Jim B.
Novice
Newbie
Posts: 118
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Post by Jim B. on Mar 8, 2020 8:34:54 GMT -5
Resty, I saw your other post regarding the purchase of a ball mill or conch. What are you using now?
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Post by resty on Mar 8, 2020 9:02:51 GMT -5
Resty, I saw your other post regarding the purchase of a ball mill or conch. What are you using now? Hi, I have melanger (premier). I grinding like 9-10 hours. In the first days its the texture is ok.
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Post by Sebastian on Mar 8, 2020 9:26:29 GMT -5
Really hard to say mate - there's only two things i can think of that would make it gritty (and by gritty - i mean you're feeling hard solid particulates on your tongue): 1) You've somehow introduced water into it 2) You didn't grind your solids as finely as you thought, and are now detecting particles that were there all along If these are what's causing it, lecithin's not going to help. Sorry i can't be more specific - troubleshooting from a distance w/o seeing the process or the product has it's limitations
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Post by resty on Mar 8, 2020 11:10:01 GMT -5
Really hard to say mate - there's only two things i can think of that would make it gritty (and by gritty - i mean you're feeling hard solid particulates on your tongue): 1) You've somehow introduced water into it 2) You didn't grind your solids as finely as you thought, and are now detecting particles that were there all along If these are what's causing it, lecithin's not going to help. Sorry i can't be more specific - troubleshooting from a distance w/o seeing the process or the product has it's limitations Yes, its really difficult via internet. Am i right that lechitin helps the chocolate get creamy?
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Post by Sebastian on Mar 8, 2020 12:46:08 GMT -5
Lecithin makes chocolate more fluid (reduces viscosity). You can achieve the same fluidity (viscosity) by adding more cocoa butter instead, but that's a very expensive way to reduce viscosity. "creamy" is one of those terms that's so very subjective, almost everyone has their own definition of what it means. Makes it difficult to align on a lexicon unless you've got physical samples in front of both parties to say 'see - when i taste this - this is what creamy means' - - - without that, you're almost assuredly going to be using the same words (creamy) but talking about two very different things.
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Post by resty on Mar 8, 2020 16:35:48 GMT -5
Lecithin makes chocolate more fluid (reduces viscosity). You can achieve the same fluidity (viscosity) by adding more cocoa butter instead, but that's a very expensive way to reduce viscosity. "creamy" is one of those terms that's so very subjective, almost everyone has their own definition of what it means. Makes it difficult to align on a lexicon unless you've got physical samples in front of both parties to say 'see - when i taste this - this is what creamy means' - - - without that, you're almost assuredly going to be using the same words (creamy) but talking about two very different things. Ok, Thank you very much for your help!
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Post by Ben on Mar 11, 2020 10:23:38 GMT -5
I found Sebastian's #2 answer above to be an issue in the past, so now, I don't consider a batch to be done until I've tested a sample on a grindometer and let a small sample solidify and test it with my tongue.
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Post by resty on Mar 13, 2020 2:59:03 GMT -5
I found Sebastian's #2 answer above to be an issue in the past, so now, I don't consider a batch to be done until I've tested a sample on a grindometer and let a small sample solidify and test it with my tongue. Its gritty a littel bit but its Dissolves on the tongue. probebly, its from the butter. If i grind it more its solve the problem?
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Post by Ben on Mar 13, 2020 12:33:47 GMT -5
I'd guess it's sugar rather than cocoa butter. The cocoa butter won't be gritty when it re-solidifies. And yes, grinding more will make it smooth.
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Post by justas on Apr 22, 2020 5:48:04 GMT -5
Hello guys,
I have a similar issue with chocolate spread, hope it is ok i am writing it here.
So i have an order to make something like gianduja/nuttela type spread, but instead of sugar i was asked to use honey. I got to a formula there i do like the flavour, but the texture is what concerns me the most. After i pour the spread out of the melanger and it sets, it starts to get gritty, the crystals melts on the tongue. Now i know honey contains around 18% of water and those two doesn't mix, at least in big amounts. But maybe some of you have had a success making something like this and will be able to help me. My formula is: Hazelnuts 32% Cocoa beans 19.4% Skimmed milk powder 11% Clarified butter 7% Cocoa butter 5% Lecithin 0.6% +Honey 25%
I do grind all the ingredients for roughly 12hours and then add the honey, just to mix it in. It will solidify within a day or so and after two days the crystals are there, as well it will get more stiff everyday. So, do you think it is possible to get rid of those crystals or it's just the way it will be with honey?
Thank you for any kind of help and keep well!
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Post by lyndon on May 1, 2020 18:16:51 GMT -5
I find adding about 1% lecithin to my spread helps, which is a cocoa bean, sunflower seed and canola oil mix.
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tszp
Neophyte
Posts: 3
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Post by tszp on Apr 17, 2024 8:56:39 GMT -5
Hello all,
I know this thread is a few years old but I’m hoping it’s still active and some of you may be able to help. I made a Nutella type chocolate and hazelnut spread in a grinder too and after a few days, lots of tiny little lumps appear - maybe what others here refer to as gritty - these little lumps melt in the mouth but you can feel them.
I have a similar ratio than ajustas who shared earlier.
I feel like it’s the cocoa butter solidifying after a few days, again these lumps melt so they’re not nuts or sugar. Any idea how to avoid this from happening?
I put the cocoa butter in solid form into the grinder thinking the heat will melt them and the grinding will incorporate them.
Should I try to melt the cocoa butter before adding to my grinder and/or is there something I should add to the recipe to avoid this, such as soy or sunflower lecithin?
I hope to hear from you guys! Thanks
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Post by Chip on Apr 17, 2024 10:11:51 GMT -5
Hi tszp! I would melt the cocoa butter before putting it in the grinder How long are you grinding? More grinding gives you a smoother outcome and better incorporates all the ingredients. Does it thicken up after sitting?
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Post by Ben on Apr 17, 2024 11:15:33 GMT -5
I used to have this problem with my chocolate hazelnut spread. I found that cooling the spread to around 80F while stirring it and then cooling it in my cooling cabinet solved this problem. I think what is happening is that some of the cocoa butter was separating and solidifying separately from the rest of the spread. You're essentially tempering the spread.
These days, however, I refine my hazelnuts and chocolate separately and then combine later using an immersion blender. Since the hazelnuts are at room temperature when mixing, the resulting spread is already below 80F so I can just jar and cool it right away. Since doing it this way, I've never had a problem with separation.
On a side note, as long as the cocoa butter melts at some point, it shouldn't matter to the final product. Melting it beforehand as Chip suggests would make things easier at the beginning of the refining process and probably be easier on your grinder.
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tszp
Neophyte
Posts: 3
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Post by tszp on Apr 17, 2024 17:51:54 GMT -5
Thank you so much for your responses Ben and Chip, it’s really useful.
I will try adding melted cocoa butter next time and see what happens.
Ben, so the idea is that, once you’ve taken your spread out of the grinder, you bring the temperature of the mix down to below 80F while stirring so that the cocoa butter doesn’t have a chance to separate before cooling? Is that right?
What temperature is your cooling cabinet?
Also, I’ve read that mixing melted cocoa butter with a liquid oil before adding to the grinder should help, have any of you tried that?
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