A tiny flake and a few dried seeds are your only clue to the heat hiding within Socola's new "Sriracha Chili Flying Rooster" chocolate truffles.
A small square, perhaps half an inch on any side, sits dark and simple in your view. Then you bite it. There's thick chocolate ganache as expected, but almost immediately the chili flavor hits you. It's a trick, you think. This isn't chocolate at all. It's chili fudge.
The flavor builds and your mouth warms. Soon there's no memory that you're eating chocolate at all. Barely a hint of it remains on your tongue, and it's your throat that dominates. That's where the heat lives. I've written this whole rant and the heat is still there. Noticeable. Warm. A mellow burn.
Susan Lieu, co-founder of San Francisco-based Socola Chocolatier, told SFoodie: "Everyone asked for us to do a chili (chocolate). Since we are a Vietnamese company and so is the maker of Sriracha, we experimented with the ingredient and it worked."
It's just the thing when you want spicy Vietnamese cuisine in chocolate form, or to mess with your friends. And of course if you're a chili sauce freak, these truffles may be just enough to change your view of chocolate entirely.
The new truffles were released this month and can be purchased directly on the web, at DarTealing Lounge, and Whole Foods Potrero Hill. A 4-piece box is $9.95; a 12-piece box is $24.95.
