Roasted Cocoa Beans

Before it was a flavour, the cocoa bean was money. Among the Aztecs in the 16th century it served as currency: in Tlaxcala, a price list dated 1545 sets a good turkey hen at 100 beans. It was a currency with one particular feature: you could also drink it.

Theobroma, food of the gods

The cocoa tree owes its scientific name to a Swedish botanist. In 1753, in his Species Plantarum, Carl Linnaeus named it Theobroma cacao, from the Greek theos (god) and brōma (food): the "food of the gods". The name stuck, and it is hardly an exaggeration for a seed that has served as currency, offering and prestige drink.

When arecanut growers took up chocolate

The arrival of the cocoa tree in India in the 18th century is told in our guide to cacao nibs. A less familiar story is that of CAMPCO. This co-operative was founded on 11 July 1973 in Mangalore, in Karnataka, by Varanashi Subraya Bhat, for arecanut growers, after a marketing crisis in arecanut in 1970-1971. Its full name says it all: Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Co-operative.

Cocoa entered its story by accident. In the early 1980s world cocoa prices collapsed and Cadbury, the region's big buyer, stopped buying from planters without warning. The co-operative then started buying the fresh beans itself. On 1 September 1986 it opened a chocolate factory in Puttur: arecanut growers were now making chocolate, and they are cited today among the country's largest makers.

Agroforestry: cocoa in the shade of palms

The cocoa tree is a shade tree: it needs roughly 40 to 50% shade to grow well. In South India it is therefore not planted in large open fields. It is grown mostly as an intercrop, in coconut and arecanut gardens, and also under oil palms and rubber trees. According to a study cited by Indian researchers, more than two thirds of the country's cocoa grows under coconut palms and about a fifth under arecanut. Under an areca palm, 30 to 50% of the light passes through the foliage, which is enough for cocoa.

Researchers at CPCRI, India's plantation crops institute, go further: they test multi-storey gardens. At Arsikere, in Karnataka, coconut palms, cocoa trees, lime trees and moringa (the "drumsticks" of Indian cooking) share the same plot, and other trials combine cocoa, banana, lime and moringa under coconut palms. One garden thus yields coconuts, beans, limes and pods.

In this model the cocoa tree takes its place in an already cultivated garden, on the middle storey: it does not replace a forest. That is the difference with regions where cocoa growing has pushed back the forest. To be honest about it: this is not a label or a certification, it is simply how cocoa is most often grown in this region.

Nationally it is a modest but growing crop: official 2025-2026 estimates give roughly 117,000 hectares of cocoa trees for some 34,000 tonnes of dried beans, with Andhra Pradesh in the lead, followed by Kerala. These are orders of magnitude, which vary by year and source.

One bean, two materials

A cocoa bean has two very different parts. The kernel, also called the nib, is rich in fat (cocoa butter): it is what gives the chocolate flavour. The shell, the thin skin around it, makes up roughly 10 to 20% of the bean's weight and is mostly fibre. Roasting loosens it from the kernel, which makes shelling easy at home.

The kernel of our beans is bitter, crunchy and deeply roasted, with dark chocolate notes, subtle fruity touches and a hint of acidity. Nothing sweet here: this is raw cocoa, which asks to be paired or tamed.

Two flavours in one bean

The shell has its own character. Dry and fibrous between the teeth, it is not for chewing, but it flavours very well: infused, it gives a light, woody, gentle chocolate drink, far less powerful than the kernel. The shell protects the kernel until the moment you crack it, one more reason to keep the bean whole until you use it.

Shelling at home

• As the beans are roasted, the shell comes away easily: press and fold the bean between your fingers, then peel the shell off in pieces
• For a larger batch, crack them roughly with a rolling pin in a bag, then winnow: slowly pour the mix from one bowl into another in front of a fan (or a hairdryer on cool air). The air carries off the light shells, and the pieces of kernel fall back into the bowl
• Do not throw the shells away: they can be infused (see below)

Nibble, crush, grind

• Nibble the kernel as it is, for lovers of pure, bitter cocoa
• Crush it in a mortar and scatter it over yoghurt, porridge or fruit salad
• Grind it finely (coffee grinder or mortar) to flavour a hot chocolate or a cake batter
• Fold it into cookie or brownie dough for bitterness and crunch

Infusing the shell and the beans

The shell is prepared like a herbal tea. In water at about 95 °C, allow 8 to 10 minutes for a light chocolatey infusion (one tasting guide suggests 2.5 g of shells for a 170 ml cup).

• In hot milk: bring a cup of milk, dairy or plant-based, gently to a simmer with a tablespoon of shells, leave to infuse for at least 10 minutes, then strain and froth. Cream or milk gives a more chocolatey taste than water
• With spices: add a little green cardamom or cinnamon, or infuse the shells in your chai masala
• With a few crushed kernels: they add body and bitterness to the drink

In savoury cooking

• A few ground beans in a chilli-spiked tomato sauce or a stew: they round off the acidity and add depth
• For another use of cocoa, see also our pure cocoa powder for drinks and baking

Quality criteria

• Appearance: dry, dark brown beans with the shell intact or slightly cracked
• Smell: clear, chocolatey and roasted, with no smell of mould, acrid smoke or rancidity
• At the break: a dark brown, brittle, dry kernel, never soft

Storage tips

• Keep the beans in a dry place, away from light, heat and moisture, in their tightly resealed packaging
• Crack them as you go: the kernel stays protected by its shell until use
• Keep the shells in a closed jar, dry, for your infusions