Have you ever wondered just how to make chocolate for yourself at home, or just got tired of driving to the store whenever you are need of a bar? Well, you are in a lot of luck to have landed here. Here you will get to know exactly how to make chocolate with the basic ingredients you can find in the comfort of your own kitchen. There are several ways in which you can make chocolate: Cocoa bean method; Cocoa powder method.
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I’ll take you through the various steps that are involved in the making of chocolate through the cocoa bean method. The following are some of the ingredients you will need for the job:
· Cocoa butter
· Nonfat coco powder
· Sugar
· Lecithin
Step 1: roasting the cocoa beans
The roasting of the cocoa beans is done so that the flavor of the chocolate is rich and also that the beans are sterilized and made even easier to crack. To roast the cocoa beans, place them on a baking sheet and put them in an already heated oven at about 120oC for about 18 minutes. This should be enough time for the cocoa to get roasted and to start cracking. Ensure that the bean roast and not necessarily burn them.
Step 2: cracking the beans
The cocoa beans cannot be used to make chocolate when they are still in the husks. Therefore, after roasting you are supposed to remove the husk and remain with the inner beans only. You can do this by using a hammer or even using a cocoa type mill if you have one at your disposal. Once you crack them into nibs, you need to winnow them carefully to get rid of the husks completely.
Step 3: grinding the beans
Once you are done with the husks you care now to grind the beans into liquor. To do this you will need to have a strong blending or grinding equipment. Some of the machines that can do this job include meat grinders, Vita-Mix and some food processors. Once you have any of this, feed the bean into them slowly as you grind. When they are done the liquor will foam as the remaining husks float out through the spout.
Step 4: adding other ingredients while you conch and refine
Conching refers to determining the taste and smell of the chocolate while refining refers to the reduction in size of the sugar particles in the chocolate. First melt the chocolate and the cocoa butter in the oven. Combine with the non-fat dry milk powder, sugar and lecithin. Pour the mix into the grinder while blowing hot hair to keep it melted. Keep on as you grind and refine the chocolate.
Step 5: tempering the chocolate
In this process, you try to maintain the appearance of the chocolate and the hardness as well. First of all, melt the chocolate gently in an oven. Transfer it to a bowl and stir it gently with a spatula. Pour it on a non-porous counter and continue mixing it over and over again. Return it in the bowl when it gets to about 32oC. At this temperature return it to the bowl and prepare the moulds you want to use. Pour it into the mould and let it harden as it cools completely. Just like that you have chocolate for the whole family or even a week’s supply of it.
