Should you temper your cocoa butter colours?
Ever heard the advice that you should temper you coloured cocoa butter - even though it says on the bottle that the cocoa butter is already tempered and that you do not need to temper it?
Well my opinion is that this is…
🥁🥁🥁🥁
TRUE!!
And why do I believe this, even though others may have a different opinion or take on things?
It is because of this:
It is true that cocoa butter colours are already tempered when you buy them – just like chocolate is. This is why just melting your cocoa butter colours to the working temperature can work. (I recommend a working temperature of 30°C.)
However, several factors can make it not work. Different colours – also within the same brand – act differently when heated in the microwave. Some melt very quickly, others very slowly. Different microwave ovens act differently. And just a few seconds too long in the microwave can bring the colours out of temper.
If the temperature of a tempered cocoa butter colour exceeds 33.7°C (if, for example, it is heated for too long in the microwave), the colour will be brought out of temper. If you are working with un-tempered cocoa butter colours, you run the risk that your chocolate bonbons will lack shine and have dull spots. You also risk that the cocoa butter colours will stick to the mould instead of your chocolate bonbons.
Things we want to avoid...
So, if the temperature of a cocoa butter colour accidentally exceeds 33.7°C, you must temper the colour again. Heating the cocoa butter colour, so that the temperature exceeds 33.7°C does not ruin cocoa butter colour. The colour just needs to be re-tempered before it can be used for colouring chocolate moulds.
In fact, I hear back from many of my readers that when they switch from just melting the cocoa butter colours in the microwave to actually tempering the colours, their results also switch.
Their results switch from this:
Getting shine on their bonbons sometimes but also experiencing dull spots and cocoa butter sticking to the mould from time to time.
To this:
Achieving shiny bonbons consistently and never experiencing dull spots or cocoa butter sticking to the mould.
So, if you are on the fence about switching to tempering your cocoa butter colours... My advice to you is: GO FOR IT!
