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Tea Profile

January 2, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

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tea-4671After water, tea is the world’s most widely consumed beverage.

Tea originated in Asia, in the Himalayas where India and China meet. It has been drunk for more than 2000 years, and before that, the leaves were chewed. Cakes were formed of tea leaves and fat, and carried as sustenance on long journeys.

This FAQ covers the basic questions about tea.

What is tea?All tea plants are varietals of the species known as Camellia sinensis, an evergreen of tropical and subtropical climates. The leaves are plucked and dried. Fermentation and the drying process determine their flavor style – as white, green, black, oolong, or pu-erh – and reflect different levels of oxidation. To make the beverage we know as tea, leaves are steeped in hot or boiling water. Most plants are trimmed into shrubs for easy plucking of the leaves, but they can reach tree height. Herb teas and other steeped infusions are not true teas, but are more accurately known as tisanes.

How much caffeine does tea yield? Tea contains 1-5% caffeine by dry weight, with traces of theophylline and theobromine, which are stimulants related to caffeine. (Caffeine in tea used to be called theine, but they are now known to be the same.) As with coffee, the growing, processing, and steeping methods impact the amount of caffeine in the cup. Most caffeine is extracted in the first minute of steeping, but longer steeping also yields more caffeine. For this book, we use 35 mg of caffeine per cup of tea, but caffeine in tea can range from 15 to 70 mg.

Where is tea grown? China and India produce nearly half of the world’s tea (and are the largest consumers). The other half comes mainly from, starting with the largest supplier, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Vietnam, Iran and Indonesia, with some from Argentina and Japan as well.

What else does tea contain? Like coffee, tea contains hundreds of chemical compounds, including minerals and vitamins. Tea’s polyphenols, a source of antioxidants, protect cellular damage and provide health benefits. Unlike coffee, tea contains theanine, an amino acid thought to act as a neurotransmitter, and which produces feelings of relaxation despite the buzz of caffeine. Catechins in green tea are believed to prevent some cancers.

Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents

Filed Under: Caffeine Basics Tagged With: antioxidant, caffeine amount, Chapter 02, FAQ, tea, theanine, theine, theobromine, theophylline

Chocolate Profile

January 2, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

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cacao-cutout

Who knew such a luscious flavor would also be a stimulating food? Ancient peoples of the Americas did.

Cacao, cocoa, and chocolate are different terms, but all come from the same tree. The word cocoa is an Anglicized version of cacao, and the word “chocolate” has roots in native languages of the Americas.

What is chocolate? Chocolate is obtained from the cacao tree, a tropical evergreen known as Theobroma cacao (which translates from Greek as “food of the gods”). Each large cacao pod yields about 40 seeds or “beans” which are fermented, dried, and roasted. They’re then processed into cocoa solids, non-alcoholic cocoa liquor (a mix of solids and fat), and cocoa butter, the essential ingredients in chocolate products. Cocoa butter is the fat, with no caffeine or other stimulants. Cocoa liquor and solids are processed into eating chocolates and cocoa powders, sometimes with cocoa butter added back in.

What are the typical types of eating chocolate? Solid chocolate is basically finely ground cocoa solids suspended in cocoa butter. The more solids, the darker the chocolate, and the more stimulants contained. Milk chocolate includes milk and sugar, with less cocoa liquor or solids. White chocolate isn’t true chocolate; it contains cocoa butter and no cocoa solids or liquor.

Many dark chocolate bars promote the high percentage of cacao on their label, as in 72% chocolate (the combined weight of the cocoa solids and cocoa butter; the rest is usually sugar). Mass market chocolates often contain almost no real cacao, as little as 10% chocolate liquor which is the minimum required by U.S. regulations.

Cocoa powder is dried cocoa liquor, ground and unsweetened, and used in cooking and beverages. Instant cocoa powder has sugar added. Unsweetened chocolate is mainly for baking and cooking, and is known as bitter, baking, or unsweetened chocolate. Semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate contains a high percentage of cocoa liquor and solids, and some sugar. Cocoa nibs, or cacao nibs, are the crunchy inner bits of roasted cocoa beans, and are added to recipes for texture and flavor.

Where does chocolate come from? Cacao trees are native to tropical rainforests in South and Central America, but now grow in equatorial zones around the globe. West Africa produces 70% of the world’s cacao, led by Ivory Coast, and followed by Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon. Indonesia is the world’s second-largest producing country. Producers in the Americas include Brazil, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Colombia and Mexico.

How much caffeine does chocolate contain? A 1-ounce portion of chocolate averages about 20 mg of caffeine and 130 mg of theobromine; the combined effect is similar to that of a cup of tea with 40 mg of caffeine. Why? Chocolate contains a small amount of caffeine, and seven to ten times more theobromine than caffeine. Caffeine is the more potent of the two stimulants, but theobromine’s greater quantity makes it the predominant buzz in chocolate. Together they pack a punch: the combined impact of caffeine and theobromine in chocolate is roughly twice that of caffeine alone. (Theobromine also occurs in small amounts in tea, guarana, mate, and kola nut; and when caffeine is metabolized by the liver, it releases theobromine as a byproduct.)

What else does chocolate contain? Some people say they’re addicted to chocolate, and there may be some truth to that. Chocolate sparks several feel-good chemicals in the brain. Anandamide is a mood-altering substance in chocolate, and also occurs naturally in the brain. It’s related to THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana. Chocolate causes the brain to release the neurotransmitter phenylethylamine (PEA), known as the love-drug because it’s released when we fall in love. Chocolate has a small amount of tryptophan, which stimulates serotonin, and in high quantities promotes good feelings. Flavenoids and antioxidants in chocolate have been linked to cardiovascular health benefits.

Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents

Filed Under: Caffeine Basics Tagged With: antioxidant, cacao, cacao nib, caffeine, Chapter 02, chocolate, cocoa, cocoa butter, cocoa powder, health effects, theobromine

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Meet Kate

About Kate Heyhoe

I'm an author and journalist specializing in food and cooking. Caffeine Basics is my ninth book. I've written about the U.S. wine industry, international foods, shrinking your "cookprint," and cooking with kids. Great Bar Food at Home was a James Beard Award finalist, and Cooking Green: Reducing … More

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