I should cocoa

Rich, indulgent cakes and buttery shortbread – but savoury dishes? In her new cookbook, Sue Quinn shows you how to think about chocolate in a whole new way.

Chocolate recipes – but not as you know them

NOT SO LONG AGO, I thought chocolate had one flavour: chocolate. But after almost two years researching this magical ingredient, I’ve realised it’s a symphony of flavours. Each note varies according to the genetic strain of the cacao beans, the environment they grew in and the care (or not) with which they were harvested and fermented.

Scientifically speaking, chocolate has more than 600 aroma compounds, making it wonderfully versatile. It pairs with a variety of flavours and ingredients, from fruits and vegetables to cheese and meat. We love chocolate in a decadent cake shrouded in buttercream, but it also works as a spice to enhance or brighten a dish, or add bitterness.

Italian chefs of the 16th century understood the versatility of chocolate, and sweet and savoury recipes started to appear in cookbooks as early as the 18th century. Chefs in the grandest houses were keen to show off with what was an exotic ingredient only the uberwealthy could afford. They used it in ways that might even make Heston Blumenthal raise an eyebrow – chocolate-coated pan-fried liver, anyone?

In fact, it’s only been eaten as a sweet food since the Industrial Revolution brought machinery that could process beans into smooth bars. For most of the thousands of years humans have consumed chocolate, it’s been as a drink. People from what’s now South America, Central America and Mexico ground cacao beans into a paste, mixed in water and added chillies, spices and flowers for flavour. They were the first to realise the wonder of chocolate – the potential of which we’re still exploring today. Cocoa by Sue Quinn is out on Thursday (Quadrille, £25). Order for £20 at books. telegraph.co.uk or call 0844-871 1514