Is there chocolate in Tootsie Rolls?
The short answer is no. Tootsie Rolls are chocolate-flavored taffies. The ingredients in Tootsie Rolls do contain some elements of chocolate. However, chocolate is not officially an ingredient in Tootsie Rolls.
The ingredients in chocolate and Tootsie Rolls are listed below. You can see by this information that Tootsie Rolls do not have the complete ingredients of chocolate.
We’re assuming that if Tootsie Rolls did not have chocolate they would be made with milk chocolate. The FDA standards for milk chocolate are at least 10% chocolate liquor and 12% milk solids. The fats in milk chocolate can solely come from milk and cocoa butter. Tootsie Rolls are clearly not made with milk chocolate.
The cocoa and sugar contribute to the chocolate flavor that many people taste in Tootsie Rolls. Tootsie describes the flavor of its candy as “a perfectly-balanced cocoa taste, lined with a subtle, fruit-flavored undertone”. We think this is a pretty good description, but some people may argue that the fruit flavor just isn’t there.
Chocolate Ingredients
The common ingredients that are used to make chocolate are as follows:
- Chocolate Liquor – This is not an alcoholic drink. That would be chocolate liqueur. Chocolate liquor is the paste of ground nibs that come from the cocoa bean. This is the base from which chocolate is made.
- Cocoa Butter – Cocoa butter (theobroma oil) is released when the chocolate liquor (paste) is pressed. This fatty substance is not only used to make chocolate but other products such as lotions and lip balms.
- Sugar – Various types of sugar are used to make chocolate such as cane and brown.
- Lecithin – This is an emulsifier that helps bind together the ingredients that make chocolate.
- Vanilla – Vanilla is a flavoring sometimes used to mask unpleasant flavors in cheaper chocolates.
Tootsie Roll Ingredients
The ingredients of a Tootsie Roll are sugar, corn syrup, palm oil, condensed skim milk, cocoa, whey, soy lecithin, artificial and natural flavors.
The noted allergens are milk and soy.
Ingredients can change without notice. Reference the product packaging/label for the most update-to-date ingredient information.
