Cakulan shine samfurin wani tsari mai mahimmanci wanda ya fara tare da ƙyan zuma na bishiyar cacao Theobroma . Theobroma cacao a zahiri yana nufin "abinci na Allah," kuma wannan suna ya nuna duk abincin da aka samu na sama da cakulan da kuma girmamawa ga al'adun Mayan da Aztec don wannan abincin allahntaka. Wadannan al'adun jama'ar Amirka sun kasance na farko da suka fahimci tasirin kifin cacao, ta yin amfani da kwari a matsayin kudin kuɗi da kuma yin amfani da ƙyan zuma a matsayin abin sha a tsakanin manyan ajiyoyi.
Ainihin ƙwaƙwalwar cakulan abincin da Mayakan da Aztecs suke da shi sun bambanta da sassaucinmu, zauren gine-gine a yau, duk da haka tushensu ya kasance guda ɗaya: ƙwayar cacao mai tawali'u.
Cacao
Itacen cacao itace tsire-tsire masu tsire-tsire wanda ke tsiro ne kawai a cikin digiri 20 na Equator. Kasashen manyan ƙasashe masu cacao sune Ivory Coast da Ghana, kodayake akwai kasuwanni da yawa a Kudancin Amirka da Afirka. Itacen itacen cacao yana samar da kwalaye a duk tsawon shekara, don haka wani itace mai kama da zai kasance a kowane mataki na farawa, daga farkon furanni a cikin furanni wanda ya fi dacewa a girbe. Akwai nau'o'i uku na itatuwan cacao: Forastero, mafi yawan abincin da ya fi dacewa tare da dandano mai ban sha'awa, Criollo, itace mai mahimmanci da itace mai ban sha'awa, tare da 'ya'yan itace mai ƙanshi, da Trinitario, matasan tsakanin Forastero da Criollo wanda ke nuna alamun itatuwa guda biyu, yana da matsakaitan yawan amfanin wake.
Tsarin
Chocolate fara da girbi na cacao pods . Saboda kwari yana girma a kowane digiri na samfurin kuma a kowane wuri a kan itacen, yawancin girbi anyi ta hannun da machetes. Matakai biyu masu muhimmanci dole ne su faru kafin a iya saka caca ta kuma aikawa ga masu sana'a. Da farko, an raba kwasfan don bayyana gashin koko a maimakon haka, wanda yake kewaye da ɓangaren litattafan almara.
Ana amfani da wannan ɓangaren litattafan almara a wasu lokuta don yin abin sha ko kayan zaki, saboda yana da dandano mai dadi da ƙanshi mai dadi.
Ana cinye wake da kuma ɓangaren litattafan almara daga kwakwalwan da aka bar su a cikin kwanduna na kwana biyu zuwa takwas. Wannan mataki yana da mahimmanci, yayinda tsari na furotin ya samar da ƙanshi na wake kuma ya nuna nauyin abincin da ke cikin ɓangaren litattafan almara. Ba tare da gwargwadon hankali ba, da wake zai zama maɗaukaki kuma mai zafi don jin dadi. Yawancin adadin cakulan da ake dasu sunyi amfani da tsari mai zurfi, wanda za'a iya dandana a cikin furen, furotin bayanan samfurin karshe. Bayan gwargwadon ƙwayoyi, ana daɗa da wake a cikin daki ɗaya kuma a bar su bushe gaba ɗaya , yawanci a hasken rana kai tsaye. Abin sani kawai bayan da aka ƙware da wake ne kuma aka bushe su an saka su da kuma aika su zuwa masana'antun cakulan a duniya.
Bayan da wake ya isa wurin kayan aiki, ana yin gashi don kawo fitar da dandano da kuma launuka. Lokaci da zazzabi na gurasar ya dogara da nau'in wake da halayen haɓakar dangin su. Bayan sunyi naman, sai an mayar da wake zuwa mashiya wanda ke kawar da bawo na wake kuma ya bar "nasu" - ainihin nama na koko wadda ke cike da koko da kuma koko man shanu .
Ƙunƙun ƙwayoyin suna ƙuƙasa zuwa lokacin farin ciki, manya mai laushi da ake kira gilashin cakulan (wani ɓangaren yaudara, tun da samfurin bai ƙunshi barasa) ba. Wannan giya shine tushe ga dukan kayayyakin cakulan, kuma a ƙarshe ya fara kama da wari kamar al'ada cakulan. An bugu da giya don cire man shanu na koko, wanda ya bar diski mai laushi da ake kira "koko presscake". A wannan lokaci, tsarin cakulan ya bambanta dangane da girke-girke da kuma samfurin masana'antun. Idan cakulan yana da inganci mai kyau, za a gauraye gwargwadon gishiri tare da kayan ƙwayoyin kayan lambu, sukari, da kuma dandano don zama subcutard cakulan. Idan cakulan zai kasance mafi girma, za a sake kara man shanu a cakulan cakulan, tare da sauran sinadaran kamar sukari, vanilla, da madara.
White cakulan yana shafar irin wannan tsari, sai dai ba ya ƙunshi gilashin giya ko koko foda. Sabuwar gauraye cakulan ke tafiya ta jerin jerin rollers don sassaukar da rubutun kafin tafiya zuwa na'ura.
Conching shi ne mataki na ƙarshe a ƙayyade ƙanshin dandano da rubutu na cakulan. Kayan aiki, wanda aka kira saboda kayayyaki na asali sun zama kama da launi, katako da masassarar cakulan cakulan don tsawon lokaci daga lokuta da dama zuwa wasu kwanaki. Saurin, yawan zafin jiki, da kuma tsawon ƙaddamarwa yana ƙayyade rubutun ƙarshe da kuma dandano na cakulan, kamar yadda yake sutura da cakulan da 'yan sanda duk sauran muryoyin acidic. Bayan kwance, da cakulan yana mai da hankali a cikin manyan injuna da suke kwantar da cakulan zuwa yanayin zafi don samar da shinge mai haske. A ƙarshe, ana zuba cakulan cikin kayayyaki, a nannade, kuma a shirye don sayarwa ga masu amfani da kaya a duniya.