Post by chrisg on Jul 9, 2016 13:38:56 GMT -5
This post sort of follows on from my earlier "Tempering fails again and again" but I've started a new thread as I've noticed something a bit odd.
I made a batch of 75% dark, 75% cocoa nibs and 25% sugar. I gave this a go for no other reason than I was low on cocoa butter and wanted some chocolate. Plus I wanted to try out my new chocolate tempering thermometer and making this batch gave me a reason to do that.
So the first temper failed. But read on because something a bit odd happened.
The temperature slowly dropped towards the low eighties. One thing I think I've learned since my last thread is that this needs to happen a bit faster as chocolate can and will set at higher temperatures given enough time. The chocolate started to get thicker and thicker and I realised that this temper was doomed unless the temperature dropped a bit quicker. So I stood outside in the cool evening air and gently stirred while keeping an eye on the temperature. The chocolate started to set at around 82F and then... it was at 83F. A few minutes later and feeling a bit cooler as dusk began it read .... 84F. In the end it set into a thick paste at around 85F. Odd.
Half an hour later I started again and stood outside in the even cooler air gently stirring as the chocolate fell to 80F. More gentle stirring over warm water brought it back to 88F and I poured it. An hour later it was set into perfect bars.
Despite it being a bit too dark and intense for me I've nibble away at the pile. It was hit with friends. They weren't just being polite, they came back for seconds and thirds and made comments about it being as good as the best bars in the local big shops. It seems they liked it more than I did!
So after "tempering fails again and again" I've now had a strange rising temperature during which the chocolate actually set. Then I had what I assume is a text book temper.
I'm curious if anyone else has noticed a premature setting with a temperature rise?