Estudio de la influencia de la molienda (conchado) en la reducción de la acidez del chocolate de cobertura

Abstract

Ecuador is one of the largest cocoa producers worldwide and is positioned as one of the largest exporters (Acuña, 2020). Ambato is the city where the largest amount of traditional chocolate has been produced for 100 years, however, the technology used is quite artisanal, meaning that there is no variation or improvement in the products or processes offered. One of the new products is the couverture chocolate, due to its uses in the pastry and gastronomic area. Currently, couverture chocolate is found with substitutes of a low amount of cocoa or in many cases with an artificial flavor, and to produce chocolate with a high concentration of cocoa there is a conch required, which is responsible for volatilizing the high acids present in the chocolate. This fact motivated the study of the influence of conching regarding the decrease in acidity, allowing to improve the process and give extra value to the product, obtaining a chocolate capable of being consumed directly. It worked with chocolate at 30 and 70 percent of cocoa, where a significant reduction in acidity and an increase in pH, reaching values of 5.62 and 5.52 considered as indicative of chocolate quality. These results were obtained with the new conching and formulation parameters. In addition, the viscosity determinated allow to establish the type of fluid as pseudoplastic, very valuable information to standardize the product obtained.