Post by open on Nov 22, 2021 21:51:44 GMT -5
Just waiting for the Premier Grinder and polycarbonate moulds to arrive in the next few days, then it's the start of an exciting chocolate making hobby!
My one concern is regarding the cacao beans, mainly because I simply have no other comparison so have no idea whether the beans I bought are good or not - if it's of any use I bought a 1kg bag of (at least 70%) Peruvian Criollo Cacao beans from SevenHills Wholefoods.
When I opened the bag, the smell was quite a pungent fermented smell - not sure if acidic is quite the right word. The smell wasn't necessarily unpleasant, and a slight chocolatey aroma definitely came through.
I assume this is normal, given the fermentation process cacao beans go through and the fact that they're yet to be roasted and refined. My main concern is that some of the beans have white streaks, somewhat similar to the look of a light mould covering part of the bean.
I don't have a picture of the beans themselves to post, although I could possibly post one tomorrow. The closest resemblance I could find is in the image I have attached to this post. As you can see, some of the beans near the front of the picture have a slight white exterior.
Is this normal, or should these beans be discarded? (For what it's worth, I've cracked a few of the beans and tasted the nibs, and they look and taste vey nice - and the husk cracks relatively easily even before roasting).
I understand it's probably difficult to judge without images of the cacao beans themselves, I'm just hoping I've bought something of at least decent quality to make chocolate with.
Thanks again for all the help I've received so far!
open
My one concern is regarding the cacao beans, mainly because I simply have no other comparison so have no idea whether the beans I bought are good or not - if it's of any use I bought a 1kg bag of (at least 70%) Peruvian Criollo Cacao beans from SevenHills Wholefoods.
When I opened the bag, the smell was quite a pungent fermented smell - not sure if acidic is quite the right word. The smell wasn't necessarily unpleasant, and a slight chocolatey aroma definitely came through.
I assume this is normal, given the fermentation process cacao beans go through and the fact that they're yet to be roasted and refined. My main concern is that some of the beans have white streaks, somewhat similar to the look of a light mould covering part of the bean.
I don't have a picture of the beans themselves to post, although I could possibly post one tomorrow. The closest resemblance I could find is in the image I have attached to this post. As you can see, some of the beans near the front of the picture have a slight white exterior.
Is this normal, or should these beans be discarded? (For what it's worth, I've cracked a few of the beans and tasted the nibs, and they look and taste vey nice - and the husk cracks relatively easily even before roasting).
I understand it's probably difficult to judge without images of the cacao beans themselves, I'm just hoping I've bought something of at least decent quality to make chocolate with.
Thanks again for all the help I've received so far!
open