{{Short description|Filipino hot chocolate}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}} {{Use Philippine English|date=October 2022}} {{Infobox beverage | name = Tsokolate | image = 250px | caption = | type = | origin = Philippines | color = | flavor = Chocolate | ingredients = Chocolate, milk or water, sugar | variants = ''batirol'' | related = Hot chocolate | website = }}
'''''Tsokolate''''' ({{IPA|tl|tʃoko'late|lang}} {{Respell|choh-koh-LAH-teh}}), also spelled '''''chocolate''''' is a native Filipino thick hot chocolate drink. It is made from ''tabliya'' or ''tablea'', tablets of pure ground roasted cacao beans, dissolved in water and milk. Like in Spanish and Mexican versions of hot chocolate, the drink is traditionally made in a ''tsokolatera'' and briskly mixed with a wooden baton called the ''molinillo'' (also called ''batidor'' or ''batirol''), causing the drink to be characteristically frothy. ''Tsokolate'' is typically sweetened with a bit of ''muscovado'' sugar, and has a distinctive grainy texture.<ref name="polistico">{{cite book|author =Polistico, Edgie|title =Philippine Food, Cooking, & Dining Dictionary|publisher =Anvil Publishing, Incorporated|year =2017|isbn =9786214200870|url =https://books.google.com/books?id=STSWDwAAQBAJ}}</ref><ref name="cabrera"/>
While today coffee is far more common, ''tsokolate'' is traditionally consumed at breakfast and/or ''merienda'' (afternoon snack time) as a substitute for or alongside coffee (which it predated in the country), traditionally paired with traditional ''kakanin'' delicacies or ''pandesal'' and other types of traditional Filipino pastries. It is also popular during Christmas season in the Philippines, particularly among children.<ref name="cabrera">{{cite web |last1=Cabrera |first1=Maryanne |title=sokolate (Filipino Hot Chocolate) |url=https://www.thelittleepicurean.com/2018/01/tsokolate-filipino-hot-chocolate.html |website=The Little Epicurean |date=January 27, 2018 |access-date=December 13, 2018}}</ref><ref name="kp">{{cite web |title=Tsokolate |url=https://www.kawalingpinoy.com/tsokolate/ |website=Kawaling Pinoy |date=December 8, 2014 |access-date=December 13, 2018}}</ref>
==Names== The word ''tsokolate'' itself is merely the prescribed formal Tagalog language or Filipino language spelling of both Spanish ''chocolate'' and English chocolate, with adjusted orthography to reflect a more native construction (''tso'' vs ''cho'', ''k'' vs ''c'') and the latter spelling tends to be more common.
''Tsokolate'' is also known as '''''suklati''''' in Kapampangan; '''''sikulate''''' in Maguindanao; and '''''sikwate''''' or '''''sikuwate''''' in Visayan languages. All are derived from Spanish ''chocolate'' ("chocolate"), ultimately from Nahuatl ''xocolātl''.<ref name="polistico"/>
''Tsokolate'' and these other terms may refer both to the hot chocolate drink or chocolate in general, but in breakfast and ''merienda'' contexts, the hot drink is almost always meant.
==Tableya== [[File:Tablea- The Pinoy Chocolate.jpg|thumb|''Tableya'' balls with champorado and tsokolate]] ''Tableya'' (also spelled ''tabliya'' or ''tablea'', from Spanish ''tablilla'', "tablet") are small traditionally home-made tablets of pure ground roasted cacao beans. ''Tableya'' is made by drying beans of ripe cacao fruit for two or three days. The dried beans are shelled and roasted. They are ground into a thick chocolate liquor paste that are then formed into the characteristic little discs or balls and allowed to dry.<ref name="entrep">{{cite news |title=Home-based business idea: How to make 'tablea' |url=https://www.entrepreneur.com.ph/business-ideas/homebased-business-idea-how-to-make-tablea |access-date=December 13, 2018 |work=Entrepreneur Philippines |date=December 12, 2014}}</ref><ref name="nikkei">{{cite news |last1=Sarmiento |first1=Prime |title=Filipinos' love of chocolates helps to revive cacao industry |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Life-Arts/Life/Filipinos-love-of-chocolates-helps-to-revive-cacao-industry2 |access-date=December 13, 2018 |work=Nikkei Asian Review |date=October 14, 2017}}</ref><ref name="perez">{{cite news |last1=Perez |first1=Ace June Rell S. |title=Redefining the taste of tablea |url=https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/34941 |access-date=December 13, 2018 |work=SunStar Philippines |date=October 4, 2015}}</ref> Aside from ''tsokolate'', ''tableya'' is used in a wide variety of other traditional desserts in the Philippines, most prominently in ''champorado'', a glutinous rice porridge flavored with chocolate.