How to make cocoa butter
Cocoa butter is a natural cooking oil extracted from cocoa beans during the process of making chocolate and cocoa powder. It has only a slight chocolate flavor and aroma, and is one of the ingredients used to make real chocolate. It is one of the ingredients used to make real chocolate. It is the only ingredient used to make the candy known as white chocolate. The melting point of cocoa butter is about 34-38 degrees Celsius (93-100 degrees Fahrenheit), so chocolate is solid at room temperature and melts quickly in the mouth.
Cocoa butter, also known as cocoa butter, is a creamy, hard, natural vegetable fat taken from the cocoa mass. In addition to its strong and beautiful unique aroma, cocoa butter is also quite firm and brittle below 15°C. Cocoa butter melts quickly in the mouth and does not feel greasy at all; moreover, it is not like other general vegetable fats, which are prone to rancidity. Cocoa butter is the ideal grease for chocolate and has almost all the advantages of various vegetable fats, and no other grease comparable to it has been found so far.
Cocoa butter has a very short plasticity range, below 27℃, it is almost all solid (melting at 27.7℃). With the increase in temperature will quickly melt, to 35 ℃ will be completely melted. Therefore it is a kind of grease that is both hard and dissolves quickly. Cocoa butter is the most stable cooking oil known, and contains natural antioxidants that prevent spoilage, allowing it to be stored for 2-5 years and allowing it to be used for applications other than food.
Cocoa butter is mainly used in pastry to make chocolate, diluting thicker, drier chocolate products. Adding the right amount of cocoa butter to chocolate with low cocoa butter content can improve the consistency of the chocolate, enhance the shine of the chocolate after dipping and demoulding, and give it a fine texture.
The coexistence of multiple types of glycerides in cocoa butter leads to the formation of polycrystalline properties, and the melting point of cocoa butter depends on its crystal form. The temperature regulation process in chocolate processing is the process of forming a stable cocoa butter crystal structure when the molten cocoa butter is cooled.
Cocoa butter has α, γ, β', and β crystals with melting points of 17, 23, 26, and 35-37 °C, respectively. Only the highest melting point, β crystals, are usually used to make chocolate, and the single crystalline structure results in a fine and smooth texture.
Cocoa butter is divided into natural cocoa butter and deodorized cocoa butter, depending on the production and process. Natural cocoa butter is pale yellow in color and has a natural cocoa aroma; deodorized cocoa butter is based on natural cocoa butter by physically removing impurities, color and odor from the cocoa butter. Deodorized cocoa butter has a bright lemon yellow color and no odor. Natural cocoa butter is widely used in the production of chocolate, cakes and other food products; deodorized cocoa butter is generally used in the production of high-grade cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, but rarely in the production of food.
