Sticking to the Mold

[BritoJ]

Hi All,

I'm new to Egullet and chocolate making as well!! I could really use some help!

Last week I tried some Cocoa butter spray on my new polycarbonate mold, I sprayed and waited to dry, once dried I applyed the tempered chocolate and at that time everything was fine... I added the filling and covered but once it was already to take out of the mold I wasn't able to do so... it got stuck...lol

Once of the bonbons came out and it looked good even though there was no color from the cocoa butter, I had sprayed a red and yellow color! I didn't know what to do only half of the molds came out, total disaster...I hope you have an answer for this problem!!!

ps. I read the cocoa butter spray label after and asked to warm up the can in warm water before applying to the mold...would that make a difference???

Cheers,

[gap]

Hi BritoJ.

There are a few possible reasons that this could occur. The first is to check that everything was in temper to start with. You do need to warm the coloured cocoa butter to approx 33-34 degrees before applying it. Also, as you mentioned, your chocolate should be in temper when making the shells. If all this is done correctly, then before filling the cavities, you should be able to remove the chocolate shells by hand from the mould - they should just slide out. If they can't do that then something wasn't in temper.

If they release easily, you can put them back in the mould and insert your filling. The trick here is to make sure the filling isn't too warm or else it will take the chocolate shells out of temper. Then just back them off and away you go.

Hopefully that will give you a few areas to check first

Cheers

[alanamoana]

if your chocolate was too cool (but still in temper) it wouldn't be warm enough to melt/adhere to the cocoa butter spray you first put on the mold. at least, this is the case with transfer sheets and i'm pretty sure it would be the same for colored cocoa butter in molds.

[John DePaula]

I'd recommend taking a look through the (rather long but useful) Chocolates with that Showroom Finish thread.

[sote23]

yes, as was mentioned above. See if you can pull the shells out with your fingers. It should pop right out. That way if they don't come out, then you shouldn't fill them. Redo the mold again to make the shell, check again if they pop out and fill as usual.

[Lior]

Also, if the first layer is too thin, they won't come out. Doing a thin second layer works beautifully, but always check if you can get them out with your finger before filling.

[Truffle Guy]

A couple things to consider.

1. Make sure the molds are at room temperature or even slightly warmer so the chocolate doesn't harden too quickly.

2. Once you fill the shells, let them sit long enough to get a thick enough shell (but not a thick shell) or the chocolate will not come out of the mold.

3. What really made a difference for me when having this issue was to create cool "zones". After I pour the chocolate out and turn the mold upside down I immediately move it to an area where it is about 10 degrees cooler than the room (under an air vent). After the shell hardens (usually about 10-15 minutes) I move it to the fridge.

Before I followed these steps, I had quite a few of the same problems. Since then, I've had maybe 30 shells not come out in the last 30,000.

[ejw50]

As a last resort, you can freeze your molds. They probably pop out after that (and a lot of banging). To reduce sugar bloom after this, you use a dehumidifier or work in a dry environment. And cover with plastic wrap immediately. They won't be as nice, but they'll probably be good enough for personal use.

But, everybody else is correct, it's best to improve the technique so you don't have the problem at all.

Edited October 29, 2008 by ejw50 (log)

[BritoJ]

First of all I want to thank all of you for your comments, I have been reading EGullet for a couple months now and found a lot of fantastic information, as for my chocolate skills...well... maybe lack there of, but I am amazed by all the things you can create with chocolate, I am taking the Ecole Chocolatier program and learning all the basic of chocolate and the industry as well, but I would like to get more practice since I find easier to learn by seeing and doing it!

John DePaula- thanks for that link it was really helpful.

Once I put the tempered chocolate on the mold (on top of the color cocoa butter) it seemed like the the tempered chocolate melted the cocoa butter away!!!

I wanted to ask you all another question, since I am still learning I would like to get more practical experience and am looking for classes that I can learn more or I would like to do a co-op work with a chocolatier that has a business and would be able to teach me more for exchange of free labor (anywhere in North America)!!! I live in Calgary Canada and around here we have a couple chocolatiers but none of them do the really artisy chocolate work, I am excited to learn more about chocolate but feel frustrated because around here I don't have a place to learn!

TTYL

[stscam]

Brand new, never-used polycarbonate molds can be "seasoned" (kind of like an iron pan).

When we get new molds we first clean them with a damp towel. Then we pour plain dark tempered chocolate into them. When the choc is set up (give it 24hrs at room temp), we de-mold. Sometimes the pieces stick, and may require freezing, banging, or even careful washing. The result is a microscopic layer of cocoa butter (i.e., "grease") that remains on the surface of the cavities.

This usually (but not always) makes de-molding a snap. The next time you clean the mold, do so gently with warm water and a clean, soft towel. Carefully wipe the inside of each cavity so that water droplets don't dry and form blotches. Such a cleaning technique does not seem to wipe away the cocoa butter coating.

We've found that brushing luster dusts into a cavity can aggravate sticking issues. We paint our molds with a brush, rather than use an air brush or spray can. It's possible that the color could atomize as it comes out of the airbrush, hitting the polycarbonate almost dry. This might also aggravate sticking.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Steve Smith

[Edward J]

One thing I have noticed with sticking is that the cavities only stick where my hand has been. If I hold the form in my hand and my fingers touch the underside of a cavity for alonger than a few seconds, usually it will cause sticking.

The best way to avoid this is to hold the mold with your fingers on the ribs or edges of the mold....

hope this helps