Tempering
1. Why do we need to temper chocolate?
Real chocolate purchased from a reliable supplier is usually in perfect temper. That means that it contains stable beta crystals. However if we wish to use this chocolate to make bonbons, chocolate figurines, coated truffles or any number of other confections we must first melt the chocolate. Once we melt it these stable beta crystals are displaced and wild crystallization begins and disrupts the temper. Alpha, gamma, beta prime, beta double prime and beta crystals all form. We have melted chocolate that appears to be usable but if we pour it into a mold or attempt to dip cookies or truffles into it we will discover that as it hardens it is dull, streaky, melts in our hands and has none of the snap or mouth feel we associate with good chocolate.
We need a way to get back those stable beta crystals in sufficient quantity to give us those qualities that make chocolate so popular with almost everyone. This is what we mean by tempering.
There are three aspects to the tempering process:
Time - it takes time for beta crystals to form and multiply.
Temperature - beta crystals will only form within a narrow temperature range which is dependent upon the type and brand of chocolate.
Agitation - some form of agitation, usually stirring, is needed to properly distribute the beta crystals so they can multiply.
This important tempering process is covered in detail in volume one of the DVDs which you can find here [link] or you can investigate private lessons here [link]
Tempered chocolate:
Will not melt at room temperature
Will not melt in your hands
Will have no streaks
Will be glossy (shine will only occur when it hardens against a shiny surface such as a polycarbonate mold)
Will snap cleanly when broken
Will shrink appropriately and release from molds easily
Should be stored at room temperature which is considered to be between ???
Most chocolate problems can be traced to improperly tempered chocolate. So if you are experiencing any of the following problems recheck the temper of your chocolate:
Chocolate is dull and streaky
Chocolate has white spots
Melts in your hands or turns liquid at room temperature
Will not easily release from molds
Bends before it breaks
Whether you temper by hand or by machine it is imperative that you test the temper of your chocolate. Remember that temperature is only one aspect of the tempering process. Chocolate which is at the correct temperature may still not be properly tempered.
2. How can I test to see if my chocolate is properly tempered?
To test for proper temper dip a small spatula or even a dinner knife into the chocolate until about 2 inches are coated. Allow the excess to drip back into the container. Prop the knife or spatula so it can dry without touching any surfaces. Leave it at room temperature for five minutes if you are using dark chocolate. Now examine it. It should be even in colour with no streaks or spots, glossy but not shiny and when touched does not smear or leave chocolate on your finger. If it meets all these conditions then your chocolate is properly tempered. To learn more about testing for proper temper consider purchasing DVD volume one.
3. Once I have tempered my chocolate properly how long will it stay in temper?
If you can keep your chocolate at its working temperature it will stay in temper for many hours. However over time it will become thicker as the beta crystals continue to multiply. Once your chocolate is in temper you can reheat it to keep it liquid enough for molding. Just make sure you don't let it get above the working temperature.
4. If my chocolate drops below the working temperature do I have to start tempering it over again?
No! Once your chocolate is in temper you have dissolved the unstable crystals and you have a predominance of stable beta crystals in your chocolate. As your chocolate cools, it will become thicker as the beta crystals grow and multiply. As it thickens you can warm it again either by heating with the heat gun or microwave, or by adding warm untempered chocolate. The beta crystals in the tempered chocolate will act as a seed to temper the newly added untempered chocolate.
You will be able at this point to heat it a degree or two higher than the standard working temperature in order to make it thin enough to work, without driving off all the beta crystals. Just be careful that you don't exceed about 34 degrees for dark chocolate, 32 degrees for milk chocolate and about 31 degrees for white chocolate.
5. Can chocolate be tempered more than once?
Yes. If you have chocolate left over after a session of molding you can re-temper it. Or if you have chocolate that you improperly tempered and it is streaky or spotty you do not need to discard it. Heat and cool this used chocolate just as you did the first time to bring it into temper but add about 10% new chocolate for best results. This will not work however for chocolate that has been contaminated by dipping things into it. Leftover chocolate used for dipping is best reused in a ganache or a bark.
6. My finished chocolate has tiny white spots. What could cause this?
That’s what we call bloom - if it is crispy to touch it’s sugar bloom, if oily it’s fat bloom.
