Monday 20 May 2013

Natural Cocoa Powder-Used in several recipes!

Natural cocoa powder and Dutch processed cocoa, there are two types of unsweetened cocoa used in various chocolate recipes.

From which most of the cocoa butter has been extracted, Natural Cocoa is made from ground roasted cocoa nibs. Beige in color, it is naturally acidic with a pH of about 5.4. To neutralize its acidity and bring the pH to about 7 and has a rich, dark brown color, organic cocoa powder is further treated with an alkalizing agent.

Dutch processed are some American cocoas are natural and most European cocoas.
To use the type of cocoa specified in a recipe in order for baked goods to rise properly, many "baking experts" and cookbooks report that it's important, and that interchangeably, Dutch cocoa and natural cocoa cannot be used.

But to stock both kinds of unsweetened cocoa in his/her pantry, is it really necessary for the home cook?
I decided to do some research on the topic, since I wasn't sure of the answer and have gone back and forth in my own baking.

Back in 2005, in side-by side comparisons of hot chocolate and chocolate shortbread the folks at a respected cooking magazine tested five Dutch cocoas and five Natural cocoas. In side-by-side comparisons of hot chocolate, shortbread, low-fat chocolate pudding, devil's food cake, and chocolate pudding cake, the top two scoring Dutch processed and natural cocoas were then compared.
In the leavening results, the tests concluded that there was no discernible difference and in terms of both flavor and texture, the two Dutch cocoas beat out the two natural cocoas. Every test hands down was won by Dutch process cocoa.

To stock only Dutch process cocoa in my baking cupboard from now on, I don't know about you, but that's sufficient evidence for me.

Callebaut, Droste, and Mercken's, high scoring Dutch processed cocoas include. When that's all I could find on my grocery store's shelves, I've also had success using Hershey's dutch processed brand. organic cacao powder is also used in many recipes.

Meaning that its shelf life can easily be affected by the method of storage, cocoa powder has high fat content. In other words, not to mention that hot chocolate you've been craving about, your way of keeping it when it's not in use can make or break the sweet recipes you were planning to get going in the kitchen.

The villain of every cocoa powder story is the first thing you should remember is that humidity. So, don't expose too long in any place below 30-degree Celsius. On an airtight, well-sealed plastic or glass container, store it. This will keep the cocoa powder fresh and you can continue using them in a wide array of recipes.

For further details about Natural cocoa powder please visit the website.










No comments:

Post a Comment