Challenge:

Baker:

What does "tempering chocolate" mean?

The process of "tempering" involves slowly heating and then cooling chocolate letting the fat molecules crystallise evenly, giving you a smooth, shiny finish. When tempered properly, chocolate should 'snap' when broken, while untempered (or badly tempered) chocolate will be dull and not break cleanly. 

What is the best chocolate for tempering?

Always use chocolate that state a higher cocoa content. Look for 'buttons' rather than bars, because they melt more easily. If you can only find bars, finely chop the chocolate with a serrated knife, or in a blender, as this will melt more evenly.

How to temper chocolate

1. Put most of the chocolate in a bowl, keeping up to 25% for use later in the process. Half-fill a saucepan with hot water, and put the bowl over it, making sure that the bowl does not touch the bottom of the saucepan. Slowly heat the water, ensuring it does not boil. Alternatively, use a microwave on the defrost setting or at 500W maximum. Stir all the time, using a flexible spatula so that the chocolate melts smoothly.

2. Check the temperature with a thermometer. When it reaches 131F - 136F (55C-58C) for bittersweet/dark, or 113F - 122F (45C-50C) for milk or white, remove the chocolate from the water bath.

3. Set aside a third of the melted chocolate in a bowl in a warm place. Add the unmelted chocolate into the remaining two-thirds of the melted chocolate, stirring constantly (this will help cool the chocolate quickly). Dark chocolate should reach a temperature of 82F - 84F (28C-29C); milk chocolate should reach 80F - 82F (27C-28C); and white or ruby chocolate should reach 79F - 81F (26C-27C).

4. Then add the melted chocolate that you have set aside to increase the temperature. Dark chocolate should reach 88F - 90F (31C-32C); milk chocolate should reach 84F - 86F (29C-30C); a white or coloured chocolate should reach 82F - 84F (28C-29C). Stir all the time. 

5. When the chocolate is at the correct temperature, leave it in a cool place to set.

Tip: If the chocolate has reached the right temperature and there are still pieces of unmelted chocolate, remove them before increasing the temperature.