Cocoa butter – the fat behind chocolate's melt

Cocoa butter is the fat from the cocoa bean – a naturally yellowish-white vegetable fat extracted when cocoa liquor is pressed, and is the reason why chocolate melts so characteristically at body temperature.

From cocoa bean to chocolate

When chocolate is made, cocoa butter is separated from the solid cocoa mass, and the two components are then mixed back in different proportions depending on the type of chocolate desired.

Properties

Cocoa butter has a long shelf life compared to many other vegetable fats, and a moisturizing consistency that makes it popular in skin products such as soaps, creams and lip balms.

Usage

Can be applied directly to the skin or used melted in the kitchen as a base for homemade pralines and truffles. Our organic cocoa butter buttons are an example of how it is usually sold.