Fabrication of chocolate

Chocolate is made following the four phases of the "bean to bar" process:

1) Roasting the beans

2) Grinding and winnowing the roasted beans

3) Blending the ingredients and conching

4) Tempering and molding

1) Roasting

For this , I use my kitchen oven (with pulsed air)

2) Grinding and winnowing

The beans are then ground in a mill (of my own making), and the mixture falls into the winnowing column. Winnowing separates the cocoa skins (husks) from the cocoa nibs. The skins are drawn into a cyclone by suction, while the heavier cocoa nibs fall into a collection container. The skins can be used to make tea, but only the cocoa nibs are used for making chocolate. This process results in a 25% loss of usable cocoa

3)Blending and conching

The chocolate is assembled during this stage. The various ingredients are added sequentially to the mixer, which crushes them into a paste. Beforehand, the cocoa nibs are blended and heated to facilitate the machine's work. Depending on the recipe, other ingredients are also added: cocoa butter, cane sugar, powdered milk, hazelnut powder, and a little soy lecithin. For sugar-free chocolate, the sugar is replaced with erythritol, and in the case of vegan chocolate, the milk is replaced with coconut milk powder. The sugar content is kept as low as possible, far below industrial standards. Particular attention is paid to the cocoa butter to avoid an overly fatty product. The mixture remains in the machine for approximately 24 hours to obtain a smooth paste with a particle size of less than 25 microns (verified with a grindometer).

3) Tempering and molding

Cocoa is a product that solidifies through crystallization. Six different types of crystals are possible; they all have the same taste, but their mechanical properties vary greatly. The melting temperature, solidification (drying) time, and structure differ significantly from one crystal to another. Only phase 5 crystals produce chocolate with an appropriate melting temperature (35°C), a glossy appearance, and a crisp texture. Furthermore, its volume is smaller than in its liquid state, making unmolding easier. Type 4 crystals form more quickly, but the chocolate is dull, expands in volume, and is therefore very difficult to unmold. The presence of multiple crystal types results in grainy and unappealing chocolate. Tempering is a technique that ensures the vast majority of crystals are type 5. Manually, there are two possible techniques: 1) spreading the chocolate on a cold surface (e.g., marble) or 2) adding solid chocolate during the cooling process. These two methods ensure the homogeneous presence of type 5 crystal nuclei, which, during molding, will ensure that type 5 crystals are predominant.

Once tempered, the chocolate can be molded (using a ladle) and will solidify in the refrigerator after 30 to 45 minutes. Two types of molds are used: the Chocolate World 2438 for thin 70-gram bars, and Martellato molds for thicker 120-gram bars (with whole hazelnuts or pistachios).