If you haven't already tried Peruvian chocolate, you're missing out! In Paracas there were street vendors offering homemade 'chocoteja', a type of chocolate from Peru filled with manjarblanco (a caramel type sauce) and pecans. Curious to learn more about how chocolate here is made, I signed up to ChocoMuseo's two hour cooking class.
Tommy, our instructor, first explained how cacao beans from the Peruvian rainforest are transformed into chocolate. He showed us a model of the cacao plant and explained that the beans needed to cook for about five minutes to rid the smell of alcohol and so as to be able to remove the shells. He explained that the beans are ready when they start popping like popcorn.
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| Tommy preparing the hot chocolate |
We each then grabbed a handful of beans and went into the kitchen where we crushed the cooked beans with a mortar and pestle. The shells were used to make an amazingly delicious cacao tea which was enjoyed by all of us. I loved it so much that I couldn't resist buying a big packet for S/.12 (approx. US$4). At the shop in Miraflores you can also buy chocolate shampoo as well as chocolate and coffee liqueur, among other delectable flavours.
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| Cacao tea |
Afterwards, Tommy demonstrated how to make a Mayan hot chocolate. He placed the crushed cacao beans into a jug and added chilli powder, Peruvian honey and a hint of paprika. No one was a fan of the drink but the idea was to teach us how the Maya civilization would have made it during their time. We also made a hot chocolate as we know it today and it went down like a treat.
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| Ground cacao beans |
It was finally time to make our own chocolates. We poured (and drank) chocolate that had been prepared earlier into our chosen mold and were able to add confectionery and spices. Tommy put them in the fridge and they were ready within 15 minutes. Smiles quickly turned to frowns when they began melting after 5 seconds of being out of the fridge.
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| The new Apron Mini |
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| JP crushing his beans |
A fun activity, the tour was definitely well worth the S./70. Masterchef here I come!
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