Dubai Chocolate, a sweet and delightful snack from the Middle East, is currently trending on social media. Its popularity has spurred local culinary entrepreneurs to participate in its production and marketing. What is the halal threshold for LPH LPPOM? Do consumers need to seek BPJPH-certified products based on MUI fatwa standards?
Sweet treats always capture the world's attention. Dubai Chocolate is one of the latest sweet treats to go viral. Not only does it have the flavor of a savory snack typical of Middle Eastern countries, but it also boasts an alluring appearance and unique ways to eat it. According to CNN News, this chocolate was first created by Fix Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai in late 2023 and became incredibly popular after being promoted by influencers on social media.
Fix Dessert Chocolatier sells a variety of products with fun names like Butter to Be Safe Than Salty, Mind Your Own Buiscoff, and Cant Get Knafeh of It, but Cant Get Knafeh of It is the most famous. Dubai Chocolate Cannot Get Knafeh is a combination of thick 72% dark chocolate and crunchy kunafa with a soft pistachio filling, topped with chocolate splashes or colorful splashes.
The packaging is also very colorful, adding to the curiosity. The way to consume this Dubai chocolate is also unique. Before the first bite, this thick chocolate is manually split into two parts, creating a sound and a unique taste experience.
Dubai Chocolate, originally a popular treat, was only available in Middle Eastern countries. Therefore, those who wanted to try it had to order it through online shopping platforms until it arrived in their destination. It was not uncommon for some to have to wait in line for their order, as it was not sold in Asia but rather in Europe and other continents.
Indonesian entrepreneurs understand this potential, especially as they approach the Christmas and New Year holidays. Dubai Chocolate has inspired a variety of local products, including miniature Dubai Chocolates made from typical Indonesian plantation chocolate, molten chocolate dessert boxes topped with kunafa pistachios and matcha cream, Dubai Chocolate donuts, Dubai Chocolate cromboloni, and beverages like Dubai Chocolate milk tea. The challenge for Dubai Chocolate fans is adjusting the high calorie count, especially for locally made products, to the sweetness acceptable to Indonesians. According to the US Dubai Chocolate Bar page, a 40-gram bar of Dubai Chocolate contains 210 calories, with carbohydrates being the primary component, approximately 50%. According to the RRI News page, every 100 grams of Dubai Chocolate contains 38 grams of fat, 39 grams of sugar, and approximately 538 calories. For comparison, one bar of Dubai Chocolate has the same calorie content as two to three servings of Nasi Padang. By increasing the proportion of dark chocolate as a source of antioxidants and pistachios as a source of vitamins and minerals, Dubai Chocolate can become a good source of nutrition. Dubai Chocolate can be made your own and adapted to your needs, such as a gluten-free diet version using mokaf flour for the kunafa dough, a dairy-free vegan version, and even pistachio filling can be minimized or eliminated for consumers with nut allergies.
Raw materials and manufacturing processes
According to the Drizzle and Drip page, Dubai Chocolate can be made with high-quality covering chocolate that melts quickly at low temperatures (30-45°C). This chocolate is made from a mixture of cocoa mass (cocoa bean solids) and cocoa butter (cocoa fat), resulting in a glossy and crunchy texture after softening. Kunafa Pistachio Chocolate Filling is made with pistachio cream and fried kataifi. The pistachio cream is made by mixing 500 grams of pistachios with two tablespoons of tahini, which helps smooth the cream until it becomes a thick paste. Alternatively, 80-100 grams of melted white chocolate can be added to the dough.
Kataifi is easily found in markets and resembles vermicelli noodles. Kataifi is cut into approximately 1 cm pieces and pan-fried in two tablespoons of butter until golden brown and crispy. It is then mixed with 60-80 ml of pistachio cream until a thick, textured filling is achieved. Melted chocolate is poured into a silicone mold until evenly distributed throughout. A small amount of filling is left as the base chocolate and stored in the refrigerator until hardened. Next, it is filled with kunafa pistachios and topped with a layer of melted chocolate until the mold is complete, then returned to the refrigerator until hardened and ready to eat. Dubai chocolate can be enhanced with splashes of chocolate or innovative toppings.
