Chocolate, of course!

Chocolates are the best choice for every occasion, whether big or small, because they can add to the entire celebration of a moment.

More than 80% of people consume chocolates every year from Kit Kat to a Snickers bar.

But have you ever wondered how the world's favorite snack is made?

From a small cocoa bean to the chocolate cake you eat on your birthday?

Let's find out in today's video!

Step 1.

Cultivation of Cacao Trees Most of the cocoa beans that arrive in manufacturing companies come from West Africa, which grows 70% of the world's crop.

So where do these beans come from?

The first step in chocolate making is cocoa cultivation.

Since the cacao tree is delicate and requires optimal conditions for growth, it's essential that a moist, shady environment with a temperature of at least 25 degrees Celsius and a humidity of 80% or more with an ideal annual rainfall of approximately 1800 mm is maintained.

After that, we need to harvest the beans.

Step 2.

Harvesting Once the cacao pods are fully ripe, they are ready to be harvested.

It's a critical method for carefully protecting these cacao trees so they can continue to bloom repeatedly.

These harvesters use different tools, such as machetes, picaroons, and shears.

Step 3.

Extracting the Cocoa Beans This is a challenging step.

First, a bunch of cocoa beans wrapped in white pulp is removed from the pod.

After extraction, the beans are sorted and only the ones in the best condition are kept.

A machete or club can be used to smash open the pod to separate the cocoa beans from the flour shaft.

One pod can yield up to 20 to 40 cocoa beans.

Now it's time to bring some simple chemical reactions into the mix.

Step 4.

Fermentation The extracted cocoa beans are spread directly on the ground or naturally fermented in a wooden box.

Fermentation is a critical stage for that unique chocolate aroma.

The beans are covered with banana leaves in a two-step process, causing ethanol fermentation.

After that, the beans are stirred, which results in acetic acid fermentation.

The presence and absence of oxygen play a massive role in how aromatic the beans will be.

Step 5.

Drying the Cocoa Beans Now we must reduce the water level in the beans to less than 7% so they'll be thoroughly dried.

This step is crucial because it stops the fermentation process and allows it to be shipped and stored without refermentation risk.

The traditional drying technique is fresh air and sunlight, so the beans are spread on a wooden deck for maximum exposure.

Once dried, the beans are ready to be shipped.

Step 6.

Bagging and Shipping the Cocoa Beans The beans are checked for foreign matter or impurities because they are packed.

Once packaged safely, they'll be shipped to their respective locations.

Now we're even closer to making the edible chocolates that we all love to eat.

Step 7.

Cleaning Although the harvesters initially clean the beans manually, they still have to undergo a thorough screening and filtering process to make them even cleaner for use.

They undergo a cleaning process in which debris, stones, and twigs are removed.

A conveyor belt moves the Cocoa Beans through a cleaning system.

Once properly cleaned, they'll be heated in a micronized revolving drum that heats the Cocoa Beans to loosen their hard shells.

The next stop is the packing station, where the cleaned beans are packed in bags, each containing one ton of Cocoa Beans.

Step 8.

Quality Inspection Before entering the chocolate manufacturing process, a quality inspection is carried out to ensure the quality conformity of the Cocoa Beans.

For this purpose, a team of sensory analysts with specialized knowledge will perform a taste analysis to confirm that the beans are of premium quality.

Step 9.

Crushing The crushing process involves rupturing the shells of the Cocoa Beans.

The beans are passed through a shell-removing machine known as a winnower for this part.

Once inside the winnower, they are crushed by successive rakes that drag the beans across screens.

This efficiently pulls off large pieces of the shell.

After that, a vacuum is used to suck away the remaining smaller pieces stuck to the bean.

This complete removal of the shell exposes the inside of the Cocoa Bean, also known as the nib.

Once the nibs have been obtained, it's time for an essential procedure that is pivotal to the taste and aroma of the chocolate.

Step 10.

Roasting Roasting is undoubtedly a key process necessary in bringing out the taste of chocolate.

