The 27th of September is National Chocolate milk day – at least, according to the nationaldaycalendar.com – and what better way to celebrate this national day, than to delve into the history of Cacao?
The humble cacao bean has in fact been drunk and consumed by humans for thousands of years – even predating the ancient Greek and Roman civilisations, with some food historians dating chocolate traces from 4000 years ago in Mesoamerican regions. By 500 BC, the bean is recorded as a staple in the Mayan diet: the cacao bean was combined with cornmeal, water and even chilli peppers until liquid, before being poured back and forth between cup and pan until a thick foam developed, cooled, then drunk. This spicy chocolate creation was particularly celebrated as cacao was believed to have been gifted directly from the gods themselves – the tree from which the bean was harvested was even given the name ‘Theobroma,’ literally translated as ‘food of the gods.’ Cacao was associated with the merchant god Ek Chuah in Mayan mythology, who was venerated with offerings made from the bean, while in the Aztec empire, their creator god, Quetzalcoatl, was thought to have brought the beans from the mountains, which the gods inhabited, to mankind, resulting in him being exiled. As a final parting gift to humanity, he left behind the first Theobroma tree, so that they may always indulge in its fruits. Due to its spiritual status, cacao had a central role in Mesoamerican cultures, not just in their foods. The beans were used in everything, from acting as a currency, to being ground up in medicines to increase strength, to being used to signal high status.
In the fourteenth century, the Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mesoamerica, and looked to establish new colonial trade routes between the supposed ‘New World’ and Europe. And so, the cacao bean made its way across the Atlantic. The first official recording of a European trying the cacao bean was Philip II of Spain, when some Mayans came over to Spain with Catholic missionaries and gave chocolate to the then prince as a gift. From then on, the cacao craze swept across Europe, and once again the bean accrued a special status within the culinary world. Nuns were particularly fond of the chocolate drink in Spain, whilst in France, hot chocolate became the drink of the court, favoured by Marie Antoinette and King Louis. The French court chefs even pioneered new variations of the drink, including chocolate, water and egg yolk, mixed with the Queen’s favourite flavours of orange blossom and almond.
Finally, in the 1600s, cacao entered the English culinary world. Copying fashions on the Continent, exclusive chocolate cafes were set up, entertaining the wealthy London gentlemen. However, these chocolate cafes were not considered altogether respectable establishments, as they were rife with gambling, rebellious political thought and quickly became hotbeds of supposed sexual and moral depravity. The cafes themselves were considered such a problem in the fabric of London living that Charles II attempted to ban the serving of coffee, tea or chocolate in public houses – yet the bill failed in being enacted after only a few weeks, as Londoners protested the removal of their favourite drinks.
Hot or cold chocolate drinks only began being served with milk later that century, when Hans Sloane returned with a ‘chocolate milk’ from Jamaica, swiftly publishing his recipe on his return home. Yet still, the drink was mostly consumed by the upper classes – it wasn’t until the 19th century when Cadbury’s first started selling chocolate powder, thanks to the invention of the cacao press in 1828, which finally allowed for the separation between cacao and the cacao butter, allowing for silky smooth chocolate drinks. Drinks that were so popular that they would create a multi-billion pound hot-chocolate industry, and drinks that we would recognise in our local Starbucks today.
