Cocoa butter - Definition and Overview

Cocoa butter, also called theobroma oil, is the edible natural fat of the cacao bean, extracted during the process of making chocolate and cocoa powder. Cocoa butter has only a mild chocolate flavor and aroma.

Cocoa butter is one of the ingredients used to make real chocolate. It has a melting point of around 34 to 38 degrees Celsius, rendering chocolate a solid at room temperature that readily melts once inside the mouth.

Cocoa butter is one of the most stable fats known, containing natural antioxidants that prevent rancidity and give it a storage life of two to five years. It is used for its smooth texture in various foods (including chocolate), as well as in cosmetics and soaps and was used as an excipient in rectal suppositories.