Are you here to perfect your hot chocolate bombs? Was the chocolate soft, not shining, and just crumbled the last time you made it? Or you just want to know what exactly chocolate tempering is? When it comes to making chocolate-based products, especially candies, tempering is the most important yet delicate part of the process. Without the proper knowledge to execute it, you won’t be making glossy chocolates that snap.
What is the principle behind tempering chocolate?
Some people think melting chocolate and tempering chocolate are the same thing. But there is a fine line between them.
When we melt chocolate, the heat makes its fat molecules (cocoa butter) separate. Melting chocolate contains only a small amount of cocoa butter. But it is largely responsible for the structure, and appearance of the final product. Without proper tempering, the molecules or crystals move in different ways, and form in different sizes, and they usually result in undesirable characteristics such as:
- Uneven texture
- “Bad snap”
- Dull finish
- With white coating
- Melts easily
The idea of tempering is manipulating how the crystals behave by controlling the temperature and time to produce better quality chocolates. The crystals in the cocoa butter can crystallize into 6 different forms (called polymorphs in chocolate chemistry). Each polymorph forms and melts at different temperatures (See below table).
| Crystal Form | Melting Point | Characteristics |
| I (Gamma) | 61°F (16°C) to 76°F (24°C) | Melts easily, crumbly, not stable |
| II (Alpha) | 70°F (21°C) to 75°F (23°C) | Melts easily, crumbly, not stable |
| III (Beta I) | 78°F (25°C) to 83°F (28°C) | Somewhat firm, not stable |
| IV (Beta prime I) | 81°F (27°C) to 84°F (29°C) | Somewhat firm, stable |
| V (Beta II) | 93°F (34°C to 96°F (35°C) | Firm, glossy, “good snap” |
| VI(Beta I) | 97°F (36°C) | Hard, does not melt easily |
What you want to achieve here is to form the most stable crystals as much as possible. Yes, there should be more formation of V as it creates the best quality chocolate. This can only be achieved by proper tempering.
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How properly tempered chocolate exactly looks like?
When you temper chocolate, you heat the chocolate to melt the crystals. Then allow it to cool at room temperature. Cooling it allow IV and V crystals to form. And then heating it at a temperature below the melting point of form V. This way, all the V crystal forms are only left in your chocolate. VI is the most stable. But why should we target V crystals? Well, polymorph V has a more ordered crystalline structure than other polymers. Here, the crystal matrix is more compact. This pushes the cocoa solids and the sugar to the surface of the chocolate. These particles are responsible for the formation of whitish appearance called chocolate bloom on the surface, but not the interior.
When you heat your chocolate above 96°F (35°C) at this point, you could destroy these precious V crystals, allow other forms, and disrupt the temper in your chocolate. This is why it is important to have a thermometer when tempering chocolate. Learn how to calibrate your food thermometer.
If you properly tempered your chocolate, your finished product should be:
- Glossy
- Smooth
- Has “Good snap”
- No white coating
- Even color
- Firm
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When should you temper?
Tempering is a process necessary for real chocolate. It should only contain cocoa butter—not chocolate that has been mixed with fat other that cocoa butter. Also, it is not necessary to temper chocolate when it is used as an ingredient in a recipe.
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When you are making hot chocolate bomb, it is especially necessary to temper your chocolate so it won’t be soft and is able to hold its shape. Chocolate makers prefer dark chocolate than milk or chocolate since it is easier to temper and more stable.
