Complete chocolate production process. Powdered and liquid chocolate

It is difficult to find a person who has not tried chocolate in his life, chocolates and other sweets with his participation. Since childhood, we all know perfectly well not only how it looks, but we can also visually determine whether it is black or milk chocolate, but far from everyone can boast of knowledge of how chocolate is produced. The basis of any chocolate is cocoa beans and cocoa butter, the quality of the finished product will directly depend on their quality.

Technological chocolate making process begins with the preparation and processing of cocoa beans. First of all, they are cleaned, sorted and calibrated. After that, the beans are roasted. The quality of this process will depend on the taste and aroma. finished chocolate. After that, the beans are crushed.

Large fractions of cocoa nibs obtained as a result of crushing are used to make bar chocolate, while the smaller ones will go for cooking chocolate icing, various fillings for sweets or candy masses. Next, cocoa nibs are crushed to the state of cocoa liquor using a special machine.

In order to get chocolate High Quality and excellent organoleptic characteristics, the chocolate mass is subjected to rolling, which takes place with the help of special rolling equipment. During rolling, the particles in the chocolate mass become even smaller.

On this chocolate production technology does not end. The next stage is the dilution of the resulting mixture with various ingredients. At this stage, chocolate manufacturers add flavors to it, Palm oil, wine. It should be noted that waffles, dried apricots, raisins, candied fruits, nuts are added much later, almost before the moment of chocolate formation. After dilution, the mass is conched. The essence of conching is the long-term mixing of the heated chocolate mass.

This process often takes more than 40 hours. The next technological stage of production is the formation of chocolate. Probably, in order to understand how this process takes place, one must imagine the smelting of precious metals. Melted chocolate is poured into prepared molds. For the manufacture of bulk chocolate products, which are hollow inside, often use high-quality polycarbonate molds for chocolate figures.

After pouring it into molds, it is very important to observe desired temperature at which it will freeze properly. In case of non-compliance temperature conditions, the chocolate will have a poor and weak taste, and a characteristic white-gray coating can be seen on its surface. Tempered chocolate has a special luster, a smooth and at the same time uniform surface. In order to get the final result just like this finished product use one or another tempering machine for chocolate.

Ready chocolate is packaged, packaged and sent for storage to warehouses. As you can see chocolate production- this is a fascinating process, which every year is more and more improved and developed in order to satisfy the wide and fastidious tastes of consumers.

Thanks to the tireless producers of this delicacy, we have the opportunity not only to enjoy its taste, but also to cook many goodies based on it, for example, muffins, bagels, croissants, and even delicious chocolate jelly.

Let's look at chocolate bar or any chocolate product and think about how something we love so much and often eat in large quantities? What is this delicacy? How is white chocolate made? What is the origin of cocoa beans? If you could not immediately answer these questions, then let's try to figure it out together. Today we are going to the chocolate museum, once chocolate factory manufacturer Stollwerk (German: Stollwerck) in the German city of Cologne.

So where does it all begin. Everything is obvious, from a cocoa tree - a species of trees from the genus Theobroma (lat. Theobroma). In the wild, such trees grow in the tropical forests of Central and South America, in Mexico, but cocoa is now cultivated in all tropical countries.

Cocoa fruits, similar to rough, elongated lemons, ripen in 4–7 months, after which they are cut by workers (previously mostly slaves). One such fruit weighs from 300 gr. up to 1 kg.

Inside the fruit in five rows along the longitudinal furrows are cocoa beans surrounded by pulp. They are essential for the production of chocolate. Inside the fruit can be from 20 to 60 seeds. Depending on the recipe, one fruit can produce from half to three tiles (100 gr).

However, they must first be fermented and dried. Cocoa beans fall asleep in wooden boxes and covered with banana leaves. Thanks to this fermentation process, the fruit releases its aroma under the influence of temperature and becomes less bitter. After that, the cocoa beans are dried in the sun for about a week.

