CHOCOLATE WITH CLAES WERNERSSON

Claes Wernersson

Together with his wife, Annica, Claes Wernersson runs the Qvänum Mat & Malt restaurant just outside Kvänum, Sweden. In addition to a passion for fine food, Claes is devoted to chocolate. In fact, he has built up remarkable skills and knowledge in this area, which he is happy to share. Alongside his restaurant business, Claes gives lectures about chocolate at the Restaurant College in Grythyttan and is also a member of the UD chocolate jury founded by Leif Pagrotsky.

Chocolate in cooking

Chocolate is generally associated with desserts or simply taken as a fine alternative to other sweets.

Dark chocolate, however, is not quite as sweet. Precisely because dark chocolate does not contain as much sugar, it is ideal for use in cooking. As yet, its use is not very widespread – but it is growing, slowly but surely. For example, chocolate is an excellent accompaniment to game. A strong sauce with a little chocolate adds a whole new dimension to game dishes.

Chocolate has a very strong taste, so – as always with such ingredients – care should be taken to prevent it dominating the sauce. A little piece of really dark chocolate with a cocoa content of 70–80 % adds depth to the sauce and makes it ideal for game dishes.

However, chocolate also works well with fish and chicken – just think of Chicken Mole, a classic Mexican dish.

When using chocolate in your cooking, simply remember that chocolate is bitter, so if you combine it with other bitter ingredients, you may end up with too much of a good thing...

Good luck!
Claes Wernersson, Qvänum Mat & Malt