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Cocoa butter and cocoa solids
Hans has a very thought provoking article in Cocoa Content called "Why cocoa content matters". In it he shows a very insightful way to determine the amount of cocoa butter. Here's the essence of it:
Cocoa content only tells you how much of the bar’s weight is comprised of cocoa solids. Now, it’s important to understand that “cocoa solids” refers to the chocolate’s combined weight of cocoa butter and dry cocoa particles (i.e. cocoa powder). You can find the amount of cocoa butter from the amount of fat, though. Once you have that you can determine the percentage of the rest of the solids.
Follow these steps from the nutrition label:
1. Note the serving size, since it varies.
2. Note the Total Fat The Fat is from cocoa butter
3. Divide the Total Fat by the Serving size (Fat/Size), then multiply by 100 to get the percentage of fat
4. Subtract the percentage of fat from the cacao percentage and the difference will tell you what percentage of the bar consists of dry cocoa solids. Cocoa butter percentage + cocoa solids percentage = Total cacao percentage.
For example, consider a bar of Lindt Excellence 70%. The Nutrition Facts show the serving size as 42g, with 17g of fat. Divide 17 by 42 and multiply the result by 100, and you’ll get 40. This means there’s 40% cocoa butter. Subtract that number from 70, which in this case is 30% dry cocoa solids . (40 + 30 = 70)
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What do you think of this?
Cocoa content only tells you how much of the bar’s weight is comprised of cocoa solids. Now, it’s important to understand that “cocoa solids” refers to the chocolate’s combined weight of cocoa butter and dry cocoa particles (i.e. cocoa powder). You can find the amount of cocoa butter from the amount of fat, though. Once you have that you can determine the percentage of the rest of the solids.
Follow these steps from the nutrition label:
1. Note the serving size, since it varies.
2. Note the Total Fat The Fat is from cocoa butter
3. Divide the Total Fat by the Serving size (Fat/Size), then multiply by 100 to get the percentage of fat
4. Subtract the percentage of fat from the cacao percentage and the difference will tell you what percentage of the bar consists of dry cocoa solids. Cocoa butter percentage + cocoa solids percentage = Total cacao percentage.
For example, consider a bar of Lindt Excellence 70%. The Nutrition Facts show the serving size as 42g, with 17g of fat. Divide 17 by 42 and multiply the result by 100, and you’ll get 40. This means there’s 40% cocoa butter. Subtract that number from 70, which in this case is 30% dry cocoa solids . (40 + 30 = 70)
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What do you think of this?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Clay Gordon on -
Dan -
Any photos of the equipment (vessels and incubator) you're using for the microferments? Also - are you "seeding" the piles with specific yeasts?
:: Clay
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Permalink Reply by Daniel O'Doherty on -
For small-scale ferments we've been using acrylic and polycarbonate cylinders with a perforated drainage plate and sweatings reservoir. We drop a disk of the same material into the cylinder to cap the fresh seed/pulp. I've experimented with inoculating using both yeasts and Acetobacter pasteurianus. With very small fermentations we've found that with no inoculation at all, it's a total crapshoot with regard to yeast/bacteria/mold competition... with the molds winning most of the time and ruining the entire mass. In contrast, too much yeast inoculant appears to completely inhibit the acetic phase, much to the detriment of the finished product. One of the signs of a complete ferment including Acetobacter spp. (besides the vinegar reek) is a rapid and easily observable reddish darkening of the pulp and seed coat.
The harvest season in Hawaii is starting very soon, so there will be a lot more research regarding post-harvest handling and fermentation in Hawaii this winter.
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Permalink Reply by Daniel O'Doherty on
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Left this out: we use a dry-type bacterial incubator to approximate the temperatures in larger natural ferments... we incubate with different temperature curves but typically between 35 - 50 C.
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Permalink Reply by Grant S of Grant Candy Co. on -
What if it is milk chocolate? It has the fat from the whole milk powder... I make homemade chocolate and i know that milk chocolate has fat from the milk unless the chocolate companies use skim milk like I do. I read the labels and I know that the other companies use full fat milk.. Actually some companies use both skim and full fat milk. Anyway... That is a good way to see the amount of cocoa butter is in the dark chocolate, or sweet chocolate (chocolate with no milk)...
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Permalink Reply by ChocoFiles on -
I'd like to share a few preliminary observations. To the seasoned experts this is probably nothing new, but just remember that I'm a neophyte who's having fun learning about all of this.
So far I've gathered the fat content data on 55 bars. Here are a few early observations:
-The fat content varies from 30-50%
-The higher the cacao content the higher the fat content. That makes sense since there is less sugar, so to make it more palatable there is more fat.
-I see no relationship between fat content and my quality ratings. But since I don't like >80% as much as bars in the 70-79% range and I generally like >90% even less, even though these have the highest fat percentages they have lower ratings (according to my preferences).
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Permalink Reply by ChocoFiles on
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I'm not sure who you're asking permission of or who would grant it, but you can surely use any information that I've provided.
Would you please post the URL of your site here, though, so that we can all see it?
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Permalink Reply by Ilana on -
Hi, sorry. The way it appeared was : the original post and then a place to comment, and then all the comments... So my comment came last but was meant to refer to the original post. I would like to post information on the amounts and importance of cacao butter in my site because people are so confused about cocoa "solids", 60% is thought by some of my customers to have more cocoa butter than 70% because "70% has more cocoa solids"... I would love to add links to anone's site on my link page also. Sorry if this is a confused mess- I am rushing!!
link's on my homepage.
Thanks.
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Permalink Reply by Clay Gordon on
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I've started a new Forum thread titled Deconstructing Cocoa Content to address the specific need for a page that members can link to and point others to visit to learn "the truth" about cocoa content.
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Permalink Reply by Nancy on -
hello all,
This sounds a trifle complicated, but good to know. I personally prefer many other brands above Lindt, I find them a little dry. Has anyone tried the Bernard Callebaut chocolate?
He makes it with the French traditional style and it is very good. I am not sure how much cocoa butter is in it, come to think of it.
for fun and good taste too....candy
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Permalink Reply by David Sawyer on
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Dig math,explanation is insightful. Thanks for the post.
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Permalink Reply by SofiaRaj Chocolates on -
Hi Olorin!!!
Think about it this way. The average person on the street, when asked to describe a bar of chocolate, tends to mention texture first and then flavor, which could be attributable to a number of things:
a) cocoa butter's low melting point causes the texture to be noticed first
b) chocolate's flavor takes some time to fully develop, so to render a final opinion before the flavor develops is not really useful
c) natural preference towards fatty foods
You can find your solution to visit...
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