Further, cocoa beans are controlled, sorted, classified by type, cleaned, weighed, packed and transported to the customer.
The main producers of cocoa beans are: Ivory Coast, Indonesia, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Brazil, Ecuador.

At the next stage, cocoa beans are roasted to reveal a specific aroma.

In special installations, the husks are separated, after which they are crushed to form grated cocoa(or cocoa mass, which occurs when heated)

At the next stage, the cocoa mass is placed under the press and the cocoa butter is pressed. The rest is ground into cocoa powder. You can start making chocolate.

After a few more technical stages, the so-called conching is performed - mixing the ingredients.

For example, one bar of milk chocolate consists of the following components: 40% sugar, 25% milk powder, 20% cocoa butter, 14% cocoa mass, 0.5% lecithin and 0.5% vanillin (total: 34% cocoa) . White chocolate contains no cocoa mass at all.

On final stage Tempering is carried out, chocolate is heated and cooled several times. It remains to pour the almost finished product into molds and cool again.

The last stage is packaging and packaging.

These were the main stages in the production of chocolate. Of course, depending on the variety and type of product, new steps and stages appear.

A few more photos from the Cologne Chocolate Museum.

Friends, have a nice tea party!

Federal Agency for Education

Ural State Technical University- UPI"

Faculty of Economics and Management

Specialty Accounting, analysis and audit

Essay

by discipline: Fundamentals of technologies of production processes

on the topic: Chocolate production technology

Ekaterinburg

Introduction

1. History of chocolate

2. Characteristics of raw materials

3. Technology of cocoa powder

4. Types of cocoa

5. Collection and processing of cocoa

6. Chocolate production

7. Equipment

8. Description of molds for casting chocolate products

9. Types of chocolate and their uses

10. Dark chocolate prolongs life

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

Depending on the raw materials used and the production technology, confectionery products are divided into two large groups: sugar and flour. TO sugar products include chocolate, sweets, caramel, toffee, dragee, marmalade, marshmallow, halva, oriental sweets and cocoa powder, to flour - cookies, biscuits, crackers, waffles, gingerbread, muffins, rolls, cakes, pastries.

Confectionery products have a high energy value, easy to digest, pleasant taste, delicate aroma, attractive appearance.

The range produced in our country confectionery diverse, constantly changing and has about 5000 items.

The nutritional value of confectionery products is due to the complex of substances necessary for the human body (carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins, etc.) in them.

The main directions in the development of new types of confectionery products are the improvement of the range of goods for children and diet food, an increase in the amount of protein, a decrease in the content of carbohydrates, and especially sugars. Due to the fact that protein is not only a complete, but also a deficient component of food products, at the present stage, new types of protein-containing raw materials are being searched for, which can be successfully used in the production of confectionery products (milk and dairy products, soybeans, corn gluten). , semi-skimmed mass of sunflower seeds, Triticale flour, Kama, etc.). For increase biological value products also use such valuable raw materials as fruits and vegetables. In order to preserve protein, vitamins, enzymes and other biologically active substances, new technological processes production of confectionery.

1. History of chocolate

There are a lot of stories and legends connected with the appearance of chocolate. Now no one undertakes to name the exact place and time of its appearance. It is generally accepted that the Maya Indians, who lived on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, were the first to touch the secret of the taste of chocolate, who even had a special god who controlled cocoa. Cocoa beans were considered at that time a currency growing on trees. The grains of the divine fruit were called "kakaksolata"; they were attributed all sorts of beneficial, and sometimes mystical properties. This is partly because the ancient Mexicans discovered the stimulating properties of chocolate.

Fruit chocolate tree have a very bitter taste, and it took a long time before people perfectly mastered the secret of making chocolate. Only the elite were allowed to drink the sacred drink, most often those at the top of the social ladder. The chiefs and leaders of the tribes drank the drink "chocolatl" from golden bowls ("choco" - bitter, "atl" - water added to cocoa). The Aztec leader Montezuma loved so much chocolate drink who drank 50 glasses a day.

