Ginger and chocolate, spice and richness all wrapped up in one. Ginger and chocolate are a flavour combo that has been enjoyed for a long time, mainly thanks to how well these flavours work in tandem. What makes this pairing so special?
We’re here to give you all the information you need to know about chocolate and ginger, as well as some of our top chocolate bar picks you need to try! Buckle up, things are about to get spicy.
A Short History of Ginger and Chocolate
Ginger has been enjoyed in foods since it was first traded from Southeast Asia. It’s popped up in cooking, desserts and even used as a medicine. Not unlike cacao, which was used as a religious drink as well as believed to have offered medicinal properties by the Aztecs, both ginger and chocolate have been around for a long time.
They weren’t enjoyed together until both were brought to Europe, and this began their spicy combination. Ginger and chocolate were both viewed as luxury items, eaten and enjoyed by royalty as a status symbol. In the 15th century, we started to see ginger enter dessert recipes, such as ginger biscuits, as a sweet digestive aid after meals, but it was only modern industrialisation that led to them being enjoyed by the masses.
Ginger biscuits and cakes usually had dark chocolate drizzled over them, but nowadays there are chocolate bars with entire chunks of stem ginger in them, including white and milk, others with ginger extract and oil, and various other combinations expanding the flavour profiles we already adore.
Ginger and chocolate work so well together thanks to their differences. Ginger is warm and bright, with a touch of heat and floral notes that complement the deep, velvety bitterness of chocolate, making it lighter to enjoy. At the end of the day, when two things taste great separately, they’re likely to taste great together.
Here are some of our favourite ginger chocolates, including some unique multi-combinations.
Ginger and Chia 60% Dark Chocolate — Pacari
We can rarely claim a chocolate bar is healthy, and while there’s sugar still included in this one, it comes packed with nutritional powerhouses to back it up. Plus, it’s delicious. While Pacari chocolate can tend to be a bit grainy, you won’t notice it in this bar due to the chia seeds sprinkled throughout. Full of crunch, these seeds provide a wonderful texture to get your teeth into.
The ginger flavour in this dark chocolate is from dehydrated ginger, and is the perfect amount for that sweetness and flavour, without being the only thing you taste. Perfectly balanced, great for the immune system, and the ideal sweetness, give this one a try.
Ginger Biscuit 35% Blonde Chocolate — The Chocolate Society
This bar demonstrates how versatile ginger is in different types of chocolate. Using caramelised white chocolate, this blonde bar is more complex in sweetness, and when you add ginger oil into the fray, the sweetness really mimics the taste of nostalgic ginger biscuits. To really hit home the biscuity experience, biscuit pieces are littered throughout for a nice crunch and satisfying bite in every piece of chocolate.
Spice it Up 70% Dark Chocolate — Montezuma’s
Another dark chocolate, this one is slightly less sweet than the Pacari, but no less delicious. This bar contains crystallised ginger for a more concentrated ginger flavour. The chocolate is deliciously smooth, and the pieces of ginger create an excellent mouthfeel for those who love texture. Taste-wise, this bar is spicy with the ideal kick to bring home the depth of the dark chocolate flavour.
Ginger and Lime 70% Dark Chocolate — Willie’s Cacao
Ginger and lime are frequently paired together in cocktails and drinks, so it only makes sense that they would work in chocolate. We’ve already covered how lime works well with chocolate, and both lime and ginger have floral flavours that are amped up when paired together.
When mixed into the chocolate, the brightness of the lime clashes with the richness of the chocolate, and the warmth of the ginger mellows it out so it’s an extremely fresh-tasting chocolate bar, even at a 70% darkness. Also coming with crystallised ginger pieces, the chew on this one is another treat that keeps us always coming back for more.
