Chocolate is made from cocoa. I will briefly discuss the making of chocolate bars from cocoa in these 5 steps;
Harvesting
Storage & fermentation
Sun drying
Roasting
Grinding
Refrigeration.
Harvesting
The 2 major species of cocoa pods change from green to a yellowish or reddish colour respectively when ripe.
Storage & fermentation
Remove the cocoa seeds from the pods and store in a closed container for about a week. The process will ferment the cocoa seeds and give it a unique flavour. You can skip this step if you like.
Sun drying
Take out the seeds , spread them out on a tray and then sun dry. Sun drying the seeds can take up to 3 days. You can also skip this step, however roasting times may be higher.
Roasting
Roasting the cocoa beans will give the chocolate flavour you need. Roasting can take about 15 to 20 minutes. Roast on moderate heat. When the seeds are done their outer shells crack out easily with little pressure. Also their outer shells crack and give off a popping sound during roasting.
Grinding
This is a critical process in the making of chocolate. The goal is to grind the roasted seeds to a very smooth paste. Try to use very little no water at all during the grinding process. You can use a high powered blender or a hand steel grinder.
During the grinding you also add sugar and or milk and other flavours to taste.
Refrigeration
Pour the blended chocolate mixture into chocolate bar moulds ( made of plastic material) and store in a fridge or freezer.
After about an hour you will have your homemade chocolate bar.