Hot chocolate
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Hot chocolate with marshmallow |
For the musical band, see Hot Chocolate.Hot chocolate,
hot cocoa or
drinking chocolate is a
beverage, usually served
hot, typically consisting of
milk,
chocolate or
cocoa powder, and
sugar. It became popular in
Europe after being introduced from the
New World.
The first users of cacao were most likely the
Olmecs, a
Native American people of
Mesoamerica and the oldest civilization of
The Americas (1500-400 BC). Later, the
Maya civilization consumed cacao-based drinks made with beans from their
plantations in the
Chontalpa region of present-day
Tabasco,
Mexico. They created a drink which in
Nahuatl was called "xocolatl" (xococ,
bitter + atl,
water), the "x" being an archaic
Spanish phoneme with a similar pronunciation as the modern
English "sh". This drink was made from roasted
cocoa beans,
water, and a little
spice. Cocoa beans were also used as a
currency.
Following the European discovery of America,
Christopher Columbus returned from the
New World with cocoa beans, but the Europeans favored other, more practical
trade goods. However, in
1517 Hernán Cortés landed on the Mexican coast near
Veracruz. He made his way to
Tenochtitlan to see the famed riches of
Emperor Moctezuma and the
Aztec empire.
Moctezuma introduced
Hernán Cortés to his favourite drink, "chocolatl", which he served in a golden
goblet. "The chocolatl was a potation of
chocolate flavored with
vanilla and spices, and so prepared as to be reduced to a froth of the consistency of honey, which gradually dissolved in the mouth and was taken cold."
Moctezuma consumed his "chocolatl" in goblets before entering his
harem, leading to the belief that it was an
aphrodisiac.
Cortés returned to Spain in
1528 with
galleons loaded with cocoa beans and chocolate drink making equipment. The court of King
Charles V soon adopted it, and "chocolate" became a
fashionable drink popular with the Spanish
upper class. Additionally, cocoa was given as a
dowry when members of the Spanish Royal Family married other European aristocrats. It took nearly a century for chocolate to achieve popularity throughout Europe, as the Spanish kept the delicacy secret.
]Drinking chocolate was originally a cold mixture of ground cocoa beans and water with the addition of spices such as
cayenne pepper,
vanilla and
pimento. Later spices such as
cloves and
cinnamon were used. The ancients drank it from large bowls so they could take in all of its aromas. By the time it was introduced to Europe, the more pungent spices in the drink were replaced with cane sugar and it was served hot instead of cold.
After being introduced in
England, milk was added to the after dinner treat. By the
18th Century, so-called "
Chocolate Houses" were as popular as coffee houses. The first "Chocolate House" opened in
London in
1657. Because it was so expensive, hot chocolate was considered a drink for the
elite.
"Hot chocolate" is a
retronym and the drink was originally simply called "chocolate". The subsequent popularity of the "chocolate bar" forced the invention of the term "hot chocolate" to distinguish it from "chocolate" which now means "bar chocolate".
By
1828, the first cocoa powder producing machine had been developed in
The Netherlands, which generated a less
acidic, more processed cocoa, now known as
dutch-process cocoa. The new form of cocoa was easier to blend with warm milk or water.
Americans often use the terms "hot chocolate" and "hot cocoa" interchangeably, while others make a difference between "hot cocoa", made from a powdered mix of cocoa, sugar, thickeners and "hot chocolate" made directly from bar chocolate, which already contains cocoa, sugar and
cocoa butter. Hot chocolate can be made with dark, semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces and stirred into milk with the addition of sugar. American hot cocoa powder often includes
powdered milk or other dairy ingredients so it can make a drink without using milk. A modern
American concept is the addition of
marshmallows to hot chocolate. Some packaged hot cocoa mixes come with small dry marshmallows.
|
In the foam on this cup of milo, some of the chocolate powder has yet to be dissolved. |
Today hot chocolate is consumed throughout the world. It is especially popular in Europe, where it is made directly from chocolate; and, with the influence of restaurant pastry chefs and chocolatiers, this style is creeping into American culture. In American culture, hot chocolate is traditionally a winter drink, associated in folk images with snowstorms and
sledding. It is not usually drunk in summer as are the other hot beverages,
coffee and
tea.
In
Spain, hot chocolate and
churros was the traditional working-man's
breakfast. This Spanish style of hot chocolate is very thick, having the consistency of warm chocolate
pudding. Today, in cities like Madrid, Spaniards mark the traditional end to a night out by dipping churros into this very thick hot chocolate.
*
Chocolate*
Cocoa*
Beverage# Hickling, William (1838).
History of the Conquest of Mexico. ISBN 0375758038.
*Turback, Michael (2005).
Hot Chocolate, Ten Speed Press. ISBN 1580087086.
*
Rediscover True Hot Chocolate from
What's Cooking America by Linda Stradley
*
A Very Brief History of Hot Chocolate*
Chocolate History Time Line
