06/07/2022
Eat your Chocolate mindfully
1
Give yourself time to enjoy your chocolate. Don’t waste a good chocolate bar by eating it so quickly you don’t even really taste it. Take some time out of your day to sit down and mindfully enjoy each bite.
Sit down somewhere where you are comfortable and won’t be interrupted. Curl up in an armchair with some nice music playing (or in silence - whichever you prefer), or sit at your kitchen table looking out at the backyard — whatever makes you feel comfortable and safe.
2
Have a clean palate. To fully experience the chocolate’s flavour, start with a clean palate that doesn’t contain any residual flavours from your previous meal.
It’s helpful to wait a while between tasting different chocolates so that the flavours don’t mix on your palate. While waiting to try the next chocolate you can have a sip of sparkling water.
3
Take a few deep breaths and quieten your mind.
When your mind is focused only on eating the chocolate, you’ll notice things you’ve never noticed before, like the textures and variety of tastes in just one piece.
4
Pay attention to how the chocolate looks. Once your mind is quiet, turn your attention to the chocolate’s appearance. Admire its glossy exterior, and any colours or decorations it may have on it.
5
Feel the chocolate.
Run your fingers gently over the chocolate, paying attention to its texture. It may be smooth, chunky, or rough, for example.
If the chocolate feels cold, wait to eat it until it’s room temperature. The colder the chocolate is, the more difficult it will be to taste all the flavours.
6
Smell the chocolate. Hold the chocolate up to your nose and inhale deeply while closing your eyes. Cup your other hand over the chocolate as you do this so that you can really get a sense of how the chocolate smells.
If you’re eating a chocolate bar, now is the time to snap a piece off from it. This will release more of its chocolatey smell.
7
Bite into the chocolate. If it’s a truffle, bite the truffle in half.
You can use your teeth and tongue to break the chocolate into small pieces and spread them across your tongue. This is more commonly done with truffles than chocolate bars.
With a chocolate bar, you may just want to hold it to the roof of your mouth and let it melt for up to 30 seconds before moving it around your mouth.
8
Move the chocolate around your mouth. Let the chocolate sit on your tongue, then press it up to the roof of your mouth and experience the flavours as the chocolate melts. Many chocolates move through a variety of flavours as they melt.
As you move the chocolate around your mouth, pay attention to how it tastes. It may be sweet, salty, bitter, acidic, or a combination.
9
Use your nose. Inhale deeply through your nose as the chocolate melts on your tongue. As you inhale, imagine you are making space between your nose and the roof of your mouth (your palate). As you do this, you may notice different flavours, or at least stronger ones.
Inhaling in this way is called "aerating the palate" and helps stimulate your sense of smell at the back of your throat.
10
Reflect. Before taking the next bite, give yourself a moment to feel the chocolate’s effect on your body. Do you feel a little mood boost? A bit of an increased heart rate? Maybe you’re smiling because it tastes so nice!
How do you eat your chocolate?
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