Chemical composition and fatty acids profile of chocolates produced with different cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) cultivars

Abstract The objective of the present study was to characterize the physicochemical composition and to quantify the fatty acids of chocolates produced from different cocoa varieties (Theobroma cacao L.) cultivated in the Southern Region of Bahia. Nine samples of monovarietal chocolates were evaluated, according to their physical, thermal and fatty acid profile. The results were subjected to tests of variance and multivariate statistics. The chocolates PH16 and TSH1188 presented higher melting point. It was possible to identify a linear correlation between the fat content of the chocolates and the break force parameter. The chocolates showed higher concentration of saturated fatty acids, mainly palmitic acid (16:0) and stearic acid (18:0), followed by the unsaturated fatty acids among which oleic acid (18:1n-9) and linoleic acid (18:6) were predominant. The principal component analysis allowed to discriminate the different varieties of chocolate according to the profile of fatty acids. The thermogravimetric analysis of the samples showed a similar profile. The differences found in the samples of chocolates were attributed to factors such as the fruit maturation process, the cocoa variety and to which they were subjected during processing.

摘要 本研究旨在对巴伊亚州南部种植的不同可可品种（可可树（Theobroma cacao L.））制备的巧克力进行理化组成表征，并定量分析其脂肪酸组分。本研究共评估9份单品种巧克力样品，对其物理特性、热学特性及脂肪酸谱展开分析。实验结果采用方差检验与多元统计分析方法进行处理。结果显示，PH16与TSH1188两款巧克力具有更高的熔点；巧克力的脂肪含量与断裂力参数之间存在线性相关关系；受试巧克力样品的饱和脂肪酸浓度较高，主要成分为棕榈酸（16:0）与硬脂酸（18:0），不饱和脂肪酸次之，其中油酸（18:1n-9）与亚油酸（18:6）占主导地位；主成分分析可依据脂肪酸谱对不同品种的巧克力进行有效区分；样品的热重分析结果呈现相似的热解特征。巧克力样品间的差异可归因于果实成熟过程、可可品种及加工过程中所施加的各类工艺因素。