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Ruby Chocolate is the fourth type of chocolate after dark, white, and milk chocolate. It has a pinkish hue and fruity taste! Read on to know all about this wonderful novel chocolate type!
RUBY
CHOCOLATE: THE FOURTH CHOCOLATE AND ITS ORIGIN
Ruby Chocolate is a newly discovered confection. The development was in progress since 2005 but it came out only in late 2017. The Belgian-Swiss chocolate manufacturers Barry Callebaut Group have the credit of originating this novel-colored confection. They use the ruby cocoa bean that is grown in Ecuador, Ivory Coast, and Brazil in the manufacture of this special chocolate variety.
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Ruby Chocolate [Source: Wikipedia] |
The cocoa beans are the same except that before the fermentation process of the beans, an acid is added to it for 24 hours that gives it the pink color. Thus, it has this part different but there are no other added colors or flavors to it.
MORE ON THE
MAKING OF THE CHOCOLATES
The company had filed for a patent of this product in 2009 and hence would not disclose much about how the cocoa gets the pink color. But the officials state that a ‘particular mix of compounds’ provides the pink color but will not elaborate more on this matter. There are high levels of pigmented polyphenols in it and besides this the company has a unique processing technique. Both these give the chocolate the pink color and hence the difference.
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Pink chocolate [Source: Cacao magazine] |
The patent has explained that the fermentation process of the cocoa beans is halted 3 days or more before the completion and this is treated with an acid. Petroleum ether is used to remove the fatty acids and the color is preserved.
TASTE OF THE
PINK CHOCOLATE
The ruby chocolate taste is different. The firm describes it thus:
"The flavor is neither
bitter, milky, or sweet. It's rather a tension of fresh berry fruitiness and
luscious smoothness."
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Ruby chocolate [Source: Forbes] |
"Ruby chocolate is quite
sweet and tastes like raspberry-flavored white chocolate with some milk
chocolate added,"
RUBY CHOCOLATE IS NOT A
CHOCOLATE BY THE US FDA
Though it is called chocolate, the USA FDA has not put it in that category. Lauren Bergen from the
company states:
"The FDA has a code of
federal regulations that define food categories based on what ingredients can
or need to be in there, the maximum or minimum amount of certain ingredients,
and the percentage of ingredient compositions,"
She continued:
"Ruby technically has all
of those ingredients that appear in regular chocolate: cocoa butter, sugar,
milk powder, and unsweetened chocolate,"
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The four varieties of chocolates-dark, milk, ruby, and white [Source: Barry Callebaut] |
1) Milk chocolate must have 10% chocolate liqor and at least 12% milk solids. There must be no fats in it other than milk solids and cocoa butter.
2) The semi-sweet chocolate must have at least 35% cocoa butter
3) Sweet chocolate must have at least 15% chocolate liqor and may contain sugar.
4) White chocolate is not true chocolate because it has no chocolate liqor in it.
RUBY
CHOCOLATES AND NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS
Ruby chocolate has flavanols in it and these are a type of phytonutrients and hence beneficial. Besides, like the other chocolates, it has stearic acid that is a saturated fat but does not raise the blood cholesterol. These cocoa products have an anti-oxidant in them. But more research is needed in ruby chocolate product. Isabel said:
"I'm not aware of any
testing to verify the phytonutrient content of ruby chocolate and to verify
that the acid used to treat the cocoa beans doesn't affect the flavanol
activity,"
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Ruby chocolate [Source: Barry Callebaut] |
Read here on how chocolates are now a guilt-free indulgence
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