Why Does Chocolate Turn White?

Why Does Chocolate Turn White?

Notice how a bar chocolate starts to form white to grey mold-like cracks that can also pass as crystals around it every time you put it long enough in the refrigerator to harden? Or even when you leave an open pack or box of chocolates even for a short while, did you notice how easily those goodies turn dry? Though still completely edible, you would feel a little sad because your piece of chocolate no longer seems as delectable as it used to be.

So who or what is the culprit behind this observable fact? Blame it on the fridge. Considering that the environment inside a refrigerator is extremely dry, it will more often than not drain out the moisture in that luscious pack of chocolates most especially if the pack is not sealed well enough. Be it wrapped in pretty box, plastic or even paper wrapper, you must understand that don’t won’t do enough to save it from the drying and crystallization effects caused by a refrigeration.

Also known as sugar bloom, this occurrence is often caused when moisture is formed around the surface the chocolate. The moisture reacts with the sugar in the chocolate by dissolving the sugars and thus creating crystal residue that stick on the surface. When the process is repeated throughout refrigeration time, the surface of the chocolate will in turn become more sticky and change in color all the more.

Look at it this way, think of chocolate as a mixture of very fine and tiny particles of crystalline from sugar, fat, cacao and all the other essentials that make chocolate undeniably delicious. When you expose that kind of crystal like mixture to colder temperatures, the tendency is the crystals would expand thus creating those small white spots on the surface of your chocolate bar.