Integrative Assignment: Hot Chocolate

1. Assumption & Dish:

When I heard of the word “chocolate”, the first thing that came to my mind was either a Hershey’s bar, or a box of Ferrero Rocher. I did not know chocolate was actually consumed as a bitter beverage rather than as a sweet edible treat in the past until taking Eatalians with Professor Daniela. Another interesting fact is that in Vietnamese culture, when people go to the States, they always bring back a huge amount of chocolate as gifts since imported chocolate in Vietnam is insanely expensive, which made me think that chocolate was originally from the US. However, it was in fact first started in Mexico as a cold and bitter concoction, then made its way to Europe and became a hot and sweetened drink as I learned in this cluster course. I also did not know about the remarkable role of chocolate that plays in Italian culture, and how it used to indicate class affiliation and social mobility in Italy.

Image: Thick and creamy Italian hot chocolate made with real dark chocolate, cocoa powder, milk, sugar and the addition of cornstarch.

2. Chemical Analysis:

In the making of hot chocolate, the process of protein denaturation and coagulation occur. Milk, an emulsion fat and water, is the backbone of any rich and creamy hot chocolate, which contains two major types of protein: casein and whey. Protein denaturation happens when chocolate and cocoa powder are added to milk since chocolate is made of cacao seeds, which are naturally tart and acidic. Acid from the chocolate disrupts the bonds between strands of amino acids causing the bonds holding the helix shape to break and unravel. In addition to heat, the proteins in milk also start to coagulate. There is also chemistry involved when adding cornstarch to the milk. Cornstarch is used as a thickener in making Italian hot chocolate. When the mixture of cornstarch and milk is heated, the starch granules absorb the enough water from milk, then swell, and break apart to form gels.

Drinking hot chocolate can lower blood pressure, and contrast our bad moods as chocolate contains an abundance of antioxidants, and theobromine as a mood elevator. With an addition of milk, hot chocolate also brings a lot of health benefits by adding calcium and vitamins to our daily diet.

3. Cultural Analysis:

Chocolate is made of Theobroma cacao seeds. The term “Theobroma” is derived from Greek words meaning “food of the gods”, which explains the fact that chocolate had been a drink for the elite rather than for everyone. Chocolate is not merely the comfort food that makes people happy, but it also has a rich history and cultural significance. In the movie Lessons In Chocolate, the Master Chef states: “For the Aztecs, it was the drink of the gods. For the Maya, money”. Chocolate was mainly prepared and consumed as a drink by the Aztecs when they worshipped their gods or during special ceremonies, while the Maya used the cacao beans as the primitive means of payment to exchange for food or clothes. Not until the early eighteenth century, chocolate arrived and diffused in Europe and it became particularly popular in both fine art and culinary culture especially in Italy. In Eating and Goldoni’s Venice, chocolate was not only said to determine social class and status of the people, but also considered as a luxury exotic product available only to the wealthy, and “less visible on the tables of the middle and lower classes due to its prohibitive prices”. The eighteenth century saw the diffusion of chocolate across Europe in the form of liquid for only aristocracy and nobility, while the nineteenth century has changed chocolate into a new, solid form affordably enjoyed by all social classes.

4. Integration:

Chocolate in history has always been prominently served for the wealthy, which indicated class affiliation and social mobility. From my observation, I find it interesting how chocolate has shifted from being a costly drink to cheap food for the masses, breaking the gap between the upper and lower class similar to the way the bonds of proteins in milk break and unravel when chocolate is added.