For the first time, Europeans encountered a sacred drink in the 16th century, when the great traveler Christopher Columbus was offered a bowl of chocolate as a gift by the Incas. But he refused the gift, unable to appreciate it. But Columbus' colleague Hernando Cortes can rightfully be considered the main promoter of chocolate, since it was he who first prepared the drink according to the Inca recipe. I must say that at first the chocolate drink seemed too bitter to the Spaniards, and they added cane sugar to it.

In Spain, the fashion for "chocolate" very quickly arose, it was drunk at any time of the day. True, the rest European countries learned the secret of the Inca drink only after about half a century. Until that time, the Spaniards jealously kept the recipe wonderful drink for almost a century. When in 1587 a British ship seized a Spanish ship loaded with cocoa beans, the cargo was destroyed as useless. But in the 17th century, chocolate became popular in all the royal courts of Europe, starting its triumphal procession from France thanks to the wife of King Louis XIII, Anna of Austria, a Spaniard by birth. The Europeans, who appreciated the taste of chocolate, supplied it with another legend, according to which the tree that gives such wonderful fruits undoubtedly grew in the Garden of Eden.

In the 18th century, chocolate was credited with the ability to cure fever, gastric catarrh, and even prolong life. However, at that time the price of chocolate was so fabulous that not all classes could afford it.

In the 19th century, the number of cocoa plantations around the world increased significantly. The price of beans dropped significantly, and chocolate became a popular and affordable drink.

Until the 19th century, chocolate was consumed only in liquid form. The first tiles, which appeared in the 70s of the XIX century thanks to the English company Fry and Sons, were immediately appreciated. And in 1876, Daniel Peter invented a new kind of chocolate - milk chocolate. milk powder, required ingredient of this variety, he was supplied by Henri Nestlé.

At the beginning of the 20th century, milk chocolate began to be produced under the Nestlé brand according to the recipes of Peter and Kohler, two of the most famous specialists in this field. In 1929, their factories merged with Nestlé, as did the Kaye factory, which determined the further development of the company. It was chocolate that became the main activity of the Nestle house. At present, Nestlé continues the tradition of the excellent quality of Swiss chocolate on five continents.

2. Characteristics of raw materials

The main raw material for the production of chocolate and cocoa powder are cocoa beans - the seeds of a cocoa tree that grows in tropical regions. the globe. By origin, cocoa beans are divided into three groups: American, African and Asian. The name of commercial grades corresponds to the name of the region of their production, country or port of export (Ghana, Bahia, Cameroon, Trinidat).

By quality, cocoa beans are divided into two groups: noble (varietal), with delicate taste and a pleasant delicate aroma with many shades (Java, Trinidad), and consumer (ordinary), having a bitter, tart, sour taste and strong aroma (Baia, Accra).

The cocoa bean consists of a hard core formed by two cotyledons, an embryo (sprout), a hard shell (cocoa shell). The main components of cocoa beans are fat, theobromine and caffeine alkaloids, proteins, carbohydrates, tannins and minerals, organic acids and aromatic substances.

Fat (cocoa butter), contained in the core in the amount of 51 - 56% of solids, is of great importance in the formation of the properties of chocolate. At a temperature of 25 ° C, cocoa butter is hard and brittle, and at 32 ° C, i.e. at a temperature below the temperature of the human body, it is liquid, therefore it melts in the mouth without residue. Due to these properties of cocoa butter, chocolate, being a hard and brittle product, melts easily when consumed.

Theobromine makes up 0.3–1.5% of the dry matter of the cocoa bean kernel and 0.5–1% of the dry matter of the cocoa shell. Theobromine and caffeine stimulate the heart nervous system person. However, the stimulating effect of theobromine on cardiac activity is manifested in a weaker and milder form than caffeine. In addition, theobromine and caffeine, along with tannins, contribute to the bitter taste of cocoa beans.

