JoNorvelleWalker

I'll second that, Thermoworks' magnetic boot is really nice.

But if the problem were water wouldn't the chocolate still be seized when I heated and cooled by Teo's method? I have read that there is such a thing as over-tempered chocolate but I have not found much about it.

I don't believe so. I've seen no condensation anywhere near the chocolate. Any way to test? The weather has been damp but I have an hygrometer and I have been running the air conditioner. Right now the relative humidity is 49.

You told me it was this: https://www.cacao-barry.com/en-OC/chocolate-couverture-cocoa/chd-p64exbg/extra-bitter-guayaquil Here were my results tonight: About what I was expecting actually. The bars unmolded easily and had nice snap. No finger prints. But there was no question about tapping out air bubbles, the chocolate was too thick. It was rather like molding playdough. I had to abuse the spatula to force chocolate in the mold. And by the time I filled one mold the rest of the chocolate had solidified in the bowl (this was at 31). Same result as yesterday. Didn't help that my hands had cramped. Reminded me of stirring polenta. So at 31 by Teo's method I have beautifully fluid chocolate that is not in temper, and by this method at the same 31 temperature I have solid chocolate. Amazing the difference four degrees will make. There must be a solution. Thanks again to both of you for all the help.

Sweetzels, milk, and peanut butter. I blame @gfweb

Passes the temper test but the chocolate looks too thick for molding? Certainly too thick for ladling into molds. I'll try anyway and report back.

Apparently not. I stepped out to the store and when I returned I had lovely fluid chocolate at 30.3. I stirred between thirty seconds and a minute but it flunked the temper test. I stirred again for a few minutes but still no success. I'm letting the bowl cool down. Not sure yet how far.

Teo thank you so much for the timely help! This is dark chocolate. I'll cool to 31 and see what happens.

The chocolate is now melted. I've been thinking though...if a piece of chocolate is sitting on the counter at 27 it is solid, not melted. Why should I be surprised that the chocolate in my bowl at 27 is likewise solid? Earlier in the thread @teonzo suggested I might try a two step tempering method instead of three: https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157239-build-your-own-chocolate-tempering-machine/?do=findComment&comment=2170021 Perhaps I'll try cooling to 29 and test the temper. (By the way, I reset my meter to Celsius.)

I don't know why I didn't think of Eat Your Books. Mine found 51 black cardamom recipes, one or two of which are even curries. One of the odder black cardamom recipes was Bugialli's Alkermes of Florence.

This is testing my temper. I may have been cooling too low. After I wrote my last post I melted the chocolate at 47 and let it cool to 25. It is now a solid lump. I'll go remelt the chocolate again and cool to 27 this time. In the videos it looks so easy. Would adding cocoa butter be of any help?

34.5C wasn't going anywhere fast. I set the bowl back up to 50C and I'll see what it looks like in the morning. Or much more likely, afternoon.

Short answer, with the bowl set for 34.5 (I'm translating to degrees Canadian here) the edges of the chocolate mass are melting. But the middle of the lump was still around 31 last time I looked. To back up here was the setup this afternoon: This is 600 grams of chocolate. The rest of the bag I vacuumed sealed in 500 gram aliquots. With the bowl set for 50C the chocolate melted readily. It never had to get warmer than 47C. However it took forever for the melted chocolate to cool down to 25C. I dared not try an ice bath because I did not want to risk seizing the chocolate. In this case "forever" was about two hours. The chocolate was fluid at 25C but I'm pretty sure too thick for molding. A dab on freezer paper refrigerated for about five minutes was shiny, crisp, and lovely. But as I stirred and stirred with the bowl set for 32C the mass of chocolate got more solid, not more fluid. I may keep the bowl at 34.5C overnight to see what transpires. Unfortunately I suspect I may have to melt the whole thing down and start over. If so, what should I do differently? I'm trying alcohol to help. I resisted the urge to add cocoa butter. Edit: the kitchen was 20C at 45% relative humidity.

Help! Without detailing the whole procedure, my chocolate is at about 89F 32C and is almost solid. I can't mold it, I would be hard pressed to cut it. The sample I tested was beautiful with a nice snap. I am increasing the heat. My guess is that it is over tempered. Should I add some cocoa butter?

I bought black cardamom...so far I have not found a recipe.

Two more slices for you or @liuzhou

What's that that looks like corn?

Philistine. Rice russets. I put my russets through the ricer then scrape them through a tamis. Incorporate warm milk, then butter. Lots of butter. But milk first. Or Herve This will haunt you.

And I saw Sweetzels in Shoprite this afternoon!

Vij's at Home is featured in this month's book display at our library with the theme of Asian cooking. I'm pretty sure I've read it, but I'll double check to make sure. Could be I am confusing it with Vij's. (They could have made them different colors.) Last weekend we dined at an Indian restaurant in New Jersey's little India, before stopping for Kwality ice cream. My granddaughter and I had lamb vindaloo. There were potatoes so the vindaloo may not have been authentic. (She is not a fan of potatoes in curry.) However the leftovers made a mighty fine meal for me when served with saffron rice. My son had a goat meat onion thickened curry, and my grandson and daughter-in-law had two different chicken curries. When I prepare my poor attempts at Indian curry I never include meat, though I may serve grilled meat as a separate dish. Japanese curry is a different story. Lovely topic, @David Ross

As much as I love nuts.com (a shipment arriving in a few hours), try porcini from parmashop.com... https://www.parmashop.com/english/gourmet/valtaro-porcini-mushrooms-and-other-parma-delights/valtaro-porcini-special-g-dried-mushrooms.html

It's not just Philadelphia. This afternoon I found myself with no bread for my work sandwich so in dire hunger I stopped by the local Wawa for a hoagie. Spiced wafers were prominently on display. I would not have given spiced wafers second thought were it not for this thread. Our area is north Jersey, if barely, and the cultural focus is much more on New York City. But sometimes you gotta have a Wawa.

Once again amazon has saved me from purchasing multiple kindle copies. Nonetheless I found a few.

I never said the Kwality flavors contain no eggs. My son said the ice cream didn't contain eggs. And the sign said the cakes did not contain eggs. If you told me what I ate was rich with golden yolks I'd just as soon believe you. Probably @mgaretz is right. If I ever visit Kwality again I should politely ask. Worst they could do is throw me out and tell me never to come back.

Obviously a redesign is in order.