What is Milk Chocolate?
Milk chocolate is a form of chocolate which is blended with milk for a more mild, creamy flavor than dark chocolate, which is composed primarily of cocoa liquor. Many candy companies utilize milk chocolate for their products, which are designed to be eaten out of hand, and milk chocolate can also be used in some baking applications. If you want to use milk chocolate in baking, make sure to use a recipe which has been designed for milk chocolate, as milk chocolate behaves very uniquely during baking, and it is also extremely heat sensitive.
Before delving into milk chocolate, it may help to become familiar with basic chocolate terminology. Chocolate is derived from the seeds of the cacao plant, Theobroma cacao. The seeds or “nibs” are formed in large pods, which are harvested when ripe. Harvesters split the pods to access the seeds and then ferment them for around a week before roasting the seeds and grinding them to release their chocolate liquor. Chocolate liquor is composed of cocoa solids and cocoa butter, the fatty part of chocolate.
Pure chocolate liquor is turned into baker's chocolate, which you may be familiar with. If you have ever bitten into a piece of baker's chocolate, you also know that it is extremely bitter, due to the alkaloids in chocolate. Therefore, chocolate liquor is often mixed with sugar and other ingredients to make candy bars and other sweet chocolate products.
Typical milk chocolate includes 10% chocolate liquor, along with an additional percentage of pure cocoa solids; in Europe, milk chocolate must contain at least 25% cocoa solids. Around 12% of milk chocolate contains milk solids, and another 3.7% is composed of milkfat. Sugar and vanilla are also added to make milk chocolate creamy and to enhance the flavor. Either condensed or powdered milk may be used, depending on the manufacturer.
The quality of milk chocolate varies widely, just as the quality of other forms of chocolate does. Well handled nibs and high quality milk and sugar will create a milk chocolate with a superb mouthfeel and flavor, while poor ingredients will yield a grainy, bitter, slightly sour milk chocolate. Different regions of the world have their own formulation preferences for milk chocolate, depending on the techniques used by major candy producers to create their milk chocolate. You may have discovered this when traveling. If you feel like having an interesting blind taste test, assemble different regional incarnations of the same candy bar, such as a Kit Kat®, and try identifying the differences in the chocolate formulations used.
Written by S.E. Smith
