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If you ask a professional confectioner how to melt chocolate, he will tell you that it is a complex and responsible process, like destroying an atom or cloning a person.
Yes, it's true, it takes technique and experience to do it perfectly. But you can still do it at home.
Details
About how to melt chocolate at home, the brand chef, founder of the ChefDaTe online culinary school, professional sommelier David Dimitri tells.
Follow a few rules:
- The first rule refers to the fact that chocolate should not be directly exposed to a heat source, because we risk burning it, or it will simply harden, turning into an incomprehensible mass.
- The second rule is not to let the chocolate come into contact with water, which can cause lumps and flaking.
- The third rule is low temperature! Do not exceed 45 degrees.
- The fourth rule is to constantly stir.
- The fifth rule is to finely chop the chocolate.
It is also worth remembering that different types of chocolate react differently to heating, dark is the simplest and less capricious. Milk chocolate melts faster, so be careful, keep an eye on it. After all, white chocolate has the lowest melting point, so you should be more careful with it.
Microhvilov pich
You can melt the chocolate in the microwave. To do this, put the chopped chocolate in a glass container and cook for a short time on medium power, stirring each time for 20 seconds and put it back in the microwave until you get a smooth chocolate cream.
I recommend not to keep it in the oven for more than 15 seconds or the chocolate will burn!
Water bath
This is my favorite method that I always use.
For this we will need two pans. Pour water into the first one, put the second one on top and put chopped chocolate. Put on medium heat and stir constantly until it melts completely.
PS This method is also perfect for white chocolate, which has a lower melting point than regular chocolate and is easy to spoil.
In the oven
Place the chopped chocolate in a baking dish and turn the oven to the lowest possible temperature.
Check and stir often to avoid burning it.
Ganache
If you want to melt chocolate to make ganache (for profiteroles and cake), you should add cream.
Proportion 1:1 fresh cream 20% (or butter) and dark chocolate.
Also in this case I would recommend cooking in a water bath, which protects against burns and makes it easier to control the process.
Glaze
If, on the other hand, you need to prepare a glaze, dark chocolate (at least 75%) must be melted with syrup (made from sugar dissolved in water in a ratio of 5:1). The proportion of glaze is 1:5 chocolate to syrup.
In this case, given the large presence of water, the mixture can be dissolved in an ordinary saucepan with a thick bottom over low heat, stirring constantly, until the desired consistency is obtained.
Enjoy your meal!