Sugar bloom is usually the result of leaving chocolate in the refrigerator then when you take it out condensation forms on the surface. The sugar in the chocolate dissolves in the condensed water and as the water evaporates, the sugar comes out of solution, resulting in crystals on the surface of the chocolate.
Fat bloom can result from poor temper or a fatty center that is leaking oil through the shell.
7. I am having trouble tempering white chocolate. Do you have any suggestions?
White chocolate contains a lot of milk fat along with cocoa butter. Milk fat crystallizes differently than cocoa butter and makes tempering white and milk chocolate more challenging than tempering dark chocolate. White chocolate is more susceptible to burning than dark chocolate due to the milk solids in it. The temperatures involved in tempering white and milk chocolate are in general 2 to 4 degrees C lower than those for dark chocolate.
When molding with white chocolate, make sure you test the temper of your chocolate and don't start molding until you are sure the chocolate is in temper. While you generally want a nice thin shell when you are molding with dark chocolate, with white chocolate a thicker shell will give a better result, especially if you are using thinner, more liquid fillings. Cool in fridge just long enough to set, don't leave in fridge for extended periods as this seems to encourage condensation and results in a dull finish.
8. We have a small marble slab for tempering. I was wondering if tempering on a stainless steel table would be possible.
A stainless table doesn't have quite the same thermal mass as marble. So cooling is not going to be as effective as marble or granite.
9. I have some chocolate that has developed sugar bloom. Can I still temper it?
Yes. But you will need to add a decent percentage of fresh, unbloomed chocolate to it to ensure you get a quality product.
10. I am having great difficulty tempering white chocolate. I have been infusing my white chocolate with peanut butter. Could that be the problem?
When you add other fats to chocolate (i.e. peanut butter) you change the eutectics of the fat in the cocoa butter - that may explain the problems you are having.
11. I am thinking of buying a small tempering machine. Can you recommend any brands?
One of the little Revolation units or the AMC would be worth investigating.
12. How do I temper cocoa butter?
Use the same techniques you would use for chocolate, melt to around 40 to 45º C, cool to about 27 degrees then heat back up to 30 to 32º C.
Real chocolate purchased from a reliable supplier is usually in perfect temper. That means that it contains stable beta crystals. However if we wish to use this chocolate to make bonbons, chocolate figurines, coated truffles or any number of other confections we must first melt the chocolate. Once we melt it these stable beta crystals are displaced and wild crystallization begins and disrupts the temper. Alpha, gamma, beta prime, beta double prime and beta crystals all form. We have melted chocolate that appears to be usable but if we pour it into a mold or attempt to dip cookies or truffles into it we will discover that as it hardens it is dull, streaky, melts in our hands and has none of the snap or mouth feel we associate with good chocolate.
We need a way to get back those stable beta crystals in sufficient quantity to give us those qualities that make chocolate so popular with almost everyone. This is what we mean by tempering.
There are three aspects to the tempering process:
Time - it takes time for beta crystals to form and multiply.
Temperature - beta crystals will only form within a narrow temperature range which is dependent upon the type and brand of chocolate.
Agitation - some form of agitation, usually stirring, is needed to properly distribute the beta crystals so they can multiply.
This important tempering process is covered in detail in volume one of the DVDs which you can find here [link] or you can investigate private lessons here [link]
Tempered chocolate:
Will not melt at room temperature
Will not melt in your hands
Will have no streaks
Will be glossy (shine will only occur when it hardens against a shiny surface such as a polycarbonate mold)
Will snap cleanly when broken
Will shrink appropriately and release from molds easily
Should be stored at room temperature which is considered to be between ???
Most chocolate problems can be traced to improperly tempered chocolate. So if you are experiencing any of the following problems recheck the temper of your chocolate:
Chocolate is dull and streaky
Chocolate has white spots
Melts in your hands or turns liquid at room temperature
Will not easily release from molds
Bends before it breaks
Whether you temper by hand or by machine it is imperative that you test the temper of your chocolate. Remember that temperature is only one aspect of the tempering process. Chocolate which is at the correct temperature may still not be properly tempered.
