Chocolate Tempering: Facing the Technique I Used to Avoid

Chocolate tempering has been, and still is, one of the biggest challenges of my craft. I have had difficult experiences with it. At a moment when it mattered most, the conditions worked against me and the result was not what I had prepared for. After that, I found myself avoiding chocolate work more than confronting it.

This time it was time to face the music. Instead of hoping for a good day, I decided to take every variable I could control into consideration.

Why chocolate tempering is about control

Cocoa butter can crystallize in six different forms, and only one of them, form V, gives the snap, the gloss and the clean release from the mould that a bonbon needs. Tempering is simply the process of guiding the chocolate into that one form. It sounds technical, and it is, but the real lesson is that you cannot rush it.

• Temperature: melt completely, cool to the crystallization point, then bring it back up a few degrees.
• Environment: a room around 18 to 20 degrees and low humidity changes everything.
• Timing: tempered chocolate keeps moving. You work with it, not against it.

The collection

The result was a collection of different shapes, finishes and techniques. The fillings included pistachio praline, and dried marinated figs paired with a white chocolate and coffee ganache. Simple pieces at first glance, but chocolate rarely is simple. Every clean shell, consistent filling and finished surface depends on control throughout the whole process.

Not avoiding the challenge. Understanding it. Controlling it. And getting better at it.

What I would tell my younger self

Test your temper every single time, even when you are sure. Keep notes on the room, the chocolate and the moulds. And most of all, treat a failed batch as information rather than a verdict. There are still things I want to improve, and that is exactly the point. You can see more of these pieces in my creations.