18.4 Chocolate

18.4 Chocolate

Quick Answer: Choose chocolate by type and cocoa %, melt and temper (or seed) so cocoa butter sets in stable Form V crystals, avoid moisture that causes seize or sugar bloom, and balance ganache cream-to-chocolate ratios for the texture you need.

Task M-41 is prepare chocolate. Even one exam question can decide whether you know tempering versus simple melting, bloom causes, and ganache behaviour.

Chocolate Types and Cocoa Percentage

Dark (bittersweet/semisweet) chocolate contains cocoa solids and cocoa butter, sugar, and usually emulsifier (lecithin) and vanilla—no milk solids (or only trace). Higher cocoa percentage means more cocoa mass/butter relative to sugar—more bitterness and usually firmer snap when tempered.

Milk chocolate adds milk solids and typically more sugar; it is softer and more sensitive to heat.

White chocolate is cocoa butter + sugar + milk solids with no non-fat cocoa solids—it is ivory coloured. It still needs tempering for shine and snap because cocoa butter crystallizes the same way.

Couverture is professional chocolate with higher cocoa butter content for fluid tempering and thin shells. Compound coatings replace some or all cocoa butter with other vegetable fats—they may not need classical tempering but do not behave or taste like true chocolate.

Store chocolate cool, dry, and odour-free—ideally near 12–20°C, away from the danger-zone confusion of perishable dairy but also away from steam and fridge condensation.

Why Tempering Matters

Cocoa butter can crystallize in several forms. Tempering encourages stable Form V (beta) crystals so finished chocolate:

• Sets with a glossy surface
• Snaps cleanly
• Shrinks slightly to release from moulds
• Resists soft, blotchy fat bloom longer in proper storage

Untempered or poorly tempered chocolate sets dull, streaky, soft, or speckled and sticks in moulds.

Tempering Methods and Seeding

All methods follow the same idea: melt to erase unstable crystals, cool to encourage stable seeds, then bring to a working temperature.

Typical working ranges (always verify with your chocolate’s manufacturer curve):

Seeding method (common in kitchens): melt two-thirds of the chocolate gently over a bain-marie or in short microwave bursts—never scorch and never let steam drip in. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining one-third of finely chopped tempered chocolate as seed. Stir until smooth and the mass reaches working temperature. If too cool and thick, warm gently a degree or two without exceeding the work range.

Tabling spreads melted chocolate on a marble slab to cool while agitating, then returns it to the bowl. Machine tempering automates the curve. Test temper with a smear on parchment—it should set glossy in a few minutes at room temperature without streaks.

Moisture, Seizing, and Bloom

A drop of water can seize melted chocolate into a stiff, grainy paste. Keep tools dry. If seized for ganache you may recover by adding enough liquid to form an emulsion; for tempering shells, start over with dry chocolate.

Fat bloom is greyish streaks or blotches from unstable cocoa butter crystals or fat migration (warm storage, poor temper). Chocolate may still be safe to remelt and retemper for cooking.

Sugar bloom is a rough, white, sandy surface from moisture dissolving sugar then recrystallizing (humid storage, cold chocolate sweating in warm air). Texture feels gritty.

Ganache

Ganache emulsifies chopped chocolate with hot cream. Basic method: heat cream to a simmer, pour over chopped chocolate, rest briefly, then stir from the centre outward until glossy. Butter may be added for sheen. Ratios by weight guide texture:

Milk and white chocolates need adjusted ratios (often more chocolate) because they contain more sugar and milk solids. Cool ganache to the right stage for pouring, spreading, or whipping. Whipped ganache is aerated for lighter fillings—do not overwhip or it can break.

Hold dairy ganache refrigerated. For service glazes, warm only to fluid—not so hot that it breaks the emulsion or melts the cake icing underneath.

Moulding and Finishing

Polished, dry moulds at cool room temperature. Ladle tempered chocolate, tap to release air bubbles, invert to empty for thin shells, or fill solid for bars. Scrape rims clean. Chill briefly to set, then unmould—proper temper releases with a shine. Soft, stuck pieces mean bad temper or warm moulds.

Brush moulds with coloured cocoa butter décor before filling for professional shells. Keep water away from the tempering station; separate raw egg work from chocolate finishing to avoid contamination of ready-to-eat décor.

Exam Focus

Know dark / milk / white composition, why tempering creates snap and gloss, how seeding introduces stable crystals, the difference between fat and sugar bloom, and that ganache ratio drives firmness. Untempered melted chocolate is fine inside a baked brownie; it is not fine for shiny moulded bonbons.