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Types of chocolate
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is a complete list of the different types of chocolate:
BAKING CHOCOLATE
Baking chocolate is used in recipes for brownies, cookies, cakes,
and other items. Generally, when you use baking chocolate, you will
be mixing it with other ingredients. This is important, because
baking chocolate can have a lower cocoa-butter content than other
types of chocolate that may also be smoother in texture.
COCOA POWDER
There are two types of cocoa powder. “Dutch process”
cocoa powder has been alkalized. This means that it underwent a
treatment with an alkalizing agent that modified the color and flavor.
The color is deepened and can sometimes even turn black. People
like to use it for cooking purposes. Non-alkalized cocoa powder,
on the other hand, is the powder that remains after the majority
of the cocoa butter is removed from the chocolate liquor. This can
be used in reduced calorie recipes
COUVERTURE CHOCOLATE
Of all the types of chocolate, couverture chocolate is, perhaps,
the highest quality chocolate. It is the type of chocolate that
is usually used in truffles and dipped chocolates and shaped chocolates
and other candies. Because couverture chocolate has such a high
fat content, it is easy to melt and temper. You can expect couverture
chocolate to be higher priced than other types of chocolate.
COMPOUND CHOCOLATE
If you do not have the money or the taste to pay for expensive
couverture chocolates, you may appreciate compound chocolate. It
has a bit of hard vegetable fat added in addition to (and sometimes
instead of) cocoa butter. The trick is to taste it first before
buying a lot, because it can taste like wax.
BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE
To qualify as a true bittersweet chocolate, the chocolate must
contain at least 35% cocoa solids (cocoa and cocoa butter). The
best quality bittersweet chocolate will contain much more, up to
85% cocoa solids! Because of the heightened cocoa solids, the sugar
is low, and the flavor is therefore more intense and bitter (reflecting
the bitterness of chocolate). You will find that many people choose
to use bittersweet chocolate in their cooking and baking.
Bittersweet chocolate is not the same thing as semi-sweet chocolate!
SEMI-SWEET CHOCOLATE
When people refer to “dark chocolate,” they are oftentimes
referring more or less to semi-sweet chocolate. This is one of the
most popular types of chocolate to be used in baking. Semi-sweet
chocolate generally contains around 40%-65% cocoa solids, and it
has a tasty, sweet taste. “Sweet chocolate” is similar
to semi-sweet chocolate, but a little sweeter.
DARK CHOCOLATE
Dark chocolate is a sweeping term that can be applied to semi-sweet
chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, or sweet chocolate (this is not
to say that these three types of chocolate are the same thing!)
Dark chocolate is sweetened and it contains a high amount of cocoa
solids but little milk.
MILK CHOCOLATE
Milk chocolate has only 10%-20% cocoa solids. People generally
do not use milk chocolate for baking except for in chocolate chip
cookies
CHOCOLATE FLAVORED COATING
Chocolate flavored coating is not technically “chocolate.”
It is made with cocoa powder, but it uses vegetable fats rather
than cocoa butter. This is generally what is used in chocolate bars.
It is inexpensive chocolate.
WHITE CHOCOLATE
White chocolate contains no other part of the cocoa bean besides
the fat, the cocoa butter. In this sense, white chocolate is not
technically one of the main types of chocolate – it is not
technically a chocolate at all. When buying white chocolate, though,
you want to be sure that you buy a high quality white chocolate,
one who's fat content is entirely made up of cocoa butter
and not vegetable fat and artificial flavoring. The basic ingredients
of this type of “chocolate” are cocoa butter, milk,
sugar, emulsifier, vanilla, and other flavorings flavor. White chocolate
is not always purely white, it can be an off-white or yellowish-white
color.
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