Covered in What?
What do pieces of dried squid, soybeans, and strawberries have in common? As improbable as it may sound, it is possible to find all of them covered in chocolate and for sale on the Internet! Given the deliciousness of chocolate, it is no wonder that people started dipping things into it and eating them-however, some of the things that get dipped in chocolate these days might strike one as pretty strange. It seems that there are three main reasons that products are chocolate coated. The first is that the sweet, slightly bitter flavor profile of chocolate is a great compliment to many foods. Secondly, some health food items are chocolate-coated in order to make them more palatable. And finally, some foods are covered in chocolate as a mere novelty.
Tasty Chocolate Covered Foods
Apricots, cherries, and bananas are some of fruits that are most commonly coated with chocolate, although many other fruits are just as wonderful in the same guise. Chocolate covered pomegranate seeds are a particularly exotic, tangy treat, and vibrant green kiwi half-covered in chocolate looks gorgeous next to chocolate dipped strawberries. It is not uncommon to find chocolate slathered fruit right next to the chocolate truffles at gourmet shops, and chocolate fondue parties almost always include a selection of sliced fruit. On the snack-y side of things, chocolate dipped pretzels and nuts (and even potato chips) pleasantly interweave the silky smoothness of cocoa butter with a satisfying crunchiness, and the salt enhances the flavor of the chocolate.
Chocolate Covered Health Foods
There are various food items on the market that don't beg for the kiss of chocolate the way that hazelnuts or coffee beans might, but are still quite popular as snack foods. I would place chocolate covered raisins and soy-nuts in this category. These are not decadent treats, but they are ingredients that would serve well when added to the ubiquitous blend called "GORP." "GORP" and other trail mixes are high calorie foods that are easy to make (just mix together any snack foods you like in any combination you desire) and light enough to be carried on long hiking trips. The chocolate-covered health food category also includes chocolate-coated energy bars, which have become quite popular in recent years.
Chocolate Novelties
And now we come to our final and most exciting category--novelty foods covered in chocolate. These range from the tame (fortune cookies and gummi bears) to the exotic (chocolate covered scorpions). The difference between some of these items and the first category (foods that taste better with chocolate) is that these foods are designed more for the fun or the thrill than for the flavor. Take chocolate covered ants, for example. Manufacturers can create products with the same crunch by adding puffed rice to candy bars. However, that doesn't provide the thrill or the bragging rights that eating chocolate covered bugs can provide. In the Ukraine, chocolate covered pork fat (salo) was featured at Tsarske Selo, a fancy restaurant in Kiev. This treat is sometimes referred to as "Ukrainian Snickers," and needless to say, cardiologists are not big fans. Whether you love junk food, health food, or entomology, it is fairly certain that you can find the object of your passion somewhere out there on the internet--and covered in chocolate.