Cacao, Diaspora, and Secrecy

Sephardic Jews and the Early Global Circulation of Chocolate (16th-18th Centuries)

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46661/meldar.12249

Keywords:

Sephardic Jews, history of chocolate, transatlantic trade, crypto-judaism, Sephardic diaspora, New Spain

Abstract

This article examines the neglected role played by Sephardic Jews in the early history of chocolate and the transatlantic cacao trade between the 16th and 18th centuries. After 1492, Sephardic communities became key actors in the circulation of cacao between the Americas and Europe. In New Spain, conversos incorporated chocolate into their clandestine religious life, while their commercial networks helped structure early trade routes between the colonies and European markets. These transnational links facilitated both the circulation of the product and the diffusion of new modes of consumption. The article also highlights the case of Bayonne, where Jewish families played a decisive role in introducing chocolate. This study argues that the global history of cacao cannot be fully understood without considering the mobility, adaptability, and economic networks of Sephardic Jews in the early modern period.

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Author Biography

Hélène Jawhara Piñer, Universidad de Tours

Hélène Jawhara Piñer is a PhD in Medieval History and the History of Food. She has been awarded by the Broome & Allen Fellowship from the American Sephardi Federation in 2018, dedicated to recognizing impressive academic accomplishments and service on behalf of the Sephardic community, as well as encouraging continued excellence in the field of Sephardi Studies. As a research associate of the Research Center CESR (UMR7323 of the CNRS) and of the CoReMa program research, her research interests are the medieval culinary history of Spain through inter and multiculturalism with a special focus on the Jewish culinary heritage written in Arabic. Her conference presentations include “Reflections on the Jewish heritage according to the Kitāb al- ṭabīẖ” (Association Diwan: Casa de Velázquez of Madrid, 2015);  “Jewish cuisine in old cookbooks of the Iberian Peninsula”, “Jews and Muslims at the Table: Between coexistence and differentiation: state of affairs and reflections on the culinary practices of Jews and Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula and in Sicily from the 12th to the 15th century”, “Between similarities and differentiations: Eggplant among Jews and Muslims practices in the Iberian Peninsula from the 12th to the 15th centuries” (International Conferences at the IEHCA of Tours on Food&History and Food&Studies, 2016, 2017, 2018); and “The hidden Jewish culinary heritage of the Iberian Peninsula through a manuscript of the 13th century. Examples of the provenance of some recipes in Venezuelan and Colombian cuisine” (Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies, 2017).  In 2018 she gave talks and lectures both at Bar Ilán University (Israel) about «El patrimonio culinario judío de la Península Ibérica a través de un manuscrito del siglo XIII. Ejemplos de la pervivencia de recetas en la cocina de los sefardíes de España y de Marruecos » (in collaboration with the Stali Institute and the CSIC), and for the International Congress organized by the CTHS in Paris, talking about « Évolutions et transmission du patrimoine culinaire de l'Espagne à travers les réceptaires anciens : le cas de la cuisine juive ». In July 2019, she attended the 1st Congress of Jewish Studies in Strasbourg (France) with a proposal entitled «L’aubergine et les Juifs, à travers les livres de cuisine anciens de la Péninsule Ibérique écrits en arabe du XIIe au XVe siècle ». Her recipes have appeared in the Sephardi World Weekly, Tablet Magazine, The Forward, and S&P Central’s Newsletter. She attended «The Great Big Jewish Food Fest" (May 2020) as a presenter for an historical-cooking demonstration. She spearheads the culinary live shows “Sephardic Culinary History with chef Hélène Jawhara Piñer”, 13 sessions promoted by the American Sephardi Federation & The Center of Jewish History. Dr. Jawhara-Piñer is currently writing an academic book entitled Jews, Food and Spain: The Real Culinary History from the 12th Century Onwards, and a cookbook entitled Sephardi: Cooking the History. Recipes of the Jews, from the Thirteenth Century Onwards. They will be published with Academic Studies Press for Spring 2021.

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Published

2025-12-15

How to Cite

Jawhara Piñer, H. (2025). Cacao, Diaspora, and Secrecy: Sephardic Jews and the Early Global Circulation of Chocolate (16th-18th Centuries). Meldar: International Journal of Sephardic Studies , (6), 123–136. https://doi.org/10.46661/meldar.12249

Issue

No. 6 (2025)

Section

Articles

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