Ganache... Batch sizes

[Anthony C]

Hi there,

 

When making molded bonbons, I use about 220-240g of ganache for each mold of 32 bonbons. Normally I make between 3 and 12 molds of each type of bonbon in each production run, therefore I usually make between 650g and 2.8kg of ganache. I have just received an order that means I will be producing batches of 32 trays of each flavour of bonbon. This equates to about 7.5kg of ganache for each flavour. I am a bit concerned about making batches this large (mixing, handling, dosing etc), so will probably make 2 smaller batches per flavour, but was wondering if anyone out there made large volumes of ganache and if there are any issues. Maybe 7.5kg isn't really that large and it's not an issue.

 

Any insights much appreciated   

[Jim D.]

I have never made that much ganache at one time, but the only consideration I can think of is the consistency of the finished ganache and how long it stays at that consistency.  In other words, how much can you pipe before it gets too viscous to get out of a piping bag and be level in the cavities?  If it's a quite fluid ganache, you would have lots of time.  Given the time it takes to prep for and mix a ganache, I would do everything I could to make it only once.  It might be quite possible to make it all at once, pipe half of it, keeping the other half warm, then pipe the remainder.  Of course it's also possible to let the second half cool completely, then reheat it, but that can be tricky, and I have had reheated ganache separate more than once.

[Anthony C]

Cheers Jim, you have highlighted some of my concerns there. One of the ganaches is fig based and always thickens up pretty quickly so I think I will opt for the 2 preps with that one at least, rather than trying to do it all in one go... It's just more prep time of course.

 

I am not usually one for reheating ganaches, though I know people do. Have never had one separate yet, but have probably only tried it 5 or 6 times. I tend to make what I need and use it all.

 

One of my other concerns was homogeneity of the ganache. As I mix all mine by hand, it's easy to see and feel that they are well mixed when there is a small amount... The larger it gets the more difficult I find it. I suppose I could always use a blender 🤔

[pastrygirl]

Do you find the 2.8 kg batches to be approaching difficult to handle in any way?  I think 2 batches of 3.75 kg isn't that much of a stretch from there.

 

I usually make 1 -2 kg of ganache at a time and routinely freeze, thaw, and re-melt the leftovers without much issue.  2 kg isn't even that big a bowl, I think 4 kg would still be very do-able by hand.  8 kg, maybe, though that would be a real arm work-out.  Do you have a strong immersion blender?

[Jim D.]

3 hours ago, Anthony C said:

Cheers Jim, you have highlighted some of my concerns there. One of the ganaches is fig based and always thickens up pretty quickly so I think I will opt for the 2 preps with that one at least, rather than trying to do it all in one go... It's just more prep time of course.

 

I am not usually one for reheating ganaches, though I know people do. Have never had one separate yet, but have probably only tried it 5 or 6 times. I tend to make what I need and use it all.

 

One of my other concerns was homogeneity of the ganache. As I mix all mine by hand, it's easy to see and feel that they are well mixed when there is a small amount... The larger it gets the more difficult I find it. I suppose I could always use a blender 🤔

 

I agree about the fig ganache.  I also make one and would probably not make a huge amount at a time.  It's difficult enough to pipe when it's freshly made.

 

I second the idea of a strong immersion blender.  Especially in a ganache that includes butter, I wouldn't be without one.  I am impressed that you make your ganaches by hand.  I much prefer doing that, since the blender tends to raise the temp of the ganache and thus increase wait time to get it to a pipeable state.

 

The separation of ganache when reheating applies mostly to white chocolate based recipes.  It's easy enough to get it to come back together, but still is a pain.  If I have medium to large amounts of leftover ganache, I always vacuum-seal and freeze it.

[Anthony C]

4 hours ago, pastrygirl said:

Do you find the 2.8 kg batches to be approaching difficult to handle in any way?  I think 2 batches of 3.75 kg isn't that much of a stretch from there.

 

I usually make 1 -2 kg of ganache at a time and routinely freeze, thaw, and re-melt the leftovers without much issue.  2 kg isn't even that big a bowl, I think 4 kg would still be very do-able by hand.  8 kg, maybe, though that would be a real arm work-out.  Do you have a strong immersion blender?

Up to about 3.5 kilos is OK for me to handle. Haven't really tried anything bigger than that yet. I have some huge piping bags that I can get about 2 kilos of ganache in, but if i fill them then I get serious arm ache by the time I finish the bag 😂

 

I have an immersion blender that I use on a couple of ganaches... fig and banana... or i find they are a bit fibery (is fibery even a word?) Don't think it is that strong though, so maybe need to invest in a better one if I am going to be making big batches 👍

[Anthony C]

2 hours ago, Jim D. said:

 

I agree about the fig ganache.  I also make one and would probably not make a huge amount at a time.  It's difficult enough to pipe when it's freshly made.

 

I second the idea of a strong immersion blender.  Especially in a ganache that includes butter, I wouldn't be without one.  I am impressed that you make your ganaches by hand.  I much prefer doing that, since the blender tends to raise the temp of the ganache and thus increase wait time to get it to a pipeable state.

 

The separation of ganache when reheating applies mostly to white chocolate based recipes.  It's easy enough to get it to come back together, but still is a pain.  If I have medium to large amounts of leftover ganache, I always vacuum-seal and freeze it.

As I am that fussy ex-Scientist, all my ganache recipes are optimised to make enough for 1 tray, then I just multiply up. I very rarely have more than about 20g of ganache left even if I make enough for 12 trays, so I don't tend to freeze any. Except when I mess up and make enough for 10 trays when I only have 6 or 7 trays to fill, which has happened more times than it should 😂