英国学生科学读本 第85期:可可与巧克力(1)

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　　You have all, no doubt, drunk a cup of cocoa, and you have also eaten part of a cocoanut. 毫无疑问, 你们肯定都喝过可可并且吃过巧克力。

　　Perhaps you thought that cocoa was made from the cocoa-nut, but the two things are really quite different from each other. 也许你会认为, 可可就是由椰子制成, 实际上, 它们有着很大区别。

　　The cocoa-nut is the fruit of a tall palm-tree; 椰子是一种高大的棕榈科树木结出的果实,

　　but the cocoa which we drink is prepared from the seeds of an evergreen¹ tree whose proper name is the cacao-tree. 而我们平常喝的可可则来自名为可可树的常绿树,

　　We ought to speak of "cacao" and not cocoa;   我们现在都叫它cocoa（可可），

　　but the former name has been changed into the latter, because this is easier to pronounce, I suppose. 也许是出于发音的方便。

　　The cacao-tree needs a warm climate, and grows best in the West Indies and in Central and South America. 可可树喜欢温暖的环境, 西印度群岛、中美及南美是它们的理想居所。

　　It is about the size of a cherry-tree, and the leaves are of much the same shape. 可可树的高度及叶子形状都与樱桃树相仿,

　　The flowers are white, and grow in clusters. 花朵为白色, 成簇生长。

　　As each flower drops off, its place is taken by a brown pod, which grows to the size of a short thick cucumber. 花朵凋谢之后, 原来的位置上就会长出一个棕色的果荚, 随后继续发育, 直到大小跟一个粗短的黄瓜相似。

　　When ripe, the pods are gathered and broken open. 成熟之后, 人们把所有的果荚都收集起来敲碎。

　　Each pod contains about fifty brown seeds, or "cocoa-beans, " as they are called. 每个果荚里面大概含有五十个棕色种子, 也就是人们所说的“可可豆”。

　　In preparing cocoa, these seeds are first dried, and then roasted and crushed. 在制作可可时, 人们首先将这些种子晒干, 然后烘烤并碾碎。

　　Each seed has a thin, hard husk, which is removed after the crushing. 每颗种子都带有一个很薄的硬壳, 种子被碾碎之后, 这层硬壳也就脱落了下来,

　　The crushed kernels³ are called cocoa-nibs.  而粉碎的果仁则被称作可可粒。

　　About one-half of the kernel² is made of a kind of oil or fat, called "cocoa-butter, " which is often used for making candles and soap. 果仁中有一半成分都是油脂, 即“可可脂”, 它们经常用于制造蜡烛与香皂。

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