 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Visit the Travel Blogs Ad Network and the Food Blog Ad Network to advertise here. Categories...
Add me to your RSS:
Archives
|
|
|
« Le Caramel Corn: Part Deux August 3, 2005
During a birthday party the other night, the charming Parisian hostess, after snacking on some homemade chocolates that I brought, asked me the simple, yet complex question; After a few glasses of vin rouge followed by a coupe de Champagne (or two...), I'm sure I launched into a not-so-lucid explanation of the process. But it's a question I'm constantly asked and it prompted me to explain the process a bit here on my website.
Homemade Rocky Road, from The Great Book of Chocolate, Enrobed in Tempered Chocolate
If the cocoa butter rises to the surface, some people commonly think their chocolate's gotten moldy and toss it out. If you've done that, you've tossed out perfectly good, but unattractive, chocolate. If you made chicken stock and refrigerated it, would you toss it out when the fat collected on the surface? If you made a vinaigrette and the olive oil rose to the surface, would you throw it away? Questions we ponder... So why do we temper chocolate? To avoid this: 
So that's what happens to chocolate that's not properly tempered: the cocoa fat rises to the surface and "blooms", making it unappealing and unattractive. When you buy chocolate, like a candy bar, the chocolate's been tempered and it should be nice and shiny and snap when you break it. If you leave your candy bar in a warm car and later open it up, often it'll become white and grey. The heat caused your chocolate to lose it's temper. When you buy chocolate for baking, it should arrive well-tempered. But once you chop it up and melt it, the beta crystals change, the chocolate loses its temper, and you'll need to re-temper it again if you plan to use it as a coating. If you're going to cook with it, just use it in your recipe, as indicated. Pages and volumes of technical research have been written about tempering chocolate, but here are the main reasons for all you home cooks out there:
Tablets of Well-Tempered Domori Chocolate
Many professional pastry chefs and chocolatiers can instinctively tell when chocolate is perfectly tempered by looking at it or touching a smidge it to their lip. However a few years ago I was doing a demonstration tempering a brand-new chocolate and it just didn't temper. I kept stirring and stirring, but I could visually tell them those stubborn crystals wouldn't cooperate. So now I rely on a thermometer, which is foolproof. After I studied chocolate-making in Belgium and learning from the masters at Callebaut, I developed a simple 3-step method that's a snap for home cooks. All you need is an accurate chocolate thermometer, although a good digital thermometer will work. I bought one of those laser-thermometers just for fun, but there's a too-large margin-of-error and it only measures surface temperature, so mine's been retired to my kitchen cabinet.
1. The first step is melting the chocolate in a clean, dry bowl set over simmering water, to about 115° F. 2. The second step it to let it cool to the low 80°s F. I drop a good-sized chunk of solid (and tempered) chocolate in, which provides insurance by 'seeding' the melted chocolate with good beta crystals. While cooling, stir frequently. Motion equals good crystallization, aka, tempering. 3. The last step is the most important. It's bringing the chocolate up to the perfect temperature, where it's chock-full of those great beta crystals. This occurs in most dark chocolates between 88° and 91° F. 4. Remove what's left of the chunk of 'seed' chocolate, and your chocolate is dip-worthy: you can dip all the chocolates you want and all will be perfectly tempered. Don't let it get above 91° F of you'll have to begin the process all over again.
... and Happy Dipping! Comments Hi David, Posted by Melissa at August 3, 2005 6:51 AM David, I love the way you explain everything..you're so clear!! Posted by Silvana at August 3, 2005 9:06 AM I tried to temper chocolate in the winter with marble counters..NOT! Posted by Diva at August 3, 2005 9:40 AM Merci, David! You've cleared up the childhood mystery of the creepy white color in much anticipated Halloween chocolate. Not that a little discoloration ever stopped me from gobbling it... Love your blog! Posted by Anna Skinner at August 3, 2005 10:49 AM David, What a wonderful article. I remember seeing you on Bay Cafe with Joey Altman. You once mentioned in his show something along the lines..."That a true pastry chef's talent lies in his/her work with chocolate." I'll have to go out and look for your book. Spencer Posted by Spencer at August 3, 2005 5:50 PM Hi David, Great blog! Love the funny comments and I really Thanks for the great site! Posted by Vicki at August 5, 2005 1:24 AM |
|
|
Latest Entries...
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
home • my books • bio • chocolate tours • my paris • schedule • recipes • links
© 1999 - 2008 David Lebovitz, All Rights Reserved