Is There a Difference Between Hot Chocolate and Hot Cocoa? (Yes There Is!)

It is the season when people begin to consume all kinds of hot beverages, including hot chocolate and hot coco. I drink hot cocoa year round as an alternative to coffee, but for others they only drink it during the Christmas/Winter time. While doing research for a new hot coco recipe, I remembered I call hot cocoa hot chocolate. This isn’t right, but I’m someone who uses the names interchangeably for the same beverage: Hot cocoa!

If you are like me, then you probably want to know the difference between the two drinks. There are many posts online talking about the difference between the two drinks (Such as ) so this post is not really new, revolutionary news. Yet, it is truly important if you are looking for a recipe with certain ingredients in it.

Hot cocoa is made from cocoa powder. On the other hand, hot chocolate is made from an actual bar of chocolate. No matter which drink you want to make, both contain cocoa powder and also contain some sort of sugar. There are variations of both, cocoa for an example can have sugar infused with vanilla beans. Hot chocolate can be made with chocolate bars with flavors in it, such as peppermint. Yet, both need to be prepared different and stored differently.

Hot cocoa’s ingredients needs an air tight lid and stored away from any moisture. The bars of chocolate for hot chocolate needs to be stored somewhere cool so the bar won’t melt. As for the preparation, hot cocoa is easier to prepare than hot chocolate. Hot cocoa needs a warm liquid, such as milk or water heated in the microwave, to dissolve the power mixture in. As for Hot chocolate, the bar of chocolate needs to be melted and then stored into the warm milk or water.

Both drinks are great options for the holiday season. I prefer hot cocoa because of the ease of storing it (No refrigerator required!) and the ease of preparation. (Heat the milk, stir in the mix, then drink) I also prefer it over hot chocolate because many chocolate bars have ingredients that I am allergic to. Buying or creating a hot cocoa mix from scratch is the best way for me to avoid exposing myself to my allergens. Even though I’m a fan of hot cocoa, I do like hot chocolate. If I find a bar of chocolate without my allergens, I like to make it. To me, hot chocolate is always thicker and, depending on the chocolate bar I use, has better flavors than hot cocoa. Especially if I use a peppermint chocolate bar!

In closing, I always suggest anyone interested in drinking hot cocoa and hot chocolate, but don’t know which one they will enjoy more, to try both. Not everyone has the same allergens that I do (Thank goodness!) so someone may love hot chocolate more than cocoa. Just make sure you dedicate some time to make hot chocolate. It is easy to accedently make the chocolate burn, so take the time to do research before trying. Search for recipes and watch tutorials on how to melt chocolate properly. If you don’t have the time to research or actually make hot chocolate, then hot cocoa will be the best way to enjoy a warm, chocolate drink this winter holiday season!

Well, that’s all for now! Thank you for reading!