Raw Chocolate
@sirius-chocolate
04/18/10 15:18:41
10 posts
I have been enjoying so much rich information from perusing this website, the time has come for my debut contribution - a discussion on "Raw Chocolate". Now before everybody launches into this based on personal convictions of the "correct", "traditional", or "market standard" way of processing chocolate, let us take a moment to consider the nature of human knowledge and how it progresses through the ages, be it scientific breakthroughs or cultural/industrial practices pertaining to food handling, and how the accepted assumptions of one age can be overturned and proven "false" by new "discoveries". Thus, let us keep an open mind and really consider other possibilities than the known, than what's conventional. That being said, this forum post is intended to be a place for discussion citing scientific studies, and experts in the field and on the ground, to see if there is anything of real value that can be gained by examining chocolate from a slightly different vantage point.
My interests in chocolate grew out of my involvement in the Raw Food movement (Youtube: David Wolfe), which for me is a fairly radical attempt to get as far away from the industrial and agricultural "revolution's" impacts on human health, and ecological health, by eating as close to the natural source as possible. Now, the discussion of raw foods is intimately intertwined with many other political issues, including organics (an attempt to lessen artificial pesticides and fertilizers which destroy long-term soil fertility), fair-trade (an attempt to equalize the economies of a global commodity market), human nutrition (the well known debate on the heat sensitive nature of enzymes, amino acids, and certain vitamins, ect.), and so on.
While not being for everybody, and perhaps most valuable only as a cleanse (as opposed to a long-term diet; research: Daniel Vitalis), I feel totally confident in saying that going raw for several months completely changed my experience of life in a drastically positive way. As raw foodists sought vegan sources of high-vitamin/mineral content foods, we saw the birth of the "Superfood" movement (research: David Wolfe, Linus Pauling), which brought to general market a certain pricy commodity being sold as "Raw Chocolate".
Praised for its rich mineral content, along with a wide array of psychoactive components, minimally processed cacao products fast grew into a trendy health-fad among "conscious" consumers who could afford it. As someone who came to chocolate from this perspective, I now am delving deeper into the history, the processing, the business, and the fine culinary aspects of cacao.
From my understanding, all fine chocolatiers roast their beans, a process which chemically alters the cacao in a way which produces the flavor profiles commonly associated with "good" chocolate. Now, there are two different approaches to come at this subject from this point: there is the personal approach which is most concerned with how different chocolate products make me feel. And then there is the scientific perspective incorporating biochemistry, and how various practices of processing affect human health and nutrition.
From the personal perspective, I have this to say. All "processed" chocolate, (ie. pressed at high temps/pressures, roasted, conched...) makes me feel bad compared to "raw" chocolate, despite the "fine" chocolates having a more subtle flavor profile. Now, the fine chocolatier would say I have not developed the palate for differentiating the subtle flavors of fine chocolate; the raw foodist would say the chocolate connoisseurs have not detoxed their body enough to feel the effects of eating the processed chocolate. Again, this claim is personal to me, although being confirmed by many people I know.
Now then, of the scientific perspective, examining how the chemical constituents (changed by different processing techniques) affects our biological system, I have heard several claims made. The first is that heating cacao (in the pressing to remove the oil, and in the roasting) kills the enzymes. I have also heard it argued that cacao does not contain considerable enzymes after the fermentation process. Next, exposing the cacao to high temps (especially over 200 degrees F.) supposedly reduces and/or eliminates the presence of some of cacao's fancier psycoative molecules such as phenylethylamine, anandamine, and tryptophan, as well as deteriorates the methylxanthines from theobromine into caffeine. Third, high-temp processing has been said to lessen the nutritional value of chocolate by reducing the amounts of vitamin C, as well as many of the other nutrients found in an unpressed, unroasted cacao bean (B-vitamins...). Lastly, and claimed by David Wolfe to be the final arbiter on "raw" versus "processed", all high-temp exposed chocolate contains rancid omega fatty acids (trans-fats) which can cause an inflammatory reaction once consumed by humans, whereas "raw" cacao contains stable omega fatty acids beneficial to human health.
