How to Temper Chocolate

Tempered chocolate snaps cleanly, shines and releases easily from molds. Untempered chocolate that has simply been melted and cooled sets soft, dull and streaky, and it melts on your fingers. The difference lies in how the cocoa butter crystallizes. Cocoa butter can form several crystal types, and only one gives the gloss and snap people expect from good chocolate.

Tempering means steering the chocolate into that crystal form by controlling temperature: melting out all crystals, cooling to start the right ones, then warming slightly to remove the wrong ones. This guide covers the temperature curves for each chocolate type, the seeding and tabling methods, how to test, and how to keep chocolate in temper while you work.

Why tempering matters

When melted chocolate cools on its own, cocoa butter sets into a mix of unstable crystals. These give a soft, crumbly texture and often a gray film. Tempered chocolate contains mostly the stable crystal type, which packs tightly, reflects light and contracts slightly as it sets so it pulls away from molds.

You need tempering for dipping cookies, coating truffles, chocolate decorations, molded bars and bonbons, and anywhere the chocolate shell itself is the finish. For chocolate melted into batter, ganache or a frosting, tempering does not matter, because those mixtures do not rely on cocoa butter crystals for their texture.

Temperature curves by chocolate type

Milk and white chocolate contain milk fat, which softens the cocoa butter and lowers each target. Check the manufacturer's packaging when available, since blends differ slightly. Use a reliable instant-read or infrared thermometer.

• Dark: melt 45 to 50°C (113 to 122°F); cool 27 to 28°C (81 to 82°F); work 31 to 32°C (88 to 90°F).
• Milk: melt 40 to 45°C (104 to 113°F); cool 26 to 27°C (79 to 81°F); work 29 to 30°C (84 to 86°F).
• White: melt about 40°C (104°F); cool 25 to 26°C (77 to 79°F); work 28 to 29°C (82 to 84°F).

The seeding method

Chop the chocolate finely. Set aside about a quarter to a third of it as seed; the rest gets melted. Melt the larger portion gently over a pan of barely simmering water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water, or in the microwave in 20 to 30 second bursts, stirring between each, until it reaches the melting temperature for its type.

Take the bowl off the heat and stir in the seed chocolate. The seed already contains stable crystals and passes them on as it melts, while also cooling the batch. Keep stirring until the chocolate reaches the working temperature and the mixture is smooth. If seed pieces remain unmelted at that point, lift them out rather than heating the bowl further.

• Use good-quality chocolate that was properly tempered when you bought it; it makes the best seed.
• Wafers or callets work well as seed because they melt evenly.
• Stir constantly; crystals form throughout the chocolate only with movement.

The tabling method

Melt all the chocolate to its melting temperature. Pour about two-thirds onto a clean, dry marble or granite slab. Spread and gather it repeatedly with an offset spatula and bench scraper. After a few minutes it thickens and turns slightly matte as crystals form, near the cooling temperature.

Scrape the thickened chocolate back into the bowl with the remaining warm third and stir until the whole batch reaches working temperature. Tabling is quick and does not require seed chocolate, but it is messy and needs a cool room and a large stone surface.

The set test and holding temper

Before dipping anything, dip the tip of a knife or a strip of parchment into the chocolate and leave it at cool room temperature, around 18 to 20°C (64 to 68°F). Tempered chocolate sets glossy and firm within about 5 minutes, with no streaks. If it stays tacky or sets with streaks, the chocolate is out of temper; cool and seed again.

Once tempered, chocolate stays workable only within a narrow band. Keep it near working temperature with brief, gentle warming: a few seconds with a hair dryer, a short microwave burst, or a heating pad under the bowl. If it gets too thick from cooling, warm it slightly. If it goes over the working temperature, the stable crystals melt and you must temper again.

Troubleshooting streaks, bloom and seizing

Gray or white streaks that appear as chocolate sets are fat bloom, caused by poor tempering or warm storage. Gritty, dull white spots that form after storage in a humid place are sugar bloom. Both are safe to eat, and bloomed chocolate can be melted and tempered again.

If chocolate turns thick and grainy during melting, moisture has caused it to seize. Seized chocolate cannot be tempered, but it can still go into ganache or brownies. Our separate guide on seized chocolate explains why it happens and how to rescue it for other uses.

Common questions

Do chocolate chips temper well?

Not reliably. Many contain less cocoa butter and stabilizers to hold their shape in cookies, so they melt thick and set less glossy. Use bars, wafers or callets made for melting.

Can I skip tempering?

For drizzles that will be refrigerated and eaten soon, many bakers do. The chocolate will be softer and less shiny. Compound coating melts and sets without tempering but tastes less like chocolate.

How should I store tempered chocolate pieces?

Keep them in a cool, dry place around 15 to 18°C (59 to 64°F), well wrapped. The refrigerator can cause condensation and sugar bloom when the chocolate comes out.