<ref name="entrep"/><ref name="batangas">{{cite web |title=Tablea Tsokolate or Cacao Chocolate |url=https://www.batangas-philippines.com/tablea-tsokolate.html |website=Batangas-Philippines.com |access-date=December 13, 2018 |archive-date=September 23, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923171134/http://www.batangas-philippines.com/tablea-tsokolate.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Preparation== [[File:Dumaguete Sta Monica Beach Club - Suman Mangga Tsokolate 2.jpg|thumb|''Tsokolate'' with ''suman'' rice cakes and ripe carabao mangoes]] ''Tsokolate'' is traditionally prepared by boiling water and milk in a special high-necked pitcher-shaped pot known as a ''tsokolatera'' (also ''tsokolatehan'', ''sikulatihan'', ''sikwatehan'', etc.). It is taken off from the flame once bubbles start to form and a few discs of ''tabliya'' are dropped into the liquid. ''Muscovado'' sugar and more milk or cream is also added, to taste. A special wooden baton called the ''molinillo'' (also called ''batidor'' or ''batirol'') is then inserted through the top and briskly twirled using the palms of the hands to bring the liquid to a froth. It is then poured into individual cups.<ref name="b2b">{{cite book|author =Juan, Pacita|author2 =Ramos, Josephine|author3 =Francisco, Maria Regina|title =Cacao: Bean to Bar|publisher =Anvil Publishing, Incorporated|year =2017|isbn =9789712729157|url =https://books.google.com/books?id=l_82DwAAQBAJ}}{{Dead link|date=January 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="mm">{{cite web |title=Batidor, Batirol, Molinillo, Chocolatera, atbp. |url=http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/batidor-batirol-molinillo-chocolatera-atbp |website=Market Manila |date=August 18, 2007 |access-date=December 13, 2018}}</ref><ref name="garcia">{{cite web |last1=Garcia |first1=Bianca |title=How to Make Tsokolate (Filipino Hot Chocolate)… and a Giveaway! |url=http://www.confessionsofachocoholic.com/chocolate/how-to-make-tsokolate-filipino-hot-chocolate-and-a-giveaway |website=Confessions of a Chocoholic |date=January 4, 2012 |access-date=December 13, 2018}}</ref>
Modern methods of making ''tsokolate'' can include using regular whisks, blenders, or milk frothers to achieve the same frothy consistency. Additional ingredients like cinnamon, vanilla, ''pinipig'' rice flakes, or even rum or tequila can also be added. However, using commercial cocoa powder instead of ''tabliya'' is strongly frowned upon, as it does not give the same texture or taste.<ref name="kp"/><ref name="b2b"/><ref name="garcia"/><ref name="cabrera"/> [[File:Tsokolate_de_Ylocos_Cacao_Tablea1.jpg|200px|thumbnail|right|Tsokolate de Ylocos Cacao ''tableya'', from Salcedo, Ilocos Sur]]
[[File:Camiña Balay nga Bato’s tsokolate de batirol.jpg|200px|thumbnail|right|Camiña Balay nga Bato's tsokolate de batirol with Ugoy-ugoy from Iloilo]]
==Cultural significance== ''Tsokolate'' is commonly consumed at breakfast or ''merienda'' with traditional ''kakanin'' or bread. Common pairings with ''tsokolate'' include ''pandesal'', ''puto maya'', ''puto bumbong'', ''churros'', ''ensaymada'', ''buñuelos'' (or ''cascaron''), ''suman'', ''kesong puti'', and ''bibingka''. It is also popular during Christmas season in the Philippines, particularly among children.<ref name="cabrera"/>
In the novel ''Noli Me Tangere'' (1887) by the Philippine national hero, José Rizal, the antagonist character Padre Salvi is alleged by his rival, the ''alferez'' of the ''Guardia Civil'', to calculatingly serve thick ''chocolate'' (''espeso'') for important guests and watered-down ''chocolate'' (''aguado'') for guests he deemed unimportant. According to the alferez, Salvi surreptitiously signals his servant to prepare either by saying "make a cup of ''chocolate'', eh?" or "make a cup of ''chocolate'', ah?" - "eh" and "ah" actually being short for ''espeso'' and ''aguado''. The narrator states he is unsure if this is just slander because the same story has been told about many priests, or it may be a practice of Salvi's Franciscan Order. Following Rizal, the terms "Chocolate Eh" and "Chocolate Ah" have been adopted by some establishments.<ref name="maranan">{{cite book|author=Santos-Taylor, L. Marcelline|editor =Maranan, Edgar |editor2=Maranan-Goldstein, Len|title =A Taste of Home: Pinoy Expats and Food Memories|chapter =Soul Comforts: Kapeng Barako and Tsokolate|publisher =Anvil Publishing, Incorporated|year =2017|isbn =9789712733031|url =https://books.google.com/books?id=n909DwAAQBAJ}}</ref>
==See also== {{Commons category|Tsokolate}} * Kinutil * Champorado * Chocolate industry in the Philippines * Kapeng barako * List of chocolate drinks
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
{{Filipino food}} {{Chocolate drinks}}
Category:Filipino cuisine Category:Chocolate drinks Category:Hot drinks Category:Non-alcoholic drinks Category:Christmas food