Cacao vs Cocoa: All The Differences

What is cacao?

To find out what cacao is, we need to travel to the luscious jungles of South America, Africa, and Asia to the regions where chocolate is made. It all begins with the Theobroma cacao tree.  

The fruits of this tree are called cacao pods or fruits of the gods by ancient people. If you open these pods, you'll find hiding inside 20-60 beans. These cacao beans are what chocolate is made from.  

However, raw cacao beans hardly resemble chocolate at all and cannot be eaten straight from the pods. Usually, cacao products refer to beans that have been fermented and dried but not roasted. You can recognize cacao by its earthy and bitter taste.  

 

What is cocoa?

Without cocoa, there would be no such thing as chocolate. It is one of the delicacy's crucial ingredients. 

Where does cocoa come from? Cocoa begins its life as the fruit of the cocoa tree. It then undergoes an extensive journey to transform the cacao beans into cocoa and then ultimately into delicious chocolate.  

Cocoa's history is as colorful and complex as the flavors of cocoa itself. Yet, one thing that has never changed is how beloved it is. In the past, it has even been used as a form of currency.  

Ample steps and skills are required to transform the cacao beans into chocolate. They must be fermented, dried, roasted, and crushed to develop the correct flavors and textures.  

What results is a non-alcoholic liquor that can be used to create culinary wonders. The liquor is pressed to extract out the cocoa butter and leave only cocoa powder. On the other hand, to produce chocolate, liquor is added to sugar and sometimes milk.  

Cocoa powder has been specially designed for baking. It will infuse cakes and sweet treats with an intense chocolate flavor. Love hot chocolate? Everyone's favorite warm drink is also made from cocoa powder. 

 

What is the difference between cacao and cocoa?

In most instances, there is no substantial difference between cacao and cocoa. As per the FDA guidelines, there are no rules on what can be classed as cacao or cocoa, and hence, the words can be used interchangeably. At this point, it's more a case of marketing lingo than anything else.  

"Cocoa" is the most common word, but trends are changing: "cacao" is nowadays used to refer to a rawer and more unprocessed product, which is becoming more and more known especially in plant-based diets. 

To clear up any confusion, think of cocoa and cacao as words used to show the different stages of chocolate's production process. They both originate from cacao beans. "Cacao" is the name for the earlier stage, where the beans have not yet been roasted, while "cocoa" is used once the fermenting begins.

 

Cacao vs cocoa: nutrition values

Treat yourself to both cacao and cocoa in moderation to reap the health benefits and delight your taste buds.  

The higher the cocoa content of any chocolate, the more it is bursting with antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins.  

Below is a nutritional comparison of 1 ounce of raw cacao vs cocoa powder. These are products without any added sugar.  

As we've discussed, cocoa and cacao are not used consistently across the whole industry, so always check the nutrition label of each product for the most accurate numbers.  

Cocoa powder

• Calories: 64kcal 

• Fat: 3.5g 

• Protein: 5g 

• Carbohydrates: 16g 

• Iron: 22% of recommended daily intake  

Cacao 

• Calories: 160 

• Fat: 11g 

• Protein: 9g 

• Carbohydrates: 6g 

• Iron: 4% of recommended daily intake  

 

(Source: Healthline.com)