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Chocolate Tempering: Tips and Troubleshooting

seawakim

By seawakim
in Pastry & Baking

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asadus

asadus

Posted
Posted

You'll get different answers but since its going on the bottom, I would carefully re-warm to working temp and go ahead with it. If the chocolate was not in good temper I would start from scratch just for the practice.

 

Thanks gfron1.

When you said " I would start from scratch " does it mean I can reuse same left over chocolate, melt it and re-temper it with seeding or whatever method.

 

Can't believe it's 02:00 in the morning just came back from work turned on laptop just to check my answers.

Wanna get on top of it next thing in the morning.

asadus

asadus

Posted
Posted

Yes, I do it all the time...

 

I mean use that chocolate as the chocolate you'll take to 45º, then seed with new back down to 32º. But again, i would just warm it all back to working temp...but I'm lazy that way.

 

Thanks to Gfron1 and YetiChcolates I took the plunge and gave my rock sold left over chocolate a go to cap my mould.

Amazing result (for me).. and the chocolate came out in one go despite I sprayed my moulds with coloured cocoa butter.

 

 

 

And here is a bit show off one heart shape praline polished wit bronze shimmer powder :biggrin:

all moulds 01.jpg

  • Like 4
Darienne

Darienne

Posted
Posted

There is nothing quite like your first successful work with chocolate.  :wub:

Darienne

 

learn, learn, learn...

 

We live in hope. 

asadus

asadus

Posted
Posted

There is nothing quite like your first successful work with chocolate.  :wub:

Exactly. I had the same grin when my chocolate souffle arose at first attempt. I was on my own smiling like an idiot :blush: .

  • Like 1
AKS613

AKS613

Posted
Posted

OK. So I am going to give you the low-rent way I do it. It is Ina Garten's method and it works really well. Not sure how a microwave timer can be wrong, but anyway, she says,

 

"Place 3/4 of the chocolate in a glass bowl and place it in the microwave on high power for 30 seconds. (Don't trust your microwave timer - time it with your watch.) Stir with a rubber spatula. Put it back in the microwave for another 30 seconds and stir again. Continue to heat and stir every 30 seconds until the chocolate is just melted. Immediately, add the remaining chocolate and allow it to sit at room temperature, stirring often, until it's completely smooth. (If you need to heat it a little more, place it in the microwave for another 15 seconds at a time.)"

 

I hope this will work for you. Good luck!

RobertM

RobertM

Posted
Posted

That method can work well, you are really not taking the chocolate out of temper by slowly melting it as you are describing. The issue is that you have to be sure your "start" chocolate is in good temper.

Do yourself a big favor and practice, practice, practice tempering your chocolate....it will save you headaches in the future.

  • Like 1
alenka_m

alenka_m

Posted
Posted

Hi there. I'm having terrible trouble tempering my chocolate - I'm using it for dipping, coating, and topping.

 

Currently I use Callebaut milk and dark callets, and for some reason always have better results with the milk - is dark more difficult to temper?? Everytime I attempt to temper the chocolate, it never turns out right. I always end up with small white spots on the milk chocolate, and the dark just doesn't seem to work at all. I tried to temper some dark callets and applied it over some caramel shortbread, but it was so streaky, white and blotchy when it set. I didn't spread it, just picked up the tin and moved it around until the base was covered - is this an error? I invested in a digital thermometer, hoping that this would take out all the guesswork, as previously I have just hoped for the best! 

 

Yesterday I was dipping some truffles - melted 3/4 of the milk chocolate over a double boiler, slowly to 45C, added the remaining 1/4, brought it down to 27-28C and then heated again to 30C. However, same results when set - small white spots on the surface. I sometimes get better results when pouring the chocolate onto baking parchment and spreading to set. I seem to get fewer white splotches but they are still there nonetheless. 

 

I want to see if anyone has any advice as I don't know what I am doing wrong! Should I stir the chocolate as it cools? Or just leave it undisturbed until it reaches the lower temperature? I also read somewhere about the callets looking dull and dusty as this could affect the tempering - as far as I'm aware there is nothing wrong with the callets, they aren't old and they're stored in an airtight box. Should I try a different brand? 

 

I am about to give up - I read this morning about using candy melts as an alternative? I've always been put off by them as I steer away from artificially flavoured things and would prefer to just use real chocolate - but I'm tempted to try it as I'm losing my patience with chocolate. Does anyone use candy melts? Are they significantly easier to use? 

 

Any help is appreciated! Thanks.

pastrygirl

pastrygirl

Posted
Posted

Yes!  You should stir!!!  Agitation encourages crystallization, and when you are tempering chocolate, it is all about crystallization of the cocoa butter.  Hoping for the best with chocolate can lead to disappointment, as you have found.  Just because it is in the right temperature zone and you want it to be tempered, doesn't mean it is.  I now always test a little chocolate on a piece of parchment to make sure it is tempered before using it.  Sometimes all it needs is a good stir and a few minutes to get the crystallization going.  There are at least a few threads on tempering chocolate in Pastry & Baking, make sure to read through those.  But in a nutshell, if you are seeding, you want a few un-melted pieces left at 95F (35C? I'm fuzzy on my metric) to provide the stable crystals.  Once the chocolate has cooled to working temp, hopefully the seed will all be melted, if not you can pick it out or warm it a little more until it is smooth.  Don't be afraid to stir, and always do a test before you dip or mold a whole bunch of pieces.  Hope that helps!

Jim D.

Jim D.

