching periods means it is more expensive
What does X ray diffraction show about the structure of chocolate
It is a polymorphic structure with 6 cyrstalline structures
Descirbe the change in properties as you go from phase 1 -6
melting point and stability increase and density increases due to more compact chain packing
Which phases are used for chocolate
Phases 5 and 6 as MP is closest to body temp so chcocolate melts in the mouth.
What does temepering involve
slowly heating chocolate to 44 degrees and then slowly cooling it to 31 degrees. This allows chocolate to crystallise into phases 5 and 6 exclusively
How much theobromine is present in chocolate
1.5 - 2.7%
How does theobromine affect the body
It is a weak CNS stimulant. Its is a diuretic, cardiac stimulant and causes dilation of arteries and viens. The effects are short lived as it has a half life of 6 - 10 hrs
How much caffiene is in chocolate and descirbe the effects of caffiene on people.
About 0.1%. It is a stimulant for the heart and CNS. It promotes wakefullness. Is also a diuretic which caused heachaches and constricts blood vessels.
What are polyphenols and what benefit do they have
Anti oxidant - reacts with free radicals to reduce oxidative stress in the body. Prevents the oxidation of LD lipids with will otherwise block arteries.
What other function do polyphenols have in chocolate
They prevent it turning rancid and act as a preservative
What is the Maillard reaction
Complex set of reactions that occur on heating sugars with amino acids to produce a brown N based polymer called Melanoidins, Converts flavourless amino acids to aldehydes
