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Post by max3732 on Aug 15, 2013 15:03:04 GMT -5
Hello. Not sure if this should be posted here or in the "Refining and Conching" section.
I'm considering making my own chocolate from home, but am having trouble growing my own from my 2 trees since almost all my pods have wilted.
I saw raw cocoa nibs at a major health food store near me. Are these suitable for attempting to make chocolate from scratch? I have a champion juicer, but no other specialty equipment. If it turns out this is something I'd like to do I'd prefer to make it from the beans, but I'd like to try from the nibs if possible right now before buying expensive equipment.
What confused me about the nibs is they saw "raw". Does this mean they haven't been fermented and roasted? It was my understanding you need to ferment the beans in the pulp from the pods
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Post by Sebastian on Aug 15, 2013 18:48:53 GMT -5
It's a meaningless claim, and you'll have no idea what the history of the nibs is.
Typically, i find that the raw cocoa folks have good intentions - but little information - about what's required for both food safety as well as chocolate flavor development. As a result, they may or may not be fermented, and are most certainly not roasted. I've tested the micro load on many of these, and frankly they're not safe to eat (I did find one exception, but i'm not going to speak about any brands in specific).
Can you use them? Certainly, but know that you're unlikely to have much info on their history (or consistency), and they'll definitely need to be roasted. If you go this route, i'd suggest starting with chocolate liquor vs nibs.
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