How Does Cocoa: Food of the Gods | Simon Waslander | TEDxUniversityofGroningen Work?

Cocoa is like chocolate’s superhero, it starts as beans that go through a fun journey to become something we all love.

Imagine you have a bunch of beans, not the ones you eat with your cereal, but bigger, darker ones. These are from a tree called Theobroma cacao, which means “food of the gods” in Greek! That’s why cocoa is sometimes called the food of the gods.

First, these beans get roasted, just like how you roast marshmallows over a campfire. This makes them smell amazing, like chocolate!

Then, they get ground up into a paste, kind of like how you make peanut butter. This paste is called cocoa mass.

Next, it gets pressed to squeeze out some oil, this is the cocoa butter, which gives chocolate its smooth feel.

What’s left is cocoa powder, and if they add sugar, it becomes cocoa drink or chocolate!

So, cocoa is like the starting point of all your favorite chocolate treats. It goes through a fun journey, roasting, grinding, pressing, to become something you can enjoy every day! Cocoa is like chocolate’s superhero, it starts as beans that go through a fun journey to become something we all love.

Imagine you have a bunch of beans, not the ones you eat with your cereal, but bigger, darker ones. These are from a tree called Theobroma cacao, which means “food of the gods” in Greek! That’s why cocoa is sometimes called the food of the gods.