|
Post by justengaged on Jul 16, 2007 13:08:36 GMT -5
Hello, I'm new here and I have a recurring problem when I try to temper my chocolate. I'm working at home using the seeding technique with small batches (1/2lb) of milk chocolate. Once I have brought the temp down and have agitated it, I test it and it is tempered. At this point, the choco is kind of thick so I am unable to work with it long enough to pour into my molds. So...I put it back on the double boiler and heat it up slowly to 88F-90F. I now have a great flow with the choco, but when I go to test it again, it is not tempered.
How can I avoid this? Am I heating it up too much? I need the chocolate to stay liquid enough to pour several molds. Is my batch too small? Please help! I"m about to buy a tempering machine if I can't figure this out!
|
|
josh
Novice
Posts: 56
|
Post by josh on Jul 18, 2007 14:20:16 GMT -5
Yooo,
Try sugaralchemy's turbo tempering tech avaliable in the forum for such small batches. Advice, scrap seeding, super-scrap a machine and temper yourself, its as simple as up down up. I saw a farmer the other day do it just using a concrete slab and the sun! You can do it! Look under the archives here as to the three correct temps (depends on the type of chocolate milk lower final temp, dark higher ie. 90.2 or something or maybe just the opposite, I can never remember, look it up). I use a double boiler (gas) and another pot with ice water to bring it down for small batches. The benifits are, instant temper, speed and if you mess up just do it agian, takes about 3 min. TURBO & Gods speed!
P.S. Congrats or Sorry!
|
|
|
Post by Alchemist on Jul 19, 2007 14:17:07 GMT -5
You are getting the chocolate too hot again, especially for a milk chocolate. I would not even take a dark chocolate that dark.
I would heating it just enough for flow. I would expect 80-82 F would do. If it is taking more heat than that to flow, you might need to look at other factors; is the recipe good (is this chocolate you made or purchased?), is there moisture in there? Is your thermometer accurate? Those kind of items.
Start off taking it no higher than 82 F and see how that goes.
|
|
|
Post by Sebastian on Jul 21, 2007 10:42:46 GMT -5
More details please. How hot is your chocolate initlally (should be at somewhere say between 110-120F). You're seeding the chocolate to bring the temperature down - are you absolutely, positively certain your seed is in temper (where did you get it/make it from)? How do you know it's in/out of temper? You don't indicate the temperature that you bring your chocolate down to, but say that it's tested and 'in temper' - my very strong suspicion is that it's really not in temper at this point, but you've have 3 different types of crystals present, only 1 of which you want to keep. If you're using the seed method and if you're working with tempered seed, depending on the type of milk chocolate you have you should add sufficient seed to cool it down to perhaps the 85F region - although this can vary by a few degrees on either side depending on the specific formulation of the milk chocolate you're working with.
Also, don't forget that tempering isn't a yes/no situation - there are degrees of temper, and that tempering doesn't end with you pouring your chocolate into the mould - how you cool and treat it post demoulding are very important as well!
|
|