Carbohydrates of cocoa beans are represented by starch (5–9%), sucrose (0.5–1.6%), glucose and fructose, fiber (2.5% in the core, 16.5% in cocoa shell) and pentosans ( in the core - 1.5%, in cocoa shell - 6%). The protein content in the core of cocoa beans is 10.3-12.5%, in cocoa shell - 13.5%.

3. Technology of cocoa powder

The raw material for obtaining cocoa powder is cocoa cake, which remains after pressing cocoa liquor. Cocoa cake, which after pressing is in the form of disks, is first crushed into pieces about 25 mm in size, cooled to a temperature of 35-40 ° C, and then served for grinding. Next, the particles are carried away by the air flow to the cooler, and then to the air separator, in which large particles are separated and sent for re-grinding. The fraction containing fine particles is sent for packaging.

Chocolate products are characterized by excellent taste properties, high calorie(540–560 kcal, or 2260–2330 kJ, per 100 g). Due to the presence of theobromine and caffeine, chocolate quickly relieves fatigue and increases efficiency.

In the process of technological processing, three main semi-finished products are obtained from cocoa beans: cocoa mass, cocoa butter and cake. Cocoa mass and cocoa butter are used to make chocolate, and cocoa powder is obtained from cocoa cake.

There are three types of milk chocolate: dark, milk and white. Dark chocolate, which has a bittersweet taste, contains cocoa mass, sugar and cocoa butter. Milk chocolate consists of cocoa mass, sugar, dry whole milk, cocoa butter and various additives, mainly vanilla and various flavors. White chocolate it's excellent milk and sugar content.

Bibliography

1. Anfimova N.A. Cooking. / ON THE. Anfimova, L.L. Tatarskaya, T.I. Zakharov.

2. Anfimova N.A. Culinary "Pastry Chef". / ON THE. Anfimova, L.L. Tatar. M.: ProfObrIzdat, 2002.

3. Catering. Moscow: Enlightenment, 1985.

4. Collection of recipes for flour and confectionery products. M.: Economics, 1986.

5. Tokarev L.T. Production of confectionery. / L.T. Tokarev. M.: food industry, 1987

6. www.svitoch.lviv.ua

The main raw material for the production of chocolate products and cocoa powder with specific taste and aroma properties are cocoa beans.

In the process of technological processing, the following main semi-finished products are obtained from cocoa beans: cocoa mass, cocoa butter and cocoa cake. Cocoa mass and cocoa butter, together with powdered sugar, are used to make chocolate, and cocoa powder is obtained from the pomace.

Depending on the composition, chocolate is distinguished: without food additives, with food additives, stuffed and diabetic.

According to the processing method, chocolate is divided into: dessert, regular, porous, powdered and chocolate figures.

Chocolate without additives made from cocoa mass, powdered sugar and cocoa butter. Such chocolate has specific bright expressed properties inherent in cocoa beans. By changing the ratio of sugar and cocoa liquor, you can change the taste and aroma of chocolate - from bitter to sweet. The more cocoa liquor in chocolate, the more bitter taste and bright aroma he has even more nutritional value. The content of cocoa liquor in chocolate without food additives varies within a fairly wide range - 57-28%.

Chocolate with food additives made from cocoa mass, powdered sugar and cocoa butter. The most commonly used additives are: powdered milk, dry cream, nut kernels, wafers, candied fruits, alcohol, cognac, vanillin, essence, etc.

Chocolate with filling is made from chocolate mass without additives and chocolate mass with milk additives in the form of bars, loaves, shells and other figurines with different fillings(walnut, fondant, chocolate, jelly, cream, milk, creamy). The amount of filling in chocolate - 25-50%.

