Processing cocoa beans to make chocolate

Trinidad is known to have the world’s best cocoa beans. Cacao, (Theobroma cacao) also called cocoa, is a tropical evergreen tree grown for its edible seeds. Large chocolate brands such as Cadbury once depended on Trinidad’s quality beans when the cocoa industry was blooming. Locally, we have three main cocoa: Criollo, Forastero and Trinitario. Criollo is known to have the finest flavour beans, Forastero is the most common bean found in most commercial chocolates (the Peruvian chocolate was Forastero), and Trinitario is a hybrid between the two beans made in Trinidad.

Many efforts are currently being taken to revitalise the cocoa industry in Trinidad as it is a foreign exchange earner. If you are the proud owner of a cocoa estate, by inheritance or purchase, perhaps you should investigate the rehabilitation of the fields, especially if there are Trinitario trees. The wet beans and dry beans reap an excellent price on the local market as well. In addition, our local chocolatiers heavily depend on these beans for their gourmet delicacies.

The cocoa industry is indeed very profitable. If you are thinking about becoming a chocolatier or simply would like a fun project to try, processing the beans to create dark chocolate is very intricate but rewarding. First you will need to obtain a few cacao pods. They are readily available in the markets. Try sourcing the Trinitario if you can.  Crack the cacao pods with a hammer and remove the seeds and pulp.

Place the seeds in a container and set it in a warm place to ferment for 5 to 7 days. As you know, the temperature in the past few weeks make it ideal for this activity so you can utilise the sunlight for your fermentation. Wash off the fermented beans and roast them in the oven. Wait until the beans are cooled then remove the outer shell from the beans, exposing the cacao nibs. Grind the cacao nibs into a smooth paste using a high-power blender such as a Nutribullet. This is officially raw dark chocolate.

You can use this as a base for cocoa tea, food products or beauty products. For added processing, add sugar and cacao butter. Temper the chocolate using a double boiler and pour into mouldings (which can be purchased online) to set into chocolate bars. You can get a bit more creative by adding milk, cinnamon and other warm spices to enhance your chocolate. The entire process usually takes 8 to 10 days, but it is 100 per cent worth the result!

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