Working hard

A visitor turns the metal hand crank to grind the cacao seeds into a paste. She braces herself against the table and leans into the crank, demonstrating the tremendous effort needed to grind the seeds. (Learn more)

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The heat and friction generated in the grinding process causes the cocoa butter — the fat within the cacao seed — to melt. The liquefied cocoa butter blends with the cocoa solids to form a paste known as chocolate liquor — a deceptive name because it has no alcohol content and is not liquid. Chocolate liquor, also known as unsweetened chocolate, naturally contains about 50-52% cocoa butter.

Learn more about South America, Venezuela, cacao, chocolate, and grinding.

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