Chocolate diabetic intended for patients diabetes. Instead of sugar, sorbitol or xylitol is introduced into the composition of such chocolate, as well as cocoa mass, milk powder, cocoa butter and fructose. In some cases, saccharin is used.

Dessert chocolate is produced with and without additives; it is subject to long processing during the production process, as a result of which it acquires high taste and aromatic properties.

Aerated chocolate is produced as a dessert chocolate with and without food additives and is subject to additional processing under vacuum.

Powdered chocolate is made from powdered sugar and cocoa liquor, chocolate figures without filling are made from dessert chocolate mass in the form of various hollow objects and figurines of animals and birds.

Dessert chocolate, plain, porous, without additives and with additives in the bulk is produced in the form of rectangular tiles with a pattern and without a pattern on the surface of 100, 50, 25, 20, 15 and 5 g.

Technological scheme for making chocolate

The production of chocolate products consists of a number of technological operations: processing of cocoa beans and obtaining the main semi-finished products - cocoa mass and cocoa butter; sorting cocoa beans and cleaning from impurities; heat treatment; grinding beans and separating the husks; obtaining cocoa nibs, cocoa liquor; heat treatment and storage of cocoa liquor in production; pressing cocoa liquor to obtain cocoa butter and cake, storing cocoa butter; obtaining cocoa powder; preparation of chocolate mass with powdered sugar (powdered sugar), dosing and mixing prescription components of chocolate mass, grinding of chocolate mass, dilution of chocolate mass with cocoa butter, introduction of phospholipid concentrate, homogenization of chocolate mass for ordinary chocolate, long mechanical processing for 24-72 h at elevated temperatures(45-60°C) chocolate mass for dessert Chocolate and storage of chocolate mass in production; Packaging of chocolate, tempering and filtering of chocolate mass in moulds, cooling and demoulding of chocolate from moulds, wrapping and packaging.

Sorting of cocoa beans is carried out in order to remove impurities and separate damaged beans. Crushing of beans is carried out on crushers, cleaning and sorting - on cleaning and sorting machines with separation and sieve devices and a selection conveyor.

In cleaning and sorting machines, cocoa beans are cleaned with special brushes or a jet of air from impurities that are collected in cyclones. The cleaned beans enter the system of sieves with holes different sizes, on which doubled beans are first separated, then injured and chopped. The cleaned sorted cocoa beans are removed from the machine by a conveyor.

One of the main operations affecting the quality of chocolate products is the heat treatment of cocoa beans, during which physical and chemical changes occur: the moisture content decreases from 6-8 to 2-3%, due to a decrease in moisture content, cocoa is well separated from the core, and the core is easily crushed.

Influenced high temperature beans are sterilized, their taste and aroma are improved. The specific aroma of cocoa occurs already during fermentation, and then improves during heat treatment as a result of the formation of new aromatic compounds. Volatile organic acids and tannins are present in cocoa beans, which give the product a sour and astringent taste characteristic of raw cocoa beans.

Heat treatment of cocoa beans at modern enterprises is carried out in continuous devices with a temperature of 130-170 0C for 25-50 minutes. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the cocoa beans themselves do not heat up above a temperature of 120 ° C. After heat treatment, cocoa beans are quickly cooled to a temperature of 30 0C, and then fed to the next operation.

After heat treatment and cooling, the cocoa beans are fed into a crushing and sorting machine for crushing the beans, distributing the resulting grains by size and extracting cocoa.

The crushing mechanism is made in the form of two corrugated rolls or two discs with a corrugated surface, the sieve frame is made up of a set of sieves.

Cocoa beans are fed into the crushing mechanism, in front of which magnets are installed. Passing through the crushing mechanism, the beans are crushed, forming a mixture of kernel grits, cocoa particles and sprouts. The mixture enters the sieves, while moving through which the grains are distributed by size, and with the help of air separation, cocoa is separated from the grains. Not crushed cocoa beans descend from the sieve and the auger is fed for re-grinding. As a result of grinding, it is important to obtain clean grits with a cocoa content of no more than 1.5%. The yield of grains should be 81-83%.

