OQO 73% | Valrhona Chocolate

TAKING COCOA BACK TO ITS SOURCE

Valrhona is throwing the chocolate-making rulebook out the window with Oqo, the first dark couverture made with whole unhulled cocoa beans. Its naturally crispy texture, intense flavor and authentically raw marbled look open the way for all kinds of vibrant sensations.

FEWER INGREDIENTS, MORE CRUNCH

ORIGINAL : Raw, radical, virtuous, transparent and straightforward: Oqo brilliantly embodies contemporary values. It’s chocolate, but as if it had been invented today.
WHOLE : Oqo uses just three ingredients: single origin Madagascan whole beans, unrefined beet sugar and cocoa butter. It’s simple, it’s pure, and it’s completely without frills.

LIGHTLY GROUND, NOT CONCHED : By making Oqo without recourse to conching (and grinding it coarsely instead), we are getting back to cocoa’s origins and representing it in its most elementary form. Oqo has a surprisingly crunchy mouthfeel thanks to its fine pieces of shell, nibs and sugar.

AN ODE TO CREATIVITY

Oqo will delight pastry chefs and makers looking for unvarnished uniqueness. This innovation offers an all-new experience that will boost top chefs’ creativity so that they can reinvent gastronomy’s future.
Oqo lets you add texture to your creations, play with new ideas and open up different possibilities while reigniting your imagination. Give your customers the chance to experience the intriguing power of a naturally crunchy, surprising, and novelty texture.

Oqo is like a diamond. It’s rough in its original state, but fine and refined when crafted.

Romain GRZELCZYK, CHOCOLATIER & INSTRUCTOR AT L'ÉCOLE VALRHONA

Sensory Profile

MAJOR CHARACTERISTIC: Fruity
MINOR NOTE : Roasted beans
UNIQUE NOTE : Crunchy

Like the crackling sound of a fire, Oqo’s whole bean pieces take you back to cocoa’s earliest origins. It has a raw, almost mineral texture, crunchy pieces of whole beans which erupt like a shower of glittering sparks, and powerful tangy and fruity notes that give way to warm undertones of roasted beans.

Packaging

3 kg bloc - code 40981

Applications

Ideal use: coating, bars
Recommended use: molding, ice creams & sorbets

Pairings

Cranberries, dried tomatoes, almond paste, candied ginger, chilli pepper, balsamic vinegar, whiskey, grilled corn.

Tempering temperatures

This product does not meet the legal definition of chocolate because the beans include shells. For your own creations, we recommend that you use trade names such as bar/couverture with whole cocoa beans, raw cocoa, Oqo 73% and so on.

Tips from the chefs

Oqo 73% adds crunch to bonbon coatings and madeleine tips, cookies and other cakes. You can also use it make marbled bars, add texture to your pralinés and even create a new stracciatella ice cream. Last but not least, it’s suitable for decorating or layering into your plated and other desserts.