Cocoa butter, the fatty matter contained in cocoa beans, is generally obtained by hot‑pressing either cocoa paste or the whole bean. An inferior quality, often referred to as cocoa fat, can also be obtained from spoiled cocoa beans or from various kinds of cocoa waste (shells, husks, dust, etc.) either by pressure or by extraction with suitable solvents.
Cocoa butter is generally solid at room temperature, slightly oily and yellowish‑white in colour; it has an odour similar to that of cocoa and an agreeable flavour. It is generally presented in slabs, and is used in chocolate‑making (to enrich cocoa pastes), in confectionery (for the preparation of certain sweets), in perfumery (for extracting perfumes by the enfleurage process), in the manufacture of cosmetics and in pharmacy (for the preparation of ointments, suppositories, etc.).
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