Then the cocoa nibs are carefully crushed again, and the cellular tissue is destroyed, which facilitates the extraction of cocoa butter from the cells. As a result of such processing, we obtain a semi-finished product - cocoa liquor, which, when heated (above 35 ° C), is a suspension consisting of two phases: liquid - cocoa butter and solid - small particles of cocoa bean cell tissue.

The process of grinding cocoa nibs is carried out in machines of various types, to obtain grated cocoa of high dispersion.

In the process of grinding cocoa nibs, as a result of intense friction, the product is heated and turns into an easily floating mass, which is easily transported by pumps. After grinding, the moisture content of cocoa liquor is 2-2.5%, the amount of solid phase is 90-95%.

Then the cocoa liquor is collected in special machines with a capacity of 2-10 tons, which are equipped with heaters, agitators and thermometers. In these machines, cocoa liquor is heated to 85-90 ° C and stored with continuous stirring to prevent separation of the liquid and solid phases.

Cocoa mass is used to make chocolate mass and to obtain cocoa butter, which is the second main component. chocolate production.

Modern presses work effectively if the moisture content of cocoa liquor does not exceed 1.5%. The pressing process takes place at a temperature of about 100 ° C and a pressure of up to 4.5-5.5 MPa. The pressing cycle is 15-40 minutes, depending on the amount of fat in the cake, which is used to obtain commercial and industrial cocoa powder.

Cocoa butter after the presses enters the apparatus with heated shirts, in which it is stored at a temperature of 50-60 ° C. Cocoa butter intended for medical purposes is carefully filtered to separate small particles of cocoa liquor.

Hot cocoa cake, obtained after pressing, is fed by a conveyor for grinding into a cake grinder. The cake is then cooled and fed into intermediate storage bins.

The main semi-finished product is chocolate mass from which is cast different forms tiles with subsequent cooling and get chocolate. Chocolate mass intended for glazing sweets, caramel, marmalade, cakes and other products is called chocolate icing.

The hot chocolate mass is a homogeneous homogeneous mixture with a certain viscosity and consists of a mixture of small particles of cocoa beans, sugar and other additives, evenly distributed in the oil.

The main components of chocolate mass are cocoa mass, cocoa butter and powdered sugar. In addition to these main components, the chocolate mass includes various nutritional supplements, provided by recipes for a variety of flavors and nutritional properties chocolate.

Quality and technological properties chocolate mass are characterized by viscosity and dispersion of the solid phase. Viscosity largely determines the technological properties of the mass and must have a constant value that characterizes the processes of chocolate formation and product glazing. The dispersion of the solid phase characterizes taste qualities chocolate and its structure.

To make chocolate, a significant amount of granulated sugar is processed, which is ground beforehand to the state of powdered sugar. Humidity of granulated sugar should not exceed 0.15%. At bulk storage him to confectionery factories humidity should be 0.02-0.04%. Sugar-sand is sifted on vibrating sieves, and then crushed into different types hammer mills or disintegrators.

The preparation of chocolate mass is carried out by mixing cocoa liquor with powdered sugar, cocoa butter and other components provided for by the recipe and technology.

The main requirement of the mixing process is thorough uniform mixing of all constituent components in order to obtain a homogeneous plastic pasty mass.

Before mixing, the components are dosed according to the recipe. First of all, cocoa mass enters the mixer, then powdered sugar and other additives, and lastly cocoa butter is loaded in such a proportion that the total fat content in the chocolate mass is 26-30%.

Mixing is carried out in batch mixers or blenders for 30 minutes or in continuous mixers with mechanized loading of components and continuous unloading of the mixed mass.

Then the chocolate mass is crushed in high-speed multi-roll mills.

