What is chocolate liquor?

"Chocolate liquor" is a bit of a misnomer because it doesn't contain any alcohol. It's actually the unsweetened, pure chocolate paste that forms the base for all chocolate products.

Here's a breakdown:

* How it's made: Chocolate liquor is created by grinding roasted cacao beans into a thick, liquid paste.

* What it looks like: It's a dark brown, viscous liquid with a strong chocolate flavor.

* How it's used:

* Directly: It can be used as a very bitter, concentrated chocolate flavoring.

* For other chocolate products: It's the key ingredient in making:

* Cocoa powder: Chocolate liquor is pressed to separate the cocoa butter, leaving behind cocoa powder.

* Unsweetened chocolate: Chocolate liquor is dried and molded into blocks.

* Sweetened chocolate: Sugar and other ingredients (like milk) are added to chocolate liquor to make different varieties of chocolate.

Important to note: "Chocolate liquor" is a technical term, and it's not commonly used in everyday conversation. Most people would simply call it "chocolate paste" or "unsweetened chocolate."