What is it?
Cocoa butter is the fat extracted from cocoa beans.
INCI
Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter
Appearance
Beige chunks
Texture
Hard and brittle at room temperature—just like a good bar of chocolate. When it melts, the oil is thin and smooth, and absorbs into the skin easily.
Scent
Deliciously chocolatey! You can also buy deodorized stuff that smells like mostly nothing.
Absorbency Speed
Fast
Approximate Melting Point
34°C/93°F
Why do we use it in formulations?
Cocoa butter will help thicken recipes without adding a wax (and even solidify if used in high enough concentrations)—check out this experiment for more information. It’s wonderfully smooth, and brings its delicious chocolatey scent to projects. Yum!
Do you need it?
I’d say so! I use it all the time, and I love just taking the lid off the tub and inhaling the super delicious scent. YUM.
Refined or unrefined?
I say unrefined all the way, but if you don’t like the smell of chocolate then refined is your best bet.
Strengths
Amazing scent, smooth texture, it’s a rare brittle butter.
Weaknesses
Not everybody loves the scent (easily solved by purchasing deodorized cocoa butter).
Alternatives & Substitutions
There aren’t a lot of brittle butters out there that make good swaps; kokum butter or tucuma butter would be the best choices.
How to Work with It
Include cocoa butter in the oil phase of your products. Melt it gently in a water bath along with the rest of your ingredients.
Storage & Shelf Life
Stored somewhere cool, dark, and dry, cocoa butter should last at least two years.
Tips, Tricks, and Quirks
You can also purchase dark cocoa butter, but I’ve found that to be a bit of a novelty; I wouldn’t bother with it.
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