During grinding, the chocolate mass takes on a pasty appearance. As you move along the rolls, the solid particles are crushed, their total surface increases sharply, and the mass becomes powdery. Cocoa butter, which is distributed over a significantly increased total mass surface, takes the form of a thin film, which leads to drying of the mass.

The crushed chocolate mass, during heating and thorough mixing, is diluted with cocoa butter to transfer from a powder to a liquid state. In the process of kneading, soy phosphatide concentrate is introduced, which is a surfactant capable of forming a liquid, low-stringing chocolate mass.

Subsequently, the homogenization of the chocolate mass is carried out by continuous processing on special equipment, the result of which is the destruction of the structure of the mass, the uniform distribution of solid fine particles in cocoa butter and a decrease in viscosity. This process is carried out at a temperature of 60-70 ° C for the mass without additives and for chocolate icing; at a temperature of 45-50 ° C - for the mass with the addition of milk, nuts, etc.

Chocolate mass intended for preparation dessert chocolate, subjected to a long process of conching - machining in special mills. The process lasts for different types chocolate mass 24-72 hours with continuous mechanical and thermal exposure.

The conching of the chocolate mass is accompanied by complex physical and chemical changes. At the same time, the taste and aroma are significantly improved due to the chemical transformations of tannins and aromatic substances. The humidity and viscosity of the mass decreases, the quality of chocolate as a whole improves significantly.

Manufactured chocolate mass of all types after physical and chemical treatment is pumped into the storage apparatus, which is constantly maintained at a temperature of 42-45°C. Of these, the chocolate mass is selected for further technological operations.

Chocolate from chocolate mass is obtained by pouring it into different forms, followed by cooling. As a result, chocolate ready-made has a hard, brittle, specific structure, characteristic in aroma and taste only for chocolate.

Bar chocolate without filling is formed on continuous machines.

Guaranteed shelf life of chocolate without additives - 6 months. at a temperature of (18 (3) ° C, and chocolate with additives - 3 months. The shelf life of cocoa powder is 6 months. During storage, chocolate is especially sensitive to heat. Therefore, maintaining required temperature storage is strictly required.

If you look at a modern chocolate factory, you can see a lot of machines of different designs and types in its production facilities, workshops, floors, and very few people. Flowing golden streams, the noise of pumps, the rotation of the shafts indicate that outwardly stationary machines are at work. In them, the raw material of cocoa beans is crushed, pounded, mixed, heated, cooled, turns into a shapeless brown chocolate mass, the smell of which pleasantly tickles the nose.

How did they do it in the old days

How different is modern chocolate production to the one in which it was made a hundred and fifty years ago. In Mexico, it was made simply: roasted beans were rubbed with a wooden rocking chair on a flat stone with a small indentation and immediately mixed with spices and sugar. That's the whole factory.

On some islands (for example, in the Philippine Islands), even today you can see such production on the street. According to your order, the Chinese puts a board on his knees, rubs the beans, mixes the cocoa mass with sugar and spices - the chocolate is ready.

Progress in chocolate production

A step forward was the replacement of a stone or stone mortar with a metal mortar.

In 1788, in Paris, the Frenchman Doré demonstrated at the medical faculty of the university the first chocolate machine. A more advanced machine was invented later, in 1830, by the French engineer Hermann. However, for a hundred years modern technology chocolate production has gone far from machines.

Primary processing

Traditional processing technology source of raw cocoa to obtain a chocolate bar begins with the cleaning of beans in special machines from various impurities(sand, pebbles, fibers, etc.) and sorting on special sorting machines.

Then the cocoa beans are roasted in special roasting drums at a temperature of 160-180 degrees for ten to fifteen minutes. In them, cocoa beans are finally dried, part of the moisture is removed from them. Thanks to this, the beans are then easily crushed, the husk is well separated from them. At a number of factories, roasting is abandoned and drying is carried out at a temperature of 60-70 degrees. The choice of drying or roasting operation is determined by the variety of cocoa beans, the effect of this operation on their aroma and taste. Roasting or drying is carried out automatically, depending on the weight to which you want to bring the feedstock.

