Cocoa is a fruit from a tropical climate typical of America and since its European discovery it has achieved great utility in gastronomy around the world. There are two varieties of cocoa, the red fruit and the yellow fruit, both provide excellent properties and can be used to prepare pastry recipes and drinks. Experts insist that the best cocoa is pure, even if this means that it has to be cleaned, roasted and ground at home. Therefore, we recommend that you do this process at home in the simple way we explain below.
How to clean cocoa beans?
Cleaning the cocoa beans is the first step before using them in any recipe. First we proceed to remove the shell that protects the cocoa beans. Generally, this is hard and you must use a knife to scrape it off. Rinse them under cold water and let them dry on a cloth.
How to roast cocoa beans?
Once the cleaning process is finished, the roasting process begins. At this stage the grain must be completely dry, clean and free of defects. At home you can use the oven to carry out this process, you just have to place the grains on a special baking tray, at a temperature of 300 °C. Leave them for approximately 15 to 30 minutes. If it's your first time roasting them, relax and enjoy the aroma that the oven gives off. But be careful because they can burn!
When the time is up, take the tray out of the oven and let it rest for a few minutes. Proceed to remove the layer that covers the grain, it should come off easily and with little effort. Ready! You have managed to roast the grain to complete the next stage.
How to grind cocoa beans?
Cocoa beans are as hard as coffee beans. That is why we recommend using the same mill to carry out this process. You should obtain a fine powder and you can sift it according to needs. Once ground, keep it in a dry place protected from the sun's rays.
Tips to take advantage of cocoa beans
Use this powder to make healthy and energetic smoothies easily. To make smoothies you will only need a tablespoon of this powder for a glass of milk, use the blender and add sugar to taste. You can present this same mixture cold for the summer or hot for the winter. You can also use it to make cakes and give a distinctive touch to presentations.
There are plenty of recipes when it comes to using cocoa beans and each of the ways would not be enough to write an entire article, so we will leave more suggestions in some of our recipes.
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