Forum Activity for @Tony2

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi Arthur,

I thought I'd give an update.

I took your advice - I have made a cooling place - I put sides below a work table, and fitted a portable air conditioner in it with a vent to outdoors for the warm air part. (I also had to take the air conditioner apart and adjusted the thermostat to give me lower temperatures). I now have a cupboard with dryer air and I can get from room temperature down to 8 degrees C if I want it that low. The shelves have different temperatures, so I can move the molds about to try to copy your figures.

The results have been great - thanks for all your help.

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi Arthur,

That is really interesting, you obviously are an expert.

Thanks for the link too.

As you may have gathered from my previous post, I'm not a youngster, and in my previous work I have always tried hard to know the theory behind the practice - I'm slowly getting to grips with chocolate.

My chocolate work has slowed for a time as I've been fitting out my "chocolate kitchen" - I've got a couple of dogs, so I have made a second kitchen in my house to keep them dog-hair free.

Thanks again for your time.

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi Arthur,

Thanks for the information - I did buy a cheap gadget to measure the humidity - but it is too cheap, I bought a second one and they are 10% different! So I think I will buy a more accurate one.

Can you explain -cool "from 16 down to 13C, then again 15/16C" ... so I cool it to 13 then let it warm a little at 15/16 for 40 minutes? The problem I see is getting the mold to release the casing if I don't cool it low enough.

When I started with chocolate I had no idea that the science was more important than anything else - it's brought back school work of 50 years ago! I find myself comparing the way chocolate works with the way iron and steel solidify and crystalise, which, I assume, is the basis of the word "tempering" - with steel one heats, cools rapidly (hardening), then re-heat to a specific temperature (tempering) to get the properties one requires. I didn't think I'd ever use the metallurgy I learned!

I find it fascinating, and presents such a wide spectrum of challenges.

Thanks again,

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hi,

Thanks, Paul,

Sounds sensible advice.

There is a lot to learn in this activity!

All the best,

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

That's good to know, Edward and thanks for the tip.

I've been making casings for praline, so the thickness presumably is not a problem - but may be if I do thicker moldings, so I'll remember your tip.

The problem is definitely sugar bloom, I've made a couple of more batches so will see what happens.

This is what I've tried. Firstly I have used a microwave instead of twin-pan to cut down on steam. I have taken the temperature in the fridge and raised it a bit (ok for the chocolates, but not so good for dairy products - so I've stuck the thermometer in the salad tray at the bottom of the fridge to see what the temperature is like there - just waiting for it to settle down.

The humidity has been high here (I live in a rural part of the UK, we have had a lot of rain recently and now it's getting warmer. I'm now able to measure the humidity and it has been up to 90% - I have bought a dehumidifier, the kitchen is small so it can easily bring the humidity down.

Of course now I've changed several variables at once - so perhaps it will be more difficult to isolate the culprit - but if I get good results I can stick at whatever works.

I really would like to thank you and Rene for your help.

I will come back to give an update in a few days - but in the meantime welcome any other ideas.

Thanks again

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Thank you for your reply Rene.

I have been getting a good "snap" to the chocolate, with it hardening well and with a good shine - the bloom appears after a few days.

I will try altering the temperature in the fridge, I have one for my normal cooking and another one I can use for the chocolate - so I can have this at a higher temperature.

I will also try using a microwave and not a double pan.

Thanks again,

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Thanks for your reply Andy.

The tempering aid is Mycryo, but I did have the same problem tempering without the Mycryo.

I have been following the tempering system of heat, let cool, warm a bit while stirring, but the Mycryo instructions leave the last warming stage out - presumably as the mycryo is pure crystals of cocoa butter so it seeds quickly.

I do wonder what temperature I should cool the molded chocolate so it shrinks from the mold but does not get too cold to cause the condensation.

Any ideas?

Thanks again,

Tony

Humidity? Too cold fridge? Problems with bloom

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

Hello!

I'm new to this, so will welcome any advice.

I'm tempering by hand, using a double pan, recently using tempering aid but have also used the "adding extra chocolate to seed" method.

I have fairly consistent results (after buying several thermometers of increasing accuracy and price!).

The inconsistency is that some chocolates gain a white (sugar?) bloom, not a butter one, when stored for a week in a sealed plastic container.

For this question I'll add specific information: Callebaut 54%, tempering aid, heat to 45C, cool to 34C (adding the aid then), stir well.

I then pour into polycarbonate moulds, put into a freezer for a few minutes, then knock them out. By the time I have put them into a box they have condensation on them.

I have the same problem if I use a fridge and not a freezer.

I've just bought a hygrometer so I can see the humidity in the room, and a dehumidifier which I plan to use tomorrow.

Perhaps I'm cooling them too much, so any advice about temperature would be useful. Perhaps it's just too humid - it's certainly not too hot in the room right now! Should I keep them in a sealed box with silica gel?

It's just so disappointing, I thought I'd started to get the hang of all this!

Thanks

Tony

updated by @Tony2: 04/10/15 06:40:45AM