Our cacao is the not the real cacao

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I took a photo of this article from the online version of RD March issue. It was a revelation for me. All I thought that our local cacao is the real cacao. It turns out I was wrong all along and this article reveals that it is Carob. Our local kakao is a robust pod with seeds in its cavities. The sour-sweet flesh surrounding the seeds can be eaten before sun-drying them. The sun-dried seeds will then be toasted and peeled and the "beans" inside will be ready for grinding. It is then molded in bamboo molder and we call the output, Tableya. Check out my earlier blog on how to make this. Click here.

The real cacao, the ones mentioned when touching the Mayan culture and in the novels of Laura Esquivel (Malinche and Hot water for Chocolate) is actually a bean as it comes from a pod. That is what should be called cocoa, cacao or chocolate.
Location: Bugasong, Antique, Philippines

Comments

  1. Gerlie UyFebruary 23, 2024 at 12:21 PM

    I think the RD corrected this erratum. Cacao is the source of Chocolate as we know it.

    ReplyDelete

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