The history of chocolate - Deanna Pucciarelli

Povijest čokolade - Deanna Pucciarelli

Prevoditelj: Jasna Matek Recezent: Ivan Stamenković

If you can't imagine life without chocolate,

Ako ne možete zamisliti život bez čokolade,

you're lucky you weren't born before the 16th century.

sretni ste što niste rođeni prije 16. stoljeća.

Until then, chocolate only existed in Mesoamerica

Do tada, čokolada je postojala samo u Mezoamerici

in a form quite different from what we know.

u poprilično drugačijem obliku od onoga kakvog danas znamo.

As far back as 1900 BCE,

Još davne 1900. pr. Kr.,

the people of that region had learned to prepare the beans

ljudi iz te regije naučili su pripremati

of the native cacao tree.

zrna graha domaćeg stabla kakaoa.

The earliest records tell us the beans were ground

Prema najranijim podacima, grah bi se samljeo

and mixed with cornmeal and chili peppers

te pomiješao s palentom i čili papričicama

to create a drink -

kako bi se stvorilo piće -

not a relaxing cup of hot cocoa,

ne opuštajuća šalica vrućeg kakaoa,

but a bitter, invigorating concoction frothing with foam.

već gorka, osnažujuća pjenasta mješavina.

And if you thought we make a big deal about chocolate today,

Ako ste mislili da se danas previše uzbuđujemo oko čokolade,

the Mesoamericans had us beat.

nismo ni do koljena Mezoamerikancima.

They believed that cacao was a heavenly food

Vjerovali su da je kakao božanska hrana

gifted to humans by a feathered serpent god,

koju je ljudima darovao pernati bog-zmija,

known to the Maya as Kukulkan

Majama poznat kao Kukulkan

and to the Aztecs as Quetzalcoatl.

a Astecima kao Quetzalcoatl.

Aztecs used cacao beans as currency

Asteci su koristili kakao grah kao valutu,

and drank chocolate at royal feasts,

a čokoladu su pili na kraljevskim gozbama,

gave it to soldiers as a reward for success in battle,

davali ih vojnicima kao nagradu za uspjeh u bitkama

and used it in rituals.

i koristili ih u ritualima.

The first transatlantic chocolate encounter occurred in 1519

Prva transatlantički čokoladni susret dogodio se 1519.

when Hernán Cortés visited the court of Moctezuma

kada je Hernán Cortés posjetio dvor Montezuma

at Tenochtitlan.

u Tenochtitlanu.

As recorded by Cortés's lieutenant,

Kako je zabilježio Cortésov poručnik,

the king had 50 jugs of the drink brought out and poured into golden cups.

kralj je naredio da se iznese 50 vrčeva pića i natoči u zlatne pehare.

When the colonists returned with shipments of the strange new bean,

Kada su se kolonisti vratili s pošiljkama čudnovatog novog graha,

missionaries' salacious accounts of native customs

zavodljive priče misionara o domorodačkim običajima

gave it a reputation as an aphrodisiac.

utjecali su na njegovu reputaciju kao afrodizijaka.

At first, its bitter taste made it suitable as a medicine for ailments,

U početku je njegov gorak okus bio prikladan kao lijek za bolesti,

like upset stomachs,

kao što je bol u trbuhu,

but sweetening it with honey, sugar, or vanilla

ali zaslađivanje medom, šećerom ili vanilijom

quickly made chocolate a popular delicacy in the Spanish court.

brzo je čokoladu učinilo popularnom delicijom na španjolskom dvoru.

And soon, no aristocratic home was complete without dedicated chocolate ware.

Uskoro, nijedan aristokratski dom nije bio potpun bez čokolade.

The fashionable drink was difficult and time consuming to produce

Proizvodnja mondenog pića bila je kompliciran i dugotrajan proces

on a large scale.

velikih razmjera.

That involved using plantations and imported slave labor

To je uključivalo plantaže i rad uvezenih robova

in the Caribbean and on islands off the coast of Africa.

na Karibima i otocima afričke obale.

The world of chocolate would change forever in 1828

Svijet čokolade će se 1828. zauvijek promijeniti

with the introduction of the cocoa press by Coenraad van Houten of Amsterdam.

kada Coenraad van Houten iz Amsterdama uvede kakao prešu.

Van Houten's invention could separate the cocoa's natural fat, or cocoa butter.

Van Houtenov izum će moći odvojiti prirodne masnoće kakaoa ili kakao maslac.

This left a powder that could be mixed into a drinkable solution

To ostavlja prah koji se mogao umiješati u pitku otopinu

or recombined with the cocoa butter

ili ponovno pomiješati s kakao maslacem

to create the solid chocolate we know today.

kako bi se stvorila čvrsta čokolada kakvu danas poznajemo.

Not long after, a Swiss chocolatier named Daniel Peter

Nedugo poslije, švicarski čokoladar, imena Daniel Peter

added powdered milk to the mix,

u miks je dodao mlijeko u prahu,

thus inventing milk chocolate.

stvarajući time mliječnu čokoladu.

By the 20th century, chocolate was no longer an elite luxury

Do 20. stoljeća, čokolada više nije bila elitni luksuz

but had become a treat for the public.

već je postala slastica za širu javnost.

Meeting the massive demand required more cultivation of cocoa,

Zadovoljavanje masovne potražnje zahtijevalo je veći uzgoj kakaoa,

which can only grow near the equator.

koji je mogao rasti samo uz ekvator.

Now, instead of African slaves being shipped

Sada, umjesto da se afrički robovi brodovima šalju

to South American cocoa plantations,

na južnoameričke plantaže kakaoa,

cocoa production itself would shift to West Africa

sama proizvodnja kakaoa će se preseliti u zapadnu Afriku

with Cote d'Ivoire providing two-fifths of the world's cocoa as of 2015.

gdje će od 2015. Obala bjelokosti proizvoditi dvije petine svjetskog kakaoa.

Yet along with the growth of the industry,

Ipak, s rastom industrije

there have been horrific abuses of human rights.

bilo je strašnog zanemarivanja ljudskih prava.

Many of the plantations throughout West Africa,

Mnoge plantaže diljem zapadne Afrike,

which supply Western companies,

koje su opskrbljivale zapadne tvrtke,

use slave and child labor,

koriste ropstvo i dječji rad

with an estimation of more than 2 million children affected.

uz procjenu da je time pogođeno više od 2 milijuna djece.

This is a complex problem that persists

Ovo je kompleksni problem koji je ostao

despite efforts from major chocolate companies to partner with African nations

usprkos trudu velikih tvrtki da se udruže s afričkim nacijama

to reduce child and indentured labor practices.

da smanje prakse dječjeg i ugovornog rada.

Today, chocolate has established itself in the rituals of our modern culture.

Danas je čokolada prisutna u ritualima naše moderne kulture.

Due to its colonial association with native cultures,

Zbog kolonijalne povezanosti s domorodačkim kulturama

combined with the power of advertising,

i uz moć reklame,

chocolate retains an aura of something sensual,

čokolada zadržava auru nečega senzualnog,

decadent,

dekadentnog

and forbidden.

i zabranjenog.

Yet knowing more about its fascinating and often cruel history,

Ipak, znajući više o fascinantnoj i često okrutnoj povijesti,

as well as its production today,

kao i o njenoj proizvodnji danas,

tells us where these associations originate

govori nam odakle potječu te asocijacije

and what they hide.

i što skrivaju.

So as you unwrap your next bar of chocolate,

Dok odmotavate svoju sljedeću pločicu čokolade,

take a moment to consider that not everything about chocolate is sweet.

razmislite na trenutak kako nije sve u vezi čokolade tako slatko.