Halal
Dubai chocolate available on the market is not necessarily halal for Muslims. Chocolate, as its primary ingredient, is made from cocoa beans produced by the cocoa plant (Theobroma cacao, L.), which are physically processed using alkali. The key to chocolate processing lies in the use of other ingredients, such as emulsifiers, flavorings, and sugar. Chocolate flavored with rum and prohibited animal emulsifiers is not considered halal.
Sugar, a sweetener and preservative, appears harmless because it is typically derived from sugarcane juice. Sugar is produced through extraction, purification, evaporation, crystallization, centrifugation, and drying. Sugar purification is a key step in halal certification, and activated carbon or ion exchange resins are typically used as filters, which can be derived from animal-derived materials.
Activated carbon can be derived from plants, coal, chemicals, or animal bones. In ion exchange resins, gelatin, used as a dispersant, needs to be considered, as it may be derived from animal bones. Furthermore, if microbial products are used in sugar production, it is important to ensure that the medium used is halal and not contaminated by impurities.
Kunafa Pistachio, a classic example of Dubai chocolate, is a blend of pistachios, tahini, and kataifi. Tahini is ground sesame seeds, sometimes mixed with garlic or olive oil. Kataifi is a dough made of wheat flour, cornstarch, olive oil, salt, and water, cooked to a crispy consistency that creates a vermicelli-like texture.
During the cooking phase of kunafa, butter is typically used. Essentially, butter is a water-in-oil emulsion that requires an emulsifier for proper mixing. Commonly used emulsifiers are mono- or di-glyceride compounds derived from the hydrolysis of fatty compounds. If derived from animal fat, it can be lard or halal animal fat, which is not slaughtered according to Islamic law and is not permitted for Muslims to consume. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the animal fat used has clear halal status. If derived from plants, care must be taken to use fat hydrolyzing agents to convert it into glyceride compounds. These compounds can be derived from prohibited animal enzymes, such as porcine pancreatic lipase produced by pig pancreas. Wheat flour, made from wheat, has clear halal status. However, it is fortified during its production to increase its vitamin and mineral content. Common fortifiers include iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), vitamin B1, vitamin B2, and folic acid. These vitamin fortifiers can be produced through bioconversion processes or chemical synthesis. Bioconversion processes use microorganisms grown in a growth medium that requires carbon and nitrogen sources. The growth medium can be derived from either halal animals or animals that have not been slaughtered according to Islamic law.
Other fortifiers, such as the amino acid L-cysteine, are also commonly used as a wheat gluten softener. L-cysteine can be derived from human hair, animal fur, and microbial products. L-cysteine derived from human hair is clearly illegal. This is based on MUI Fatwa No. 2/MUNAS VI/MUI/2000 regarding the use of prohibited body parts. L-cysteine derived from animal fur requires further research. While wool can be removed from sheep while they are still alive, removing feathers from poultry causes them pain, so they must be slaughtered first, and this slaughter must comply with Islamic law.
Corn starch can be produced through a physical process using water and chemicals, or through a spontaneous fermentation process using tapai yeast or lactic acid bacteria. Tapai yeast and lactic acid bacteria are microbial products and therefore require complex investigations involving microbial cultures, culture media, purification materials, auxiliary materials, etc.
Other materials such as coloring, flavoring, preservatives, stabilizers and toppings can be used in Dubai chocolate innovations. With this explanation, Dubai chocolate lovers must be patient enough to enjoy Dubai chocolate sold in various shopping malls in Indonesia and abroad.
Today, several bakeries and restaurants in Indonesia are halal-certified and sell Dubai chocolate products. If you want to try making your own Dubai chocolate, be sure to check the halal label on the packaging to ensure the ingredients are halal.