2. How can I test to see if my chocolate is properly tempered?
To test for proper temper dip a small spatula or even a dinner knife into the chocolate until about 2 inches are coated. Allow the excess to drip back into the container. Prop the knife or spatula so it can dry without touching any surfaces. Leave it at room temperature for five minutes if you are using dark chocolate. Now examine it. It should be even in colour with no streaks or spots, glossy but not shiny and when touched does not smear or leave chocolate on your finger. If it meets all these conditions then your chocolate is properly tempered. To learn more about testing for proper temper consider purchasing DVD volume one.
3. Once I have tempered my chocolate properly how long will it stay in temper?
If you can keep your chocolate at its working temperature it will stay in temper for many hours. However over time it will become thicker as the beta crystals continue to multiply. Once your chocolate is in temper you can reheat it to keep it liquid enough for molding. Just make sure you don't let it get above the working temperature.
4. If my chocolate drops below the working temperature do I have to start tempering it over again?
No! Once your chocolate is in temper you have dissolved the unstable crystals and you have a predominance of stable beta crystals in your chocolate. As your chocolate cools, it will become thicker as the beta crystals grow and multiply. As it thickens you can warm it again either by heating with the heat gun or microwave, or by adding warm untempered chocolate. The beta crystals in the tempered chocolate will act as a seed to temper the newly added untempered chocolate.
You will be able at this point to heat it a degree or two higher than the standard working temperature in order to make it thin enough to work, without driving off all the beta crystals. Just be careful that you don't exceed about 34 degrees for dark chocolate, 32 degrees for milk chocolate and about 31 degrees for white chocolate.
5. Can chocolate be tempered more than once?
Yes. If you have chocolate left over after a session of molding you can re-temper it. Or if you have chocolate that you improperly tempered and it is streaky or spotty you do not need to discard it. Heat and cool this used chocolate just as you did the first time to bring it into temper but add about 10% new chocolate for best results. This will not work however for chocolate that has been contaminated by dipping things into it. Leftover chocolate used for dipping is best reused in a ganache or a bark.
6. My finished chocolate has tiny white spots. What could cause this?
That’s what we call bloom - if it is crispy to touch it’s sugar bloom, if oily it’s fat bloom.
Sugar bloom is usually the result of leaving chocolate in the refrigerator then when you take it out condensation forms on the surface. The sugar in the chocolate dissolves in the condensed water and as the water evaporates, the sugar comes out of solution, resulting in crystals on the surface of the chocolate.
Fat bloom can result from poor temper or a fatty center that is leaking oil through the shell.
7. I am having trouble tempering white chocolate. Do you have any suggestions?
White chocolate contains a lot of milk fat along with cocoa butter. Milk fat crystallizes differently than cocoa butter and makes tempering white and milk chocolate more challenging than tempering dark chocolate. White chocolate is more susceptible to burning than dark chocolate due to the milk solids in it. The temperatures involved in tempering white and milk chocolate are in general 2 to 4 degrees C lower than those for dark chocolate.
When molding with white chocolate, make sure you test the temper of your chocolate and don't start molding until you are sure the chocolate is in temper. While you generally want a nice thin shell when you are molding with dark chocolate, with white chocolate a thicker shell will give a better result, especially if you are using thinner, more liquid fillings. Cool in fridge just long enough to set, don't leave in fridge for extended periods as this seems to encourage condensation and results in a dull finish.
8. We have a small marble slab for tempering. I was wondering if tempering on a stainless steel table would be possible.
A stainless table doesn't have quite the same thermal mass as marble. So cooling is not going to be as effective as marble or granite.
9. I have some chocolate that has developed sugar bloom. Can I still temper it?
Yes. But you will need to add a decent percentage of fresh, unbloomed chocolate to it to ensure you get a quality product.
10. I am having great difficulty tempering white chocolate. I have been infusing my white chocolate with peanut butter. Could that be the problem?
When you add other fats to chocolate (i.e. peanut butter) you change the eutectics of the fat in the cocoa butter - that may explain the problems you are having.
11. I am thinking of buying a small tempering machine. Can you recommend any brands?
One of the little Revolation units or the AMC would be worth investigating.
12. How do I temper cocoa butter?
Use the same techniques you would use for chocolate, melt to around 40 to 45º C, cool to about 27 degrees then heat back up to 30 to 32º C.