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Dipping/Coating Chocolate

post #1 of 26
5/25/03 at 3:08pm
Thread Starter 
I'm looking for a dipping chocolate to coat cookies. I started with 6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate which I melted in a double boiler. I stirred 2 Tbs Crisco into the chocolate and stirred until it was smooth. I dipped the cookies in the chocolate and put tehm dipped side down onto parchement paper. I put the dipped cookies into the fridge to allow the chocolate to set. It worked nicely but I am concerned about what will happen to the chocolate when it returns to room temp. Does anyone have a sloution the will allow me to di and have the chocolate be stable at room temp?
Thanks!
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post #2 of 26
5/26/03 at 5:16am
I'm not a pastry chef but I do like chocolate.:D

I just temper the chocolate and let cool at room temp.
Temper by melting say about 1 pound of choco over a double boiler slowly (keep the temp below 104), then I add about 1/4 pound of chopped choco to the melted and stir until melted again. If it is a little stiff I gently warm it up again.

I've done this so much I do it by site rather than temp. Do a google search or check out a chocolate book at the library and use a thermometer to get it right for a while.

Bye,
Jon
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post #3 of 26
5/26/03 at 1:57pm
Shelf stable there's only 2 ways, temper your couveture or use coating chocolate.

But it all depends upon your needs, can you live with less then perfect? I use non-tempered chocolate to dip in, chill in the cooler to set, then serve at room temp. As long as you store your dipped items in the cooler or freezer well wrapped it will last along time. But once it is at room temp. you'll only have the day (anywhere from 2 to 10 hours) before it dulls or blooms. The bigger the temp. difference is between cooler and room the shorter the nice keeping time frame is. It's helpful to use two tones to distract from the dullness. Like dip in dark choc. and then drizzle over white choc..

I only use shortening to thin down really thick chocolate.....like if you used chocolate chips as your coating chocolate. Otherwise just plain choc. works fine.
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post #4 of 26
5/26/03 at 2:00pm
Also, 2 tbsp to 6 oz.choc. is a bit heavy. I'd use 2 tbsp. to a whole bag of chips, so it's about double the choc. to the shortening you used.
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post #5 of 26
5/26/03 at 2:27pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the info. WHat I'm trying to do is come up with a chocolate that is dip-able and then ship-able. Is there such a thing? I didn't know trere was such athing as dipping chocolate. Would it be stable enough to coat and ship? THanks!
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post #6 of 26
5/26/03 at 3:27pm
It also goes under the name of chocolate glaze or non-tempering chocolate. Some are better than others. I prefer Carma, but it's still nothing like couverture.
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post #7 of 26
5/26/03 at 3:44pm
Kyle,
I use a 2:1 chococlate to shortening (butter and sweetex) for my dipped items.



could anyone share a formula for chocolate glaze. I am looking for a glaze for cakes that stays shiny after setting and cooling.
I heard of one made with cocoa and gelatin but nothing spacific. It was easier when I worked in the restaurant and the cake could be glazed with ganach and sent out just set and with a beautiful sheen.
Thanks.
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post #8 of 26
5/26/03 at 3:50pm
I've used a mixture of 1/2 couverture 1/2 coating choc. to dip biscotti and cookies. Callebaut makes a very decent tasting non-temp. coating chocolate.
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post #9 of 26
5/26/03 at 4:25pm
Thread Starter 
All this cool info! I've never heard of couverture but it seems like it has a really high cocoa butter content. Is this what I was trying to emulate when I blended in the Crisco?

AC- It's coated biscotti that are my target.
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post #10 of 26
5/26/03 at 6:06pm
Get a good thermometer and learn how to temper chocolate. It's not at all hard. A good explanation of it is found in The Art of The Cake by Healy and Bugat. Coating chocolates by and large aren't that wonderful to eat.
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post #11 of 26
5/26/03 at 6:53pm
Kyle,
Couverture is REAL chocolate. It needs to be tempered. The only reason NOT to use it is money or time. Coating choc. doesn't taste nearly as good.
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post #12 of 26
5/27/03 at 5:42am
Thread Starter 
I looked up tempering in In the Sweet Kitchen. It doesn't seem so scary. Can I use a regular instant read themometer?
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post #13 of 26
5/27/03 at 12:56pm
yep.
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post #14 of 26
5/27/03 at 1:44pm
Thread Starter 
So let's see if I got this right.