{for information purposes: "raw" is generally defined asnever having been heated over 118
degrees Fahrenheit. All chocolate that I know of being sold as
"raw" has been fermented, which does take the temp over 118 degrees F.
However, the difference from this point is in the processing which takes
place once the beans get in the hands of the "chocolate maker".}
updated by @sirius-chocolate: 04/09/15 08:23:15
@sacred-steve
04/19/10 03:49:24
116 posts
@sacred-steve
04/21/10 11:47:37
116 posts
@suzanne-marie
04/25/10 00:33:48
1 posts
@clay
04/26/10 07:52:22
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 09:14:42
116 posts
@clay
04/26/10 10:02:15
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:13:03
116 posts
@clay
04/26/10 10:23:37
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:25:19
116 posts
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:26:05
116 posts
@clay
04/26/10 10:29:56
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@clay
04/26/10 10:32:07
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:33:35
116 posts
@clay
04/26/10 10:39:21
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@clay
04/26/10 10:44:27
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:46:46
116 posts
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:48:51
116 posts
@clay
04/26/10 10:53:17
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/26/10 10:54:14
116 posts
@sirius-chocolate
04/27/10 11:18:40
10 posts
updated by @sirius-chocolate: 09/10/15 04:47:28
@clay
04/27/10 11:54:37
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@dusty-thomas
04/27/10 18:33:00
5 posts
@clay
04/29/10 10:40:14
1,680 posts
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/
@sacred-steve
04/29/10 13:20:14
116 posts
@sacred-steve
04/29/10 14:57:06
116 posts
@beth-campbell
03/01/13 17:14:08
40 posts
two questions, have you ever tried roasted cacao without refined sugar? Are you comparing chocolate bars made with roasted or raw or just the bean itself? Also it seems there is alot of variation in temperature in the definition of raw. Where did you get your degree (temperature)? I myself make and manufacter bars both raw and roasted. I am making my bars from scratch using coconut sugar (which is technically not raw). I find that for me what I love about raw chocolates is the different sweeteners and other ingredients which are not found in mainstream chocolate. I personally find coconut sugar and even roasted cacao powder to be still full of life and nutrients. The only major difference I notice in how I feel is the caffeine. The roasted gives off more of a buzz and can tend to keep you awake, but there is a time for everything. Beth with Belicious Chocolate Alchemy
@beth-campbell
03/01/13 17:21:42
40 posts
just wanted to say there are still lots of antioxidents found in roasted cacao and if you are truly trying to eat chocolate just to get antioxidents you would have to eat alot, and that is not balanced. If you want antioxidents then eat some blueberries and then enjoy your chocolate. I am also not an advocate of processed, full of refined sugar chocolate , but I am not totally sold on this raw food approach. I think if the cacao was roasted and then fresh ground with good sugars and other ingredients (not lecithin), it is full of health and still has tons of benefits.
Tags
Activity
Chocolatevenue is an online chocolate store in India.We are specialized in customized chocolates .Chocolates can be customized as chocolate message and chocolate bars.
You can get written your message on chocolates and can get customized your chocolate bars by selecting the desired ingredients.
for more details
FOR SALE / BARGAIN / FINE CACAO LIQUOR, COLOMBIA ORIGIN
Enjoy a delicious premium chocolate from the Boyacá region of Colombia, considered among the best in the world. We offer a 200 kilograms lot of pure origin cocoa liquor, fair trade / ethically sourced. N o other ingredients added.
The price for this high quality product is as follows:
1 kg - US$ 13
100 kg - US$ 12 per kilo
200 kg - US$ 11 per kilo
Inquires: equalcolombia@gmail.com
- See more at: https://www.thechocolatelife.com/colorchocolate#sthash.JFDWYFuK.dpuf
- See more at: https://www.thechocolatelife.com/community/forums/my_posts/18453/fine-cacao-liquor-colombia-origin#sthash.2pUq4Eu3.dpuf
The headline says it all: United Cacao: the sad tale of when things really go wrong for Aim investors .
Two changes we made with the chocolate is that this time we winnowed the chocolate. This time we didn't use a blow dryer to melt the chocolate. Two improvements with the chocolate is that the melanger didn't get clogged this time and everyone put in work.