Crushing and creating a recipe mixture

After this operation, the beans are quickly unloaded, cooled and go for crushing in special apparatus, in which each bean is split into several small pieces. passing by magnetic traps metal impurities crushed cocoa falls on a sorting machine - a sieve, from which, depending on the size, through several channels, cocoa nibs are fed to be cleaned from hard woody sprouts on a special trier. Cocoa shell husks are blown into a special chamber by a stream of air.

To do delicious chocolate, requires creation from raw materials prescription mix from different varieties cocoa, just as a wine of a special aroma and taste is created from a mixture different wines. To do this, you need to have great knowledge, experience, an exceptionally subtle sense of smell and a well-developed taste.

After choosing a mixture of cocoa nibs of different varieties, the resulting raw material on a special mill "Muline" pounded into bold cocoa mass. But in order for it to finally turn into a chocolate mass, it is necessary to introduce various additives into it, the obligatory of which is sugar, without which the chocolate will be bitter and tasteless. Depending on the variety, almonds, nuts, milk powder, and some spices are added to it.

Processing on melangeur and rolling

After the selection and introduction of selected additives in accordance with the weight formula of all raw materials, the mixture is thoroughly mixed and ground on special melangeur machines(in French "melanger" - a mixer) into a homogeneous brown oily mass. To improve mixing, the mass is heated until the cocoa butter melts, which improves the homogeneity of the chocolate mass - the first chocolate semi-finished product in the technological chain.

Only coarse crushing and mixing is achieved on the melangeur constituent parts chocolate mass. From here it becomes clear the need for the next technological operation - rolling. The machines by which the chocolate mass is ground are called rollers. In them, the chocolate mass is passed between granite or steel shafts rotating in different sides and at different speeds. Depending on the degree of grinding, the machines have from three to five shafts, running hundreds of kilometers between them, each particle reaches the desired size - one micron!

Conching

It would seem that after rolling, when a pinch of the chocolate mass seems completely smooth to the touch, the semi-finished product is finally ready for the manufacture of a chocolate bar, but the impression of the complete “smoothness” of the chocolate mass quickly dissipates if you look at it through a microscope. The chocolate mass does not consist of round identical balls, but of particles of the most diverse shapes. If a chocolate bar is made from such an initial mass, then the tongue quickly reveals these shortcomings. Therefore, the chocolate mass is further processed in special machines, the name of which comes from the French word "conche", which means "shell". The operation itself is called conching. Operating principle conche machines consists in a reciprocating effect on the liquid (cocoa butter was additionally added to it after rolling in the mix machine) chocolate mass in special vessels - conch shells - in such a way that the mass driven by the roller is thrown away from the walls of the vessel and again rolls onto the moving backward forward granite or steel shaft. The reciprocating rectilinear motion is reported to them by a special crank mechanism.

Depending on the required capacity, conching is carried out in several conche machines, the number of which is usually four. The roller pressure drives the chocolate mass against the wall of the shell-vessel, from which it is thrown back onto the roller. The process is reminiscent of the sea surf rolling over the shore pebbles. For three, and sometimes four to six days, the chocolate mass rolls in a wave, either forward or backward.

Conching is the longest process of preparing the chocolate mass, during which the particles are crushed into small, homogeneously, evenly mixed balls, from the ingredients of cocoa, sugar, milk. These balls are coated with cocoa butter. Under the influence of temperature (conching is carried out at 60-70 degrees), foul-smelling substances and part of the remaining moisture evaporate, the chocolate mass is aerated, saturated with air, which contributes to its aromatization. During the checkout process, aromatic substances can be added, for example, vanillin, the presence of one four-billionth of a gram of which is detected by the human sense of smell in 50 cubic centimeters of air.

(Markitantov I.B. "Efficiency and quality of chocolate production")