Not particularly useful for weight loss.

Cocoa powder is extracted from cocoa beans, first of all, the harvested cocoa are fermented until the cocoa beans deepen in color to dark brown, emitting a strong aromatic unique smell, about six days, the fermentation is over, and the bitter taste of cocoa disappears.

After fermentation, the beans are roasted, shelled, roasted, grinded, pressed and crushed to produce cocoa powder and cocoa butter, and for every ton of cocoa beans, only a very small amount of cocoa powder is produced.

What affects the flavor of cocoa?

The unique flavor of cocoa comes from the sourness, bitterness and astringency of the beans after roasting. Different ratios of these three result in different final flavors.

Different production processes

There are two types of cocoa: natural cocoa and Dutch-process cocoa, and natural cocoa is generally used in home baking.

Natural cocoa powder is processed and ground directly from the cocoa beans without adding any chemical additives, which is a purely natural health food. Alkalized cocoa powder is added in the production process of alkali, of course, the consumption of alkali is harmless to the body, but after all, chemical additives such substances we always have to pay attention to, for the sake of the family's health! So for home baking, we recommend that you choose natural cocoa powder.

Different uses

Pure natural cocoa powder is acidic, so the use is limited, usually only used to make solid food. But it is still enough to meet the needs of home baking (e.g. chocolate cake, ice cream, etc.). Alkaline cocoa powder due to the addition of edible alkali, alkalization (Dutch Process) is designed to neutralize the acidity in the cocoa beans, in terms of solubility will be a little better, the use of the corresponding more extensive, liquid products (such as milk, beverages, etc.) usually use alkaline cocoa powder.

Oreos and brownies, for example, are made with overly alkalized cocoa powder. Certain brands of high purity dark chocolates use alkalized cocoa powder (such as Lindt's 90% dark chocolates sold in the US). It is unacceptable to many chocolate lovers.

Characteristics, different appearance

The appearance of pure natural cocoa powder is light brown in color, the normal alkalized cocoa powder is darker in color, brownish red, if the color is too dark, it may be the addition of food coloring; the natural cocoa powder emits cocoa aroma, and the normal alkalized powder is a bit more intense flavor.

The characteristics of the two are different, the former is acidic, the latter is neutral or alkaline.

By fat content can be divided into high-fat cocoa powder, medium-fat cocoa powder, low-fat cocoa powder. Cocoa powder can be divided into black cocoa powder, brown cocoa powder, red cocoa powder according to color.

Which is better, natural cocoa powder or alkalized cocoa powder? After all the above, there is no way to say which one is better for the two different processes, it depends on your personal taste and usage.

Health & how to recognize the good and bad cocoa powder?

First of all, we can distinguish from the appearance, good cocoa powder is more delicate, there will be no lumps. The color is light brown or brownish red, if the color is particularly dark, it may be the result of adding food coloring (except cocoa black powder). Such "cocoa powder" will accumulate in the human body, blocking the body's absorption of nutrients, serious will induce tumors and other diseases.

Secondly, from the smell to judge, the poor quality of the cocoa powder will smell burnt or particularly strong aroma, which may be added to the flavor of the cause. Good quality cocoa powder to light and elegant fragrance is better.

Finally, you can put the cocoa powder in your palm and rub it, if your palm is dry, it means that the fat content is low, if there is a clear sense of greasiness, it means that the fat content is high. It is recommended to choose low-fat or nonfat cocoa powder, because baking in the high-fat ingredients have been used a lot to minimize the intake of calories, but also conducive to weight loss Oh.

How to use more appropriate?

Through the above introduction, I believe you already know that the best choice for home baking should be nonfat pure natural cocoa powder. It is a necessary ingredient for making chocolate cake. Sometimes the cocoa powder we buy from the supermarket may be a drink punch with added sugar or milk powder, which is not suitable for chocolate cake making. So we must pay attention when we choose dessert oh!