Posted
Posted

But in a nutshell, if you are seeding, you want a few un-melted pieces left at 95F (35C? I'm fuzzy on my metric) to provide the stable crystals.  Once the chocolate has cooled to working temp, hopefully the seed will all be melted, if not you can pick it out or warm it a little more until it is smooth.

The amount of seed that is recommended varies hugely from one authority to another.  Some say 1/3 of the total amount (which can be a lot), some say much less.  As I am having overtempering problems as I use the chocolate, I am now leaning toward a fairly small amount of seed.  Do you have any guidelines (for me and for the OP as well)?  Like you, I always test before I start using.

 

To the OP:  I wouldn't recommend succumbing to the temptation of using candy melt/confectionary coating.  The taste is hugely different.

www.santiagochocolates.com

pastrygirl

pastrygirl

Posted
Posted

Jim, with over-crystallization, I'd recommend gently warming the chocolate to melt out some of those crystals, but not going above 95F. 

 

I don't measure my seed.  I dump in a first amount that I'm sure will melt, then take the temp and guesstimate based on how hot it is how much more to add.  I'll admit that I often have extra unmelted bits, now that I think about it, it's odd that I'm not more precise about it! 

Jim D.

Jim D.

Posted
Posted

Jim, with over-crystallization, I'd recommend gently warming the chocolate to melt out some of those crystals, but not going above 95F. 

 

I don't measure my seed.  I dump in a first amount that I'm sure will melt, then take the temp and guesstimate based on how hot it is how much more to add.  I'll admit that I often have extra unmelted bits, now that I think about it, it's odd that I'm not more precise about it! 

In the case of dark chocolate, warming helped earlier this week, but it's disturbing that I had just 6 molds to do and the thickening started after only a couple.  In the case of white (the temperamental--to me--Opalys again), it can't be warmed as much, and it got close to the point of being just a blob with no room for ganache.  I'm going to try keeping some chocolate out and warming it to melt all crystals, then cool to around 84-86 and add as the chocolate in the tempering machine gets low.  This is an idea I have read a lot about on The Chocolate Life and from other sources as well.  I have got to conquer this issue.

www.santiagochocolates.com

pastrygirl

pastrygirl

Posted
Posted

I'm going to try keeping some chocolate out and warming it to melt all crystals, then cool to around 84-86 and add as the chocolate in the tempering machine gets low.  This is an idea I have read a lot about on The Chocolate Life and from other sources as well.  I have got to conquer this issue.

 

That sounds like a good idea - basically dilute the over-crystallized chocolate with cool but untempered chocolate.  Brilliant!

  • Like 1
thenextpage

thenextpage

Posted
Posted

Hi alenka_m. If you're using chocolate that has been properly stored, then it is already tempered when it comes out of the box. With that said, it is possible to melt the chocolate for use without ever taking it out of temper. Each chocolate has an ideal tempered temperature (usually indicated somewhere on the packaging). Simply melt the chocolate at a temperature no higher than the maximum tempered temperature, and voila.

For example, if your chocolates tempered temperature is 95°F, the heat your oven to 100° then turn it off. Place your chocolate in that oven and allow it to melt (that will take some time). Once it melts, it is ready to use, and still in temper.

I use a water circulator (the kind used in sous-vide cooking) for working with tempered chocolate. I set the water bath to 95°F, and place the chocolate in a large bowl floating on top of the water. It takes some time to melt, but when it does it is perfectly in temper, and remains in that state due to constant even temperature. This is the easiest way I've found.

keychris

keychris

Posted
Posted

Chocolate held at it's working temperature will thicken over time due to beta crystal production and need the excess crystals melted out regularly unless you want to have a big thick gluggy mess ;)

 

I vaguely recall a value (I'm sure others will know it better) that 'in temper' chocolate only has a small amount of beta crystals - 2% or something small like that.

 

Sorry, a bit off-topic!

  • Like 1
pastrygirl

pastrygirl

Posted
Posted

Chocolate held at it's working temperature will thicken over time due to beta crystal production and need the excess crystals melted out regularly unless you want to have a big thick gluggy mess ;)

 

I vaguely recall a value (I'm sure others will know it better) that 'in temper' chocolate only has a small amount of beta crystals - 2% or something small like that.

 

Sorry, a bit off-topic!

 

Calelbaut recommends a tempering technique which calls for adding 1% tempered cocoa butter powder (Mycryo), so you are correct about only needing a tiny percent of beta crystals.  It is a chain reaction, and they do multiply...  http://www.callebaut.com/usen/techniques/tempering/tempering-with-mycryo

  • Like 1
Jim D.

Jim D.

Posted
Posted

Calelbaut recommends a tempering technique which calls for adding 1% tempered cocoa butter powder (Mycryo), so you are correct about only needing a tiny percent of beta crystals.  It is a chain reaction, and they do multiply...  http://www.callebaut.com/usen/techniques/tempering/tempering-with-mycryo

I sometimes use Mycryo, and it works quite well.  It does make me question (as I have written before) the great variation in the amount of seed recommended (all the way from Callebaut's 1% to others who specify as much as 1/3 of the total amount of chocolate used).  Mycryo is very convenient if you need a specific amount of chocolate tempered, for example, for a slabbed ganache.  When you use seed chocolate instead, you may need to take the extra step of weighing out the final amount of chocolate called for in the recipe.  I find that Mycryo is sometimes difficult to dissolve completely as it is not supposed to be added until the chocolate is at a fairly low temp (in the case of dark, between 93 and 96 F.); an immersion blender is perfect for this task.

  • Like 1

www.santiagochocolates.com

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