Chocolate is a typically sweet preparation, usually brown from the seeds of Theobroma cacao, roasted and ground. It is made in the form of a liquid, paste, or in a block, or is used as a flavor ingredient in other foods. Cacao has been cultivated by many cultures for at least three millennia in Mesoamerica. Earlier evidence of use dates back to Mokaya (Mexico and Guatemala), with evidence of chocolate beverages dating back to 1900 BC. In fact, most Mesoamerican people made chocolate drinks, including the Mayans and Aztecs, which turned it into a drink known as Nahuatl pronunciation, a Nahuatl word meaning "bitter water." The seeds of the cacao tree have an intense bitter taste and must be fermented to develop the flavor.
After fermentation, the beans are dried, cleaned and roasted. The peel is removed to produce cocoa nabs, which are then ground to the cocoa mass, unadulterated chocolate in rough form. Once the cocoa mass is liquefied by heating, it is called chocolate liqueur. The liquor can also be cooled and processed into its two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter. Baking chocolate, also called bitter chocolate, contains cocoa butter and cocoa butter solids in varying proportions, with no added sugars. Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, a combination of cocoa solids, cocoa butter or added vegetable oils and sugar. Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate which also contains milk powder or condensed milk. White chocolate contains cocoa butter, sugar and milk, but no cocoa solids.
Cocoa solids are a source of flavonoids and alkaloids, such as theobromine, phenethylamine and caffeine. Chocolate also contains anandamide. Chocolate has become one of the most popular types of foods and flavors in the world, and a large number of foodstuffs involving chocolate have been created, particularly desserts including cakes, pudding, mousse, brownies of chocolate and chocolate chip cookies. Many candies are filled or coated with sweetened chocolate, and solid chocolate bars and chocolate-covered candy bars are eaten as snacks. Chocolate gifts molded in different shapes (eg, eggs, hearts) have become traditional in certain Western festivals such as Easter and Valentine's Day. Chocolate is also used in hot and cold drinks like chocolate milk and hot chocolate and in some alcoholic beverages, such as cacao cream.
Although cocoa originated in the Americas, in recent years African nations have taken a leading role in cocoa production. Since the early 2000s, West Africa has produced almost two-thirds of the world's cocoa, with Côte d'Ivoire growing almost half that amount.