Without it, we probably wouldn't enjoy our chocolates as much as we do.

So now, the factory will roast the nibs to enhance the flavors.

They are roasted in a gas-heated, air-filled spherical roaster.

It will dry them, bring out the aroma, and also make it easier to separate the husks from the beans for easier sorting later on.

Now, let's proceed to blending everything together.

Step 11.

Blending The beans of similar origin are mixed together to create a unique aroma.

However, the manufacturer may also blend cocoa beans from different sources.

The processed nibs are placed in the mixture, which combines them with cocoa butter, sugar, and milk powder if they want to make milk chocolate.

After blending, we obtain the consistency of a very thick cake batter.

The flavor is okay at this point, but the mixture still needs to smooth out correctly, so it's transferred to a refining machine.

Step 12.

Grinding and refining Now the cocoa beans are finely ground to release the cocoa butter, which melts into a thick paste, and a smooth liquid texture is acquired.

After that, all the different ingredients needed to make chocolate are added to the batter to make a homogenous paste.

This paste is then kneaded so now it's finely crushed into tiny chocolate flakes.

However, more refinement is needed, so the chocolate flakes are passed between a set of five rollers that reduce the particle size until the chocolate leaves the refiner in the form of finely crushed dry powder.

Of course, this is still not the chocolate we need, so it'll have to be reliquefied.

Step 13.

Conching Now, the final step in producing liquid chocolate is a process known as conching.

To put it simply, conching is a process in which a surface scraping mixer and agitator, known as a conch, evenly distributes cocoa butter within chocolate.

It may also act as a polisher of the particles, so it's necessary to carry out this step carefully.

So the first part is dry conching.

This is done to warm the product with frictional heat, so liquefaction is promoted through the substance.

After that, it's time to perform liquid conching to promote homogenization of the whole product.

Another benefit of conching is the finishing touch it provides in aroma brewing.

It also helps to reduce the volatile acidity and water content to less than 1%.

At this stage, adding more cocoa butter is also customary to reduce the viscosity to the exact thickness the manufacturer needs.

For example, if they're making chocolate chips, they'll only add a small amount of it, but if something like a thin chocolate coating, they might add more.

So a delicate balance is maintained to ensure the final product is satisfactory.

Now that we have the chocolate liquid, it's time to harden it.

Step 14.

Tempering As the name implies, this stage involves setting the temperature of the chocolate liquid.

The cocoa butter is crystallized into a stable shape during the temperature control cycle.

It is then weighed and further poured into an appropriate mold.

Once it's been molded, the chocolate is cooled and hardened to solidify it.

Step 15.

Making Praline Chocolates Alright, so now that we have the chocolate, but what about coating, filling, and decorating it?

After all, chocolate is all the more savory when it has yummy stuff like nuts and fillings.

So next up, different pralines are added as fillings for bonbon chocolate.

Water is mixed with sugar and then boiled to reduce the amount to make caramel.

The next step is mixing dry fruits with chocolates.

For example, the manufacturer can choose to add finely roasted almonds and hazelnuts to the product after the mixing process is completed.

After that, the chocolate is cooled on a marble table, where it is finely ground and refined to perfection.

Chocolate fillings, such as ganache, are made by mixing chocolate with dairy products or fruits and then emulsifying them.

But it's also essential to make the chocolate products eye-catching, so let's get to that now.

Step 16.

Coating and Decoration Of course, the chocolate must be further embellished to look even more scrumptious than it already does.

So for this part, it'll be coated and decorated, in the case of bonbon chocolates.

First, the filling is rolled over the chocolate layer, forming the undercoat of bonbon chocolate after it has cooled.

Next, the undercoated filling will be covered with specific patterns to bring out the charm.

Lastly, using different tools and materials, the bonbon is decorated with chocolate, so it looks incredibly tempting.

And that's all for today's video.

Click on one of the two videos on your screen right now, and we'll catch you guys in the next one.