Want To Know Where Chocolate Came From? Find Out Here [VIDEO]

Chocolate’s not only the perfect sweet, it’s also everyone’s favorite . Also, it’s so good that it can be used for many occasions. Like to show love, sharing, saying congratulations or simply joy.

There is an inexplicable reason why we are so obsessed with it. As it seems to have a divine power and taste. Something really few foods in the world have. But who were the genius that first discover the powers of chocolate?

Back to Mesoamerica.

Even though chocolate is a mass phenomenon nowadays, it wasn’t until the 16th century that it made it’s first hit. As it was first introduced by the local Mayan and Aztecs to the Spaniard colonizers. But the first record of chocolate dates back to 1900 BCE, in Mesoamerica were this cultures were established.

Obviously, the preparation then wasn’t the same as the one from today. As the locals discovered a way to prepare the cacao beans. As the beans were ground, with chilli peppers and corn meal creating a bitter and empowering drink.

Mythical cocoa.

The cacao beans were so important for the Mesoamericans that they thought it was literally a divine food. That was given to humans as a gift by one of their main gods Kukulcan/Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent. It was so important to them that the beans were used as currency or awards to their bravest warriors. Or used in sacred rituals and drank on royal feasts.

So after Cortés and the Spanish colonizer were introduced to it, they took the beverage back to Spain. Turning it into a total success. Even more after the aphrodisiac attributes gave to it by the missionaries after relating it to the native’s rituals.

Making it sweet.

In it’s early days at Europe its bitter taste help chocolate break through as a medicine for stomach aches. After a while, and blending it with honey, sugar or vanilla, turned chocolate into a popular treat in the Spanish courts. Turning into an indispensable thing you had to have in any aristocratic house. As the crown will then invest thousands of slaves from Africa to cultivate and collect it.

But chocolate will turn into a world phenomenon after 1828. After a dutch inventor called Coenraad van Houten, just like Milhouse, created the cocoa press. As his invention could separate the cocoa’s natural fat or butter and left a powder that could be mixed into a drink. Or if mixed back with the butter it generates the solid chocolate that we are used to.

Dark chocolate.

After that, a Swiss chocolatier called Daniel Peter added powder milk to the blend in 1875. This created milk chocolate. All these innovations turn chocolate into something more common and by the 20th century, it was a common sweet for everyone. But its mass demand generated a darker side in the chocolate industry.

Turning the cocoa production from America to Africa, as the cacao beans can only grow near the Equator line. Being Cote D’Ivoire the responsible now for 2/5 of the world’s cocoa production now. But obviously, as all industries, this has generated some Human Rights abuses in these countries. Turning in occasions to slaves or child labor.