Dutch chocolate refers both to chocolate made in the Netherlands and, more often, to chocolate and cocoa made with Dutch-processed cocoa — cocoa treated with an alkali to neutralize its natural acidity. Dutching gives a darker color, milder and smoother flavor, and better solubility, which is why so much drinking cocoa and baking chocolate uses it.
What Dutch-processed cocoa is
In the early 1800s a Dutch chemist developed alkalization, treating cocoa with a potassium or sodium carbonate solution. The process lowers acidity and bitterness, deepens the color, and makes the cocoa mix more easily into liquid — the reason Dutch-processed cocoa became the standard for hot chocolate and many European chocolate recipes.
Dutch-processed vs natural cocoa
Natural cocoa is acidic and fruity; Dutch-processed cocoa is darker, mellower, and less acidic. The flavor difference is immediately noticeable in a cup of cocoa and is part of why European-style chocolate tastes smoother and less sharp than some natural-cocoa products.
Stocking Dutch chocolate and cocoa
For resale, Dutch-style drinking cocoa, chocolate bars, and chocolate sprinkles (hagelslag) all carry the smooth, mellow profile shoppers associate with European chocolate. Browse Dutch lines and the wider chocolate category to assemble a section.
FAQ
What is Dutch chocolate?
Chocolate from the Netherlands, or more commonly chocolate and cocoa made with Dutch-processed (alkalized) cocoa, which is darker, smoother, and less acidic than natural cocoa.
What does Dutch-processed cocoa mean?
Cocoa treated with an alkali to neutralize its natural acidity, giving a milder flavor, a deeper color, and better solubility for drinks and baking.