Chocolate Produced for the Baking Industry

True chocolate contains cocoa butter. The main types of chocolate, in decreasing order of cocoa liquor content, are:

• Unsweetened (bitter) chocolate
• Dark chocolate
• Milk chocolate
• White chocolate

Unsweetened Chocolate

Unsweetened chocolate, also known as bitter chocolate, baking chocolate, or cooking chocolate, is pure cocoa liquor mixed with fat to produce a solid substance. The pure ground roasted cocoa beans impart a strong, deep chocolate flavor. With the addition of sugar in recipes, however, it is used as the base for cakes, brownies, confections, and cookies. The quality of the chocolate is determined by the type of cocoa beans used and how they are processed. Since no sugar is added to the chocolate, it has a strong, bitter taste that is used in cooking and baking but is never eaten out of hand. Unsweetened chocolate, if well wrapped and stored in a cool dry place with good air circulation, will keep for several years.

Dark (Sweet, Semi-Sweet, Bittersweet) Chocolate

Dark chocolate has an ideal balance of cocoa liquor, cocoa butter, and sugar. Thus, it has the attractive, rich color and flavor typical of chocolate, and is sweet enough to be palatable. It does not contain any milk solids. It can be eaten as is or in baking. Its flavor is not lost or overwhelmed, as in many cases when milk chocolate is used. Flavorful chocolates with high cocoa percentages ranging from 60% to 99% are often used for fillings. Dark is synonymous with semi-sweet, and extra dark with bittersweet, although the ratio of cocoa butter to solids may vary.

Sweet chocolate has more sugar, sometimes almost equal to cocoa liquor and butter amounts (45% to 55% range).

Semi-sweet chocolate is frequently used for cooking. It is a dark chocolate with less sugar than sweet chocolate.

Bittersweet chocolate has less sugar and more liquor than semi-sweet chocolate, but the two are often interchangeable when baking. Bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolates are sometimes referred to as couverture (see below). The higher the percentage of cocoa, the less sweet the chocolate is.

Milk Chocolate

Milk chocolate is solid chocolate made with milk, added in the form of milk powder. Milk chocolate contains a higher percentage of fat (the milk contributes to this) and the melting point is slightly lower. It is used as a flavoring and in the production of candies and molded pieces.

White Chocolate

The main ingredient in white chocolate is sugar, closely followed by cocoa butter and milk powder. It is used mainly as a flavoring in desserts, in the production of candies, and in chunk form in cookies. Good white chocolate contains cocoa butter, sugar, milk solids, vanilla, and lecithin. When buying white chocolate, the best choices contain cocoa butter, while some inferior brands contain vegetable fat. It is a delicate chocolate that scorches easily, so always melt over very low heat. It sets up softer than dark chocolate because it does not contain chocolate liquor. White chocolate will keep 6-10 months if stored in a cool dry place.