I melt the chocolate and heat it to 115º-120º, cool it to 80º and then warm it to 88º-90º?

Regarding couverture, do Callebaut, Valrhona etc all make a version of this? Is there any taste sacrifice v. using regular chocolate?
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post #15 of 26
5/27/03 at 6:00pm
No taste sacrifice at all as couverture is usually high quality stuff. It's thinner when melted and makes a more delicate coating, that's all. And yes, those numbers are essentially correct and should work for a dark chocolate. I find it's key to stir the chocolate well after you bring the temp back up. Look very carefully beforehand and you can almost see errant streaks of fat crystals throughout the chocolate. Had an instructor who called it purple haze.
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post #16 of 26
5/28/03 at 3:45pm
This thread is another reason why I love this place so much. I have learned a great deal from this conversation. Thanks, Kyle, for asking and to everyone who replied, for the knowledge.
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post #17 of 26
6/11/03 at 8:05am
Thread Starter 

Another ?

Let's say I temper 1 LB of chocolate and only use 1/2 LB for dipping. Can I store the remaining chocolate in the fridge? Wil I need to retemper it?
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post #18 of 26
6/11/03 at 1:21pm
The problem with the fridge is that it tends to hold humidity. If your only other option is a hot room, then the fridge is ok, provided the choc. is wrapped tightly. Yes, you will have to re-temper any time the chocolate is left to set.
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post #19 of 26
6/11/03 at 2:39pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks Momo. I can live with the retempering. I just took my first run at tempering. I used Schokinag bittersweet couverture w/71% cacao. It's some special edidion in conjunction w/Christopher Norman Chocolates. Given what I paid for it, I will gladly retemper it:) I forgot to reserve 1/3 of the chocolate for seeding purposes do it took a little while to cool down to 80º. Other than that it was not as scary as I envisioned. I coated some shortbreads and shipped them to D.C. I will know on Friday how they survived the journey:)
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post #20 of 26
6/16/03 at 5:13am

chocolate glaze with nice sheen

melted chocolate and corn syrup produces a glaze that has a nice sheen


CHOCOLATE GLAZE

8 ounces (210 grams) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

6 tablespoons (84 grams) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1/3 cup (80 ml) light corn syrup

1/3 cup (80 ml) brandy

melt chocolate, then whisk in syrup and brandy

WHITE CHOCOLATE GLAZE
3 oz white chocolate
2 tbsp light corn syrup
1 1/2 tsp water

melt chocolate, then whisk in syrup and water
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post #21 of 26
6/16/03 at 5:27am
Thread Starter 
The results were good. THe dipped biscotti arrived intact! Some minor melting where chocolate met chocolate but I can address that with packaging. I also think that I will limit the availability of dipped items to cooler months. I don't think I would want to eat chocolate that would stand up to NYC August heat & humidity :)
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post #22 of 26
7/4/03 at 9:49am

glacege chocola

Hi m brown,
I'm sure you know how to do this! Good luck!

glacege chocola:

light cream 50cc
water 100cc
cast sugar 80g
maltose (or Trimoline) 20g
cocoa powder 30g
black cocoa powder 10g
gelatin 3g
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post #23 of 26
7/4/03 at 9:52am
Richard,
does that hold up on a coated cake or just the top as for miroir?
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post #24 of 26
8/9/03 at 7:24am
I too am experimenting w/ tempering chocolate and would like more tips and info about the proceedure - maybe even the science behind it. A good on-line scource for bulk chocolate would be nice too (but not out of this world expensive). I see KA has a pricey tempering contraption in their catalog - can a comparable job be done w/out?
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post #25 of 26
8/9/03 at 7:45am
Thread Starter 
I just tempered another batch, in my stainless steel bowl set atop a sauce pan of simmering water :) I mixed in a bunch of ground spearmint. I'm working on Mint Chocolate Chunk cookies.
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post #26 of 26
2/23/07 at 7:17pm
HI Kyle W,
I do just what you have been doing. I dip and keep dipped side up and place in the frig for a while.
I melt the chocolate bits just as you do but I use olive oil or a little "sweet" butter. So far I do not get any coloration even after the cookies have suffered some abuse and change of temperature. I never used parchment paper. I always wanted to but it seems too fussy for my time sensitive lifestyle.
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