When looking for ways to liven up your menu around holidays or anytime of year, considering experimenting with chocolate. With countless varieties in white, milk, semisweet, bittersweet, and unsweetened there could be a chocolate out there for even the wildest of culinary imaginations. Indulge yourself with an exuberant chocolate tasting and find one that speaks to your menu. Learn from what’s already been done and be bold enough to reinvent this classic ingredient.
- Cocoa Powder: Made mostly of cocoa solids, this powder is loaded with chocolate flavor. The intense flavor make this form great for use in sauces, soups, and stews.
- Chocolate Bar: Presented in bar form, there are typically other ingredients added to the cocoa. When melted the chocolate bar can add a smoothness to sauces.
- Cacao Nibs: Dried or roasted cacao beans resembling coffee beans. Ground nibs can add flare to meat coatings, bread crumbs, and spice mixtures.
As with any menu changes, keep your style of food and customer in mind. Explore what other chefs have created and find a way to make something uniquely yours. Adventurous chocolate dishes may be well served as specials or part of a tasting menu.
If you aren’t ready to dive into savory chocolate dinners, perhaps the drink menu is the place to start. Hot or cold cocktails can benefit from the bitter or sweet flavor of chocolate. Playing with chocolate varieties and uses in desserts could also be fun.
Many diners eat out as a means to try things they would or could not ever make at home. Experimenting with commonly loved ingredients, like chocolate, can help satisfy the need for something different while still sounding appealing to the average diner. So, grab your apron and get your chocolate on anytime of year.