The Tanabata is approaching, and the topic of chocolate is bustling again. What is the difference between cocoa liquor and cocoa powder? How many chocolates do I have for one day? How should I save it? In response to these common problems, I made the following answers, hoping to help everyone.

Can chocolate cause elevated blood lipids and fat? In many medical studies, eating chocolate does not increase the level of cholesterol in the blood. It also reduces the risk of blood coagulation and cardiovascular disease. This is because the research used real dark chocolate. The content of cocoa powder is very high. Unsweetened. However, the content of sugar in ordinary chocolate on the market can usually reach about 50%, and the content of fat in high-quality chocolate can reach 40%. It is a typical high-fat and high-sugar food. Cocoa butter contained in chocolate itself does not have a good effect on blood lipids. Adding a large amount of sugar is unlikely to be beneficial in preventing cardiovascular disease, and it is unlikely to benefit weight loss.

How much more suitable to eat each day? Chocolate is just a kind of snack food. Occasionally, it will not cause any trouble. If you treat it as a sweet gift for sharing during the holiday season, you don’t have to worry about it; but if chocolate is used as a daily food, it’s better to buy less sugar. Varieties with particularly high cocoa content are relatively safe. In general, thin people do not have to deliberately limit the amount of chocolate, but those who are already overweight are not advised to eat more. A small piece of plate-shaped chocolate or a quail egg-sized chocolate ball weighs about 6 to 8 grams, and normal people can consume 1 to 3 pieces a day.

Summer chocolate is easy to put at room temperature, how should I save? The best storage temperature for chocolate is 5°C～18°C. It is best not to store in the refrigerator freezer. It should not be stored in the depth of the cold room for a long time, otherwise it will cause icing on the surface of the chocolate or anti-frost phenomenon caused by oil. In addition, the original moisture content of chocolate is extremely low, which is not conducive to the reproduction of microorganisms. However, after freezing or refrigerating, the condensed water on the surface is conducive to the growth of bacteria and may cause mildew on the surface. If the room temperature is too high in summer, it is best to be sealed with a plastic bag and then stored outside the refrigerator freezer. Do not open it immediately after taking it out. Let it be warmed slowly under confined conditions. Open the sealed package and eat it near room temperature. In order to maintain the best flavor and taste of chocolate, it's best to eat as much or as much as you like, and eat freshest each time.

The words “cocoa syrup, cocoa liquor, cocoa powder, cocoa butter, cocoa butter substitute” often appear on the chocolate ingredient list. What is the difference between them and which is more beneficial to health? The cocoa liquor and cocoa liquor masses are cocoa-beans that are roasted and then ground to form a slurry, a solidified mass containing cocoa butter and all the beneficial components of cocoa. Cocoa powder is a powder ground after degreasing the cocoa bean pieces, and concentrates most of the beneficial components in cocoa, so the health effect is the strongest. Cocoa butter is a portion of fat extracted from cocoa bean pieces, mainly saturated fat. Generally, the higher the cocoa butter content, the better the taste of chocolate, but its relationship with health is not great, because most of the beneficial substances in fat Among the other ingredients. It should be noted that cocoa butter substitutes are vegetable oils that are made from hydrogenated or non-hydrogenated ingredients and have a melting point and mouthfeel similar to that of cocoa butter. They are often used in slightly lower-cost chocolates. According to our country's regulations, if the amount of cocoa butter used exceeds 5%, the word “generation of cocoa butter” should be added. Cocoa butter contains a large amount of highly saturated fats, and the substituted cocoa butter made by partial hydrogenation may even contain trans fatty acids, which is not good for health.

Dark chocolate is a recognized health food. Is white chocolate also healthy? The health effects of chocolate come from the polyphenols and minerals in cocoa. White chocolate is usually sweet and intense, not as bitter as dark chocolate, because of its high sugar content, but also contains a lot of saturated fat, so this chocolate is better to eat less.