Chocolate

Chocolate is one of the most chemically complex foods — over 600 volatile aroma compounds, produced by an unusually elaborate chain of biological and thermal transformations. The cacao bean starts as a bland, astringent seed; three-phase fermentation converts it into a vessel of flavor precursors; gentle roasting develops those precursors through Maillard browning; and hours of conching aerates and mellows the result. At every stage, the wrong conditions destroy flavor that cannot be recovered.