Natural Cocoa Powder Vs. Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder

Before venturing out into the big world of baking, if you would have asked us what the difference was between natural unsweetened and Dutch cocoa powder, we would have said, "Huh?". But, as we started baking on a regular basis and reading through tons of recipes, we noticed that a majority of recipes called for Dutch processed cocoa powder. This began to peak our interest, so we had to learn more.

Natural Vs. Dutch Cocoa Powder

Cocoa powder is the powder that is left over when you remove cocoa butter from chocolate liquor. The difference between natural and Dutch is the process of alkalizing. Natural cocoa powder is naturally acidic, and remains that way, whereas Dutch cocoa powder goes through an alkalizing process that neutralizes the acidity. Because Dutch processed cocoa powder is neutralized, the flavor of the powder is mellow, and the powder is a darker color, whereas natural cocoa powder has a bitter bite to it and is light in color.

How Does This Affect Our Baking

Since Dutch processed cocoa powder loses its acidity with the neutralizing process, it no longer reacts with a major leavening agent that we bake with, baking soda (which requires an acid to activate). This can cause problems when baking because the leavening agent (baking soda), without the acid, will not help the cake to rise. So in the case of baking with Dutch processed cocoa powder, baking powder is usually added and used as its main leavening agent. On the other hand, natural cocoa powder keeps its acidic property and reacts well with baking soda, therefore allowing baking soda to be utilized as the leavening agent in a recipe.

How Do We Know What To Bake With

When reading a recipe, a word of advice is to follow the directions of that recipe. Most recipes are well thought out and tested, so if it states natural cocoa powder, then use natural, Dutch, use Dutch. Now if a recipe doesn't specify which cocoa powder to use, then you may need to zone in with your detective skills and evaluate the recipe. Although we personally love Dutch processed cocoa powder for its mellow taste and richness, if there's no baking powder in the recipe then we'll stick with natural cocoa powder. That's just us, you may want to experiment!

Recommended Cocoa Powder

Dutch processed cocoa powder is a bit more expensive than natural cocoa powder, and you can find natural more readily in grocery stores. But we think it's worth the cost and inconvenience to go Dutch. But don't take our word for it, try it yourself. Our Dutch processed cocoa powder of choice is Cacao Barry Extra Brute.