Cocoa Nibs

Roasted & raw winnowed nib — inclusion & snack grade

Nibs are the cocoa bean kernel, cracked and winnowed to remove the shell, and left as pieces rather than ground into liquor. Roasted nibs carry a deep, bitter, intensely chocolatey flavour with a crisp fracture; raw or unroasted nibs are fruitier and sharper and are sold heavily into the health-food channel on the strength of their flavanol content. Specification runs on shell content — 1.75% maximum is the standard, and it is the number that matters most, because shell is gritty, adds no value and is the commonest reason a lot disappoints — along with fat content of 50 to 57%, particle size, moisture below 3% and microbiology appropriate to a ready-to-eat product, since nibs are frequently eaten without further processing.

Buy nibs for texture and visual identity rather than for bulk chocolate flavour: inclusion in bars and confectionery where a crunchy dark fleck is the point, cereal, granola and snack bars, cold brew and cocoa tea, and health-food retail where raw nibs are sold as a product in their own right. That last channel has grown substantially and prices accordingly. Where nibs are the wrong purchase is any application where they will simply be ground — buying nibs to make your own liquor means paying a premium for winnowing you could get done more cheaply by buying liquor outright, unless you specifically want control of the grind. Because they are often consumed unprocessed, treat the microbiological specification as seriously as you would for any ready-to-eat ingredient. CBIL brokers cocoa nibs against shell content, fat, particle size, moisture and microbiology, in 25 kg cartons and lined bags, on FOB and CIF terms.