Chocolate Does Grow on Trees — From Cocoa Pod to Chocolate Bar

by Laurelynn Martin, Logee’s Co-Owner

Chocolate is much loved for its uses as a beverage, a decadent chocolate desert, and a variety of chocolate bars ranging from milk chocolate to 70% dark cocoa. Chocolate has health benefits as an antioxidant with polyphenols as well as being rich in minerals.

Theobroma cacao plant

Chocolate in its raw form comes from the plant Theobroma cacao and it is a relatively easy plant to grow. The tricky part is pollinating the flowers to form the fruit. The fruit is where the delectable chocolate beans are grown. At first, the fruit forms as little green nubs along the trunk of the tree and turns into larger green-ribbed pods. Once the pods turn yellow, it is time to harvest the fruit.

To harvest, simply cut the fruit at the stem off the tree and then slice the fruit length wise. Prepare to be surprised. Inside you will find chocolate beans surrounded by a white, edible soft pulpy protective covering. The pulp is sweet, yet it is the prized cocoa beans that we’re after.

A peek inside a Theobroma cacao cocoa pod

Peel away the white fleshy covering to reveal hard beans with brown paper-like skin. In the fermentation and roasting process this brown skin will fall away or can be easily scraped away.

It is best to use the seeds from 4-5 pods and then ferment all the raw chocolate seeds together. Put the beans in an upright plastic quart container that has three or four drainage holes. Place the plastic container on a tray collects liquid and cover the container with cheese cloth. We use cheesecloth to protect the beans from fruit flies.

Let the container sit at room temperature for about a week. During this time the beans will ferment. Once they’re done fermenting, rinse the beans with cool water and spread them out in a single layer to dry. The husks will turn light brown as the cocoa beans dry. This will take a week and then at the end of the week place the beans, again in a single layer, on a baking sheet and roast at your oven’s lowest temperature for 30 mins. This is to ensure dryness.

Now the husks will come off easily and then you can break the beans into pieces and separate the shells and the nibs inside. Discard the shells and husks and save the nibs. These raw pieces of chocolate are edible and have many health benefits.

The other good news is that your cocoa nibs are the building blocks for making your own chocolate bar. Basically, you need two to three ingredients to make chocolate. Your cocoa nibs (that you can also purchase at a health food store), sugar, vanilla and a small amount of cocoa butter for workability. For the details of making chocolate from nibs, visit The Chocolate Blog. For more information on growing cocoa plants, please see our article, How to Grow Theobroma Cacao.

Cocoa (Theobroma cacao ‘Trinitario’) – Highlights

Hardiness Zone: 10
Bloom Season: Intermittent
Sun Requirement: Full Sun, Partial Sun
Grows to: 5-6′ (in container)
Minimum Temperature Indoors: 60°F

I've had a cocoa plant before and it was nothing compared to this one. It arrived larger than expected in great condition. In about 2 months the plant is now producing leaves bigger than my hand and shows no signs of stopping with a few more smaller ones already showing. I will order another one if I could only get more room.
- Logee's customer, Aaron - 7/9/2016

Cocoa plant image courtesy of Flickr / Luisovalles.