Physicochemical Phenomena in the Roasting of Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.)

The quality of cocoa depends on both the origin of the cacao and the processing stages. The roasting process is critical because it develops the aroma and flavor, changing the beans’ chemical composition significantly by chemical reactions induced by thermal energy. Aspects have been identified as the main differences between bulk cocoa and fine cocoa, the effect of time and temperature on the formation of the flavor and aroma, and the differences between conductive heating in an oven, convective with airflow, and steam flow. Thermal energy initially causes drying, then non-enzymatic browning chemical reactions (Maillard reaction, Strecker degradation, oxidation of lipids, and polyphenols), which produce volatile and non-volatile chemical compounds related to the flavor and aroma of cocoa roasted. This review identified that the effect of the heating rate on the physicochemical conversion of cocoa is still unknown, and the process has not been evaluated in inert atmospheres, which could drastically influence the avoidance of oxidation reactions. The effect of particle size on the performance of product quality is still unknown. A more in-depth explanation of energy, mass, and chemical kinetic transfer phenomena in roasting is needed to allow a deep understanding of the effect of process parameters. In order to achieve the above challenges, experimentation and modeling under kinetic control (small-scale) are proposed to allow the evaluation of the effects of the process parameters and the development of new roasting technologies in favor of product quality. Therefore, this work seeks to encourage scientists to work under a non-traditional scheme and generate new knowledge.