Dutch-process cocoa

Cocoa powder treated with an alkali to reduce its acidity, giving a darker color and a smoother, milder chocolate flavor.

Dutch-process cocoa: two small bowls of cocoa powder side by side: dark reddish-brown Dutch-process cocoa and lighter natural cocoa, a
  • Baking ingredients and additives
  • Netherlands (process)

Also called: alkalized cocoa, Dutch cocoa

Alkalizing, developed in the Netherlands in the nineteenth century, neutralizes much of cocoa's natural acidity. Because of this, Dutch-process cocoa does not react with baking soda the way natural cocoa does, so recipes using it usually rely on baking powder.

Swapping one cocoa for the other can change how a cake rises, browns and tastes. In recipes with little or no chemical leavening, such as brownies, sauces and hot chocolate, they are usually interchangeable.

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Sources

Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.

  1. Dutch-process cocoa (Q898835), Wikidata