The most common mistakes when working with chocolate or couverture

Most common mistakes when working with couverture

When working with couverture and chocolate, mistakes are often made. Simply melt and you have a great end product, unfortunately it's not that simple. The couverture often turns grey or gets greyish spots, it is brittle and does not shine. It is therefore very important to be able to assign the faults to the correct cause. In order to recognise the reasons for the faults and avoid them in the future, we have compiled a list of the most common faults when working with chocolate and couverture and also what countermeasures you can take.

Couverture does not set | Chocolate does not set

The couverture has still not started to set after 10 minutes at room temperature. It is still very soft and wet.

Possible problem 1

The couverture has been tempered too warm and therefore has too few stable fat crystals to set.

Countermeasure 1

Add another handful of extra chopped couverture pieces to the warm couverture and stir in carefully so that they dissolve well and the stable fat crystals are evenly distributed.

Possible problem 2

The room temperature is more than 24 ºC and is therefore too high. This means that the couverture sample cannot be put on quickly

Countermeasure 2

Place the couverture sample in the fridge for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, it should have set nicely. To be on the safe side, press the sample again with your finger. If the sample is only firm at the top and still soft at the bottom, the couverture has been tempered too warm.

Couverture gets lots of little grey dots

The couverture sets, but only very slowly. After a while, lots of small grey and white dots appear on the chocolate couverture.

Possible problem

The couverture was tempered too warm. As a result, not all, but many stable fat crystals in the cocoa butter were destroyed. The stable fat crystals mix with the unstable ones, resulting in many grey and white dots

Countermeasure

Add another handful of extra chopped couverture pieces to the warm couverture and stir in carefully so that they dissolve well and the stable fat crystals are evenly distributed.

Couverture gets a grey veil

The couverture sets very quickly, but after a while a uniform grey haze forms over the entire chocolate or couverture.

Possible problem

The couverture contains sufficient stable fat crystals, but these were processed too cold, causing the sample to turn grey.

Countermeasure

Carefully reheat the couverture over a bain-marie or with a hot-air blower until the optimum final temperature has been reached.

Correct temperature control over the water bath

The couverture sets well and retains its colour at the beginning, but when it cools, grey and white streaks form

Possible problem

If not enough stirring has taken place during the tempering process, it is possible that there is still warm couverture in the corners of the bowl, for example, which has not been mixed with the cold couverture. This becomes clear when streaks appear as the couverture cools. Very often this also happens towards the end of processing or when the chocolate has been reheated too much.

Countermeasure

If this happens, the couverture can be tempered again or mixed very well again at the right temperature. This has no effect on the quality of the chocolate. You can use the couverture for your next creation without any problems.

Water gets into the couverture

During melting or reheating over the water bath, water vapour has entered the couverture.

Problem

The couverture becomes lumpy or viscous and can therefore no longer be used for the production of pure couverture products. If only small lumps form, you can easily sieve them out. However, if a single large lump forms, this can unfortunately no longer be reversed and the couverture must be disposed of.

Countermeasure

As soon as you realise that water has got into the melted couverture, you must stop stirring immediately. The water should never be stirred into the couverture, as water is more liquid than the couverture, it floats on the surface and can be easily removed from the couverture using a piece of kitchen paper.

Couverture contains too many air bubbles

Air bubbles permeate the couverture and if you want to pour it into a mould, the mould must first be tapped on the table for a long time. Instead of a smooth surface, you will see small bumps and bubbles.

Problem

The couverture was stirred too intensively during the tempering process (possibly with a whisk, which is generally not recommended). Mixing with a hand blender can also lead to air bubbles in the couverture.

Countermeasure

Try stirring the couverture gently with a spatula and warm it up a little. The gentle stirring and warm temperature should dissolve the bubbles. For smaller quantities, you can tap the bowl on the table, which will cause the air pockets in the couverture to rise to the surface.

Fat ripe from chocolate | couverture

Fat bloom is caused by a change in the crystalline form of the fat contained in the product, which initially results in a change in gloss on the surface and, as the fat accumulates on the surface, a white to greyish coating. Fat bloom is one of the main reasons for complaints in the chocolate industry.

There are two main reasons for the appearance of fat bloom. The first cause is also known as "sweating out cocoa butter". The cocoa butter is finely distributed in the chocolate, but is only stable in this form within a certain temperature range. If this temperature is exceeded, the fat slowly migrates to the surface. Incorrect tempering of the chocolate during the manufacturing process or incorrect storage can significantly increase the formation of fat bloom.

The problem can also occur if the chocolate or praline contains fillings with a high fat content (e.g. hazelnuts, nougat, cream fillings or marzipan). The oils and fats migrate from the filling, through the chocolate, to its surface. This is also the reason why such chocolate products are particularly susceptible to fat bloom. In addition to the type of filling, the speed of fat migration also depends on the ambient temperature and the type of chocolate.

The small fat crystals melt when heated to 35-36 °C and the coating disappears. However, it forms again when the chocolate cools down. The light coating has no effect on the odour and taste.

Sugar ripe from chocolate | couverture

The similar-looking sugar bloom is mainly caused by storage in high humidity (> 75-80%). As a result of water vapour-permeable packaging, high humidity and/or strong temperature fluctuations, the chocolate products can fog up with moisture. This is particularly the case if they are transferred from a very cold storage environment to a very warm and humid environment, resulting in condensation of moisture on the still cold surface. Sugar is dissolved out of the upper layers of the chocolate and crystallises after the water has evaporated to form a grey coating on the now rough, dull surface. In contrast to the fat bloom, the sugar bloom does not disappear immediately when heated to 36 °C. It also feels rougher. It also feels rougher.

Sugar bloom is harmless to health and does not change the flavour. However, it can be accompanied by microbial spoilage due to incorrect storage and the influence of moisture. Moulding usually leads to a considerable deterioration in flavour due to the enzymatic decomposition of the chocolate.

Posted in: Things to know, Chocolate

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The most common mistakes when working with chocolate or couverture

Most common mistakes when working with couverture