Is Bittersweet chocolate the same as semisweet?
Also to know is, can I substitute semi sweet chocolate for bittersweet chocolate?
Replace the bittersweet chocolate called for in your recipe with an equal amount of semi-sweet chocolate. Baking chocolate squares will work best, but semi-sweet chocolate chips can be used in a pinch. Just know that chocolate chips are designed to be melt-resistant, so it'll take a bit more effort to get them to melt.
Similarly, is semisweet the same as dark chocolate?
Dark chocolate is a category of chocolate that includes semisweet and bittersweet chocolate. The US FDA actually does classify dark chocolate as anything containing 35% or more cacao (liquor or butter). In practice, semisweet chocolate is typically much sweeter, and contains about 50% sugar.
Typically, semisweet chocolate has lower cacao content and is sweeter than bittersweet chocolate. However, there are no official guidelines about what can be called bittersweet and what can be called semisweet, and they both fall under the umbrella of dark chocolate.