The appearance of Guatemala where chocolate is made in traditional way handed down 2500 years since Maya civilization

Chocolate originated from Central America is said to have been familiar to people since about 2000 BC. The chocolate that has been made from the existence of the Maya civilization and the cacao which is the raw material are inherited in the same way even in the present age after 2,500 years.

Creating Guatemala's Food of the Gods - YouTube


There are several famous ones in Central America, Guatemala.

It's a coffee ...

It is an avocado.

However, what is widely known is that it is the origin of chocolate.

"Chocola" in central Guatemala is located in a mountainous area with an altitude of 500 meters to 1000 meters.

There are lots of rain here and there is a fertile earth. For this reason, cacao has been cultivated here since long ago.

Victor Alfredo Diaz Kang, who is engaged in cultivating cacao. I was born in Chocola and grew up in Chocola.

Grow cacao and prepare for harvesting and making chocolate if fruit ripens.

Break the cacao fruit ......

Take out the cocoa beans (seeds) that will be the raw material for chocolate from inside.

The removed cacao beans are dried by sun dried after fermentation ......

It is said that it will be aged over a long time. From here onwards, chocolate making is done based on cacao beans carefully treated.

Making chocolate from cacao beans is called Antigua Guatemala.

This city is famous for chocolate, and it seems that there are chocolate factories here and there.

It is the chocolate craftsman Brenda Elisabeth Oliva Shikan who uses chocolate cacao beans to make chocolate in a traditional way.

I say that roasting (roasting) is the most important to make delicious chocolate.

The best roasting method is that it is a roast using fire which burned firewood.

It is not good with gas stoves or oven fire

Roasting with wood-burning fire means that the flavor peculiar to chocolate is brought. In Guatemala, such traditional chocolate making has been handed down from generation to generation for generations.

"Many people come seeking antiguan's unique chocolate"

"It is what we want to do to provide such people with chocolate that we only get here."

But even in such Antigua, there are craftsmen who make contemporary chocolate. A man of Kowamothi, Fernando is also one of such chocolate craftworkers.

Mr. Fernando is making chocolate using modern equipment.

It takes time and time to make chocolate, and it is a work that has patience. Fernando's studio produces 1 ton per month - 12 tons of chocolate per year.

"The secret of the taste of Guatemala's chocolate is in cacao."

"For many years, making chocolate is my life, I have dedicated most of my life to chocolate."

"With chocolate, there is no limit to the possibilities."

"I think that preserving this tradition is important because it is our history and cocoa here raised in Guatemala is the only place in the world"

"Chocolate is a passion"

"Chocolate makes everyone happy"

"Chocolate belongs to Guatemala"