Technique · 6 min read ·
How to Temper Chocolate
Seeding, tabling or machine — target temperatures, the three methods, and how to read a temper that has gone wrong.
Tempering is how you get chocolate to set hard, snap cleanly and stay glossy. It sounds technical, and the theory is, but the practice comes down to controlling temperature in three stages: melt it, cool it, and bring it back up to working heat.
Target temperatures
- Dark chocolate — melt to 45–50 °C (113–122 °F), cool to 27–28 °C (81–82 °F), work at 31–32 °C (88–90 °F).
- Milk chocolate — melt to 40–45 °C (104–113 °F), cool to 26–27 °C (79–81 °F), work at 29–30 °C (84–86 °F).
Use a digital probe or infrared thermometer. Guessing is the single most common cause of a failed temper.
Three methods
Seeding
The easiest at any scale: melt about two thirds of your chocolate, then stir in the remaining third, unmelted, until it dissolves and the temperature drops into the working range. The added chocolate carries the crystal structure you want.
Tabling
The classic marble-slab method. Pour roughly three quarters of the melted chocolate onto a cool stone surface, work it with a scraper and palette knife until it thickens, then return it to the warm remainder. Fast, tactile and hard on a small kitchen.
Machine tempering
Does the cycle for you and holds the chocolate at working temperature for hours. Worth it once you are tempering daily.
How to temper milk chocolate
Milk chocolate tempers on a lower, tighter curve than dark chocolate. Milk fat softens the cocoa butter, so the stable crystals form and melt at lower temperatures, and the milk solids scorch and thicken if the chocolate runs too hot. Keep every stage a few degrees below the dark chocolate curve.
- Melt to 40–45 °C (104–113 °F). Go no higher: overheated milk chocolate turns thick and loses its clean dairy flavor.
- Cool to 26–27 °C (79–81 °F), stirring constantly. With the seeding method, add about one third unmelted chocolate to bring the temperature down.
- Rewarm gently to a working temperature of 29–30 °C (84–86 °F) and hold it there while you dip or mold.
- Test before you commit: smear a little on parchment or the tip of a knife. In a cool room it should set glossy and streak-free within about five minutes.
These are the working temperatures for Milk Chocolate 43% and Dark Milk Chocolate 49%. Dark Milk 49% carries more cocoa and a thicker texture, so it sets a little faster at the same temperatures; keep it moving.
Common faults and how to fix them
- Dull, streaky or pale surface (fat bloom) — the chocolate set out of temper, or was stored too warm. Remelt and temper again; the chocolate is not spoiled.
- Gray, gritty film (sugar bloom) — moisture reached the surface. Remelt and temper; keep chocolate away from humidity and never refrigerate uncovered.
- Thick, grainy mass (seized) — water got in, or it was overheated. Water cannot be undone; overheating can be, by remelting fully and starting the cycle again.
- Slow setting or soft finish — you worked too warm, or the room is too warm. Aim for a room at 18–20 °C (64–68 °F).
A high cocoa butter content makes tempering more forgiving, which is why couverture is the professional choice — and why a little added cacao butter helps thin a temper that has gone too thick.
