gap
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Post by gap on Oct 25, 2016 20:44:10 GMT -5
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 22, 2016 5:59:31 GMT -5
You are correct. It will, with enough time, over temper in a melting tank. You just hit it with a heat gun/hairdryer to raise the temperature a little, stir it and you can keep working.
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 21, 2016 0:59:24 GMT -5
Your procedure is correct. After step 6, most people will let a skin form on the filling before backing off the moulds with chocolate. That may take a few hours or overnight depending on the filling.
As Thomas mentions, a chocolate melter makes things easier. It is not a requirement: it is possible to do your volumes in a plastic bowl and use a heat gun to regulate the temperature, but it is tricky if you're not well versed in the techniques of moulding because you have to move at a good pace and trying to keep things clean is harder under this setup. Also, it is easier keeping large amounts of chocolate (say 3-4kg) in temper than small amounts (say 1kg).
I don't know what your budget is and if it is possible for you to attend a short course on moulded chocolates. It was many years ago for me now, but having someone show me tempering first hand and tricks/tips for moulding (even how to hold the mould, how to hold the scraper, what angle to hold the scraper versus mould etc) was invaluable when I tried to do it at home.
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 18, 2016 20:39:22 GMT -5
I have made one without baffles/discriminator for home use. Mine is just PVC tubes I drop cracked beans in the top, they fall at 45 degrees to a T-intersection. Down go the nibs, up and across and then down into a bucket goes the shell. The vacuum is sucking air out of the bucket. It is a very simple setup ($30 to make) but does an OK job. It is definitely not optimised but still has an OK recovery rate. I think something to "bounce" the cracked beans off would help as they fall to better separate the nibs/shell and I do need to clean out the vacuum filter after each use. But when all is said and done, it works well for home use.
If I was doing larger amounts (for profits) I would sieve the cracked beans first so that shell and nibs were about the same size and then dial the airflow into the specific sizes for more effective winnowing.
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 18, 2016 20:33:04 GMT -5
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 13, 2016 1:52:27 GMT -5
This website is one option and there are others - it's about finding what works for you. Explore a little on The Chocolate Life as well if you haven't already.
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gap
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Posts: 390
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Post by gap on Sept 13, 2016 1:22:34 GMT -5
I'm by no means an expert in this area, but I'll offer my opinion and others can jump in with their experiences or if they think I'm wrong.
I'd hazard a guess that it'll be tough to establish a direct relationship with a grower if you're only ordering 50-100kg. Often they deal in container loads.
So that means you'll probably need some sort of middleman/broker. Your amounts are larger than "retail" ordering on this website, so you should qualify for the "Wholesale Store" bean ordering from Chocolate Alchemy (there is a menu link just under the title banner on this page). There are also other brokers/middlemen out there - it just depends what beans they stock versus what you want.
Unfortunately delivery to Australia is expensive - you'll need to factor that into the cost of beans. There are a number of other bean to bar producers in Australia . . . I don't know if it would be possible to purchase in tandem with one or more of them? (Delivery costs/kg of beans tend to be less the more you order).
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 13, 2016 0:07:00 GMT -5
What do you mean by "bulk"? Are you talking 50kg or a container load?
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gap
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Post by gap on Sept 13, 2016 0:04:59 GMT -5
It really depends on how much you want to produce and how much you want to spend :-)
Can you give us an indication?
Roasting can be done in an oven or with high end (expensive) roasters Winnowing can be done with a DIY unit, or a unit you buy here on Chocolate Alchemy or an (expensive) bought machine Refining can be done in a wet grinder or with dedicated (expensive) roller-refiners Conching usually requires an (expensive) dedicated conche, but some of the benefits of conching can be achieved using a wet grinder mentioned above Tempering can be done by hand for smaller amounts, table-top machines or larger standalone machines
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gap
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Post by gap on Aug 29, 2016 17:41:26 GMT -5
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gap
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Post by gap on Aug 16, 2016 16:38:25 GMT -5
If you move onto roasting beans yourself, you can do it in an oven at home (fan-forced oven is best with perforated baking trays. Try to keep the beans 1-2 deep on the tray). Your Champion juicer is great for cracking the beans after roasting - it's what I use. And you can winnow easily by putting the cracked beans into a wide shallow bowl and (from a distance) using a hairdryer to gently blow away the shell. It takes about 10 minutes to do 1kg, but the upside is it's very cheap (just do it outside - it's very messy as well) :-)
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gap
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Post by gap on Aug 15, 2016 20:08:57 GMT -5
Over-tempering means there is nothing wrong with your chocolate - it just needs to be heated to melt some of the crystals that have formed and it will go back to normal viscosity.
If your chocolate has absorbed moisture - either from the humid air or from ingredients that have a high moisture content, then you have a chocolate with too much moisture. This cannot be changed by melting the chocolate to a higher temperature. It will always have too much moisture in it and will always be too thick. Adding lecithin (0.5% by weight) will help "bind" some of the moisture and make the chocolate more fluid.
If you are making chocolate in a humid environment, the chocolate can absorb moisture from the air. Maybe if the humidity is too high, there is a limit on whether or not you can make chocolate (I don't know, just posing the question)?
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gap
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Post by gap on Aug 15, 2016 20:00:11 GMT -5
1. I don't know the exact models you're looking at, but I would guess the Spectra 11 is the same as the Santha Wet Grinder. Maybe slightly different models, but doing the same thing. You may also want to look at a Premier Wonder Grinder. Cheaper and, IMHO, a better machine. Alternatively, look up Indi Chocolate which sells what I think are re-conditioned Premier Wonder Grinders (they call them Chocolate Grinders) which are better again (USD 250 from memory from Indi Chocolate which is based in the US).
2. Essentially, refining in a grinder is basically breaking apart all the particles (cocoa and sugar) which makes them smaller sized particles. At 18-20 microns in size, most people can't feel the particles anymore and the chocolate becomes smooth. This may take 24+ hours in a grinder to achieve. There are other things happening as well, but I think this speaks to your texture question.
3. Yes - in step 4 you say you added pectin. I'm not sure why? Chocolate generally does not have pectin added as an ingredient.
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gap
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Post by gap on Aug 14, 2016 3:50:35 GMT -5
Yes - lecithin will help if moisture has been absorbed. As Thomas said, if you have overcrystallisation, you can heat up the chocolate and it will thin out. If it has absorbed moisture, it will not thin out.
You mentioend your weather was humid - this leads me to guess it may be moisture being absorbed by the chocolate (which is common with white chocolate).
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gap
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Post by gap on Aug 11, 2016 17:31:51 GMT -5
I haven't used coconut milk powder before, so I looked it up on Google. I checked two brands - one was 50% fat and the other was 60% fat.
Do you know what % fat content your coconut milk powder was? Maybe that's your issue given most whole milk powder is ~26-28% fat content. If your coconut milk powder has approx. double the fat content of the milk powder you normally use, then you suddenly have a lot more non-cocoa butter fat in your chocolate which can interfere with tempering.
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