Ann Reardon

How to temper chocolate in the microwave

tempered chocolate how to temper milk chocolate

Why Temper Chocolate

Have you ever melted chocolate to make decorations only to find once it sets it is soft, dull and bends over when it is not in the fridge?  That is because it is not tempered.

why temper chocolate

LEFT-not tempered, RIGHT – tempered After five minutes out of the fridge

Chocolate manufacturers use equipment to precisely control the temperature of the chocolate during processing to cause the fat molecules in the cocoa butter to align neatly and tightly together.  This is called tempered chocolate.  It is firm at room temperature and has a crisp snap when you break it.  When at home and you heat the chocolate to melt it, you undo that process and so it is no longer in temper.

How to temper chocolate in the microwave

If you want tempered chocolate then the easiest thing to do at home is to simply keep the chocolate in temper, see the video below for details on how to do that.

You only need to temper chocolate if it is real chocolate. Candy melts and some other melts are not real chocolate and so do not require tempering. Watch the video below for an explanation of how to tell if it is real chocolate.

You may also be interested in You may also be interested in:

* How to make chocolate bowls
* How to make a box out of chocolate
* chocolate decorations for desserts

My Cookbook

ann reardon crazy sweet creations cookbook
Stores that sell my book listed by country: http://bit.ly/ARcookbook
All recipe quantities in the book are in grams, ounces and cups.

262 Comments View Comments

  1. hello i wud just like to know is it the same process with the truffles we make n wat do we do if the chocolate contains both cocoa butter and vegetable oil??? m just too confused as m the beginner n wanna do something

    • Hi chocopie, Yes you need to temper the chocolate if it contains just cocoa butter. If it contains a mixture it should be OK to not temper it.

  2. Hi Ann – thank you so much for your videos. I loved your macaroni and have graduated to your chocolate recipes. I’m trying to make chocolate lollipops using the real chocolate tempering method but they come out and still stay soft at room temperature. Is it because it’s too hot in summer over here (high 20’s to low 30’s)? Would I be better off using fake chocolate to withstand the summer heat?

    Many thanks

    Terrie

    • Hi Terrie, tempered chocolate will melt at around 35C which is just below body temperature so that it melts in yotu mouth. So if it is not firm at 20C it is not properly tempered. You can use fake chocoalte as it is much easier to work with, or practice tempering as it tastes better.

  3. Hi. I was wondering ,can the temper chocolate can be made out of cooking chocolate or a regular chocolate… Cause the place where I stay I don’t have variety of chocolate

  4. Hi Ann,

    Thank you for your wonderful videos. I have question about tempering chocolate. As I’m in Australia I just bought woolworths brand compound chocolate and tempered it. It contains cocoa butter in its ingredients. I tempered this chocolate and try to do cup and saucer. My tempered chocolate was not liquidy as yours. So I could’t get a smooth surface as yours. Can you please help me on this

  5. Hi Ann, Your videos are amazing. Can you please advise how I can temper without using a microwave. Thank you

  6. When I put chocolate in the fridge, it sweats. (has little droplets of moisture on the outside). Is there a way to prevent this? Is that a sign of improper tempering?

  7. Hello Ann, I was wondering if you could guide me on how to sweeten unsweetened chocolate. I bought unsweetened and want to temper it but it would make a terrible tasting decoration. How can I sweeten and temper this chocolate so it doesn’t go to waste? Thanks 🙂

  8. Hi Ann,

    I m so glad I came across the videos and your website!it’s simply amazing!I have just gone through the chocolate truffles and can’t wait to make a few tomorrow:)could you kindly let me know if any chocolate is ok for tempering?as I m residing in the gulf region and the cooking chocolate available are the Hershey’s chocolate chips,or should I use galaxy or cadbury ?pls let me know .thank you so much

  9. Hii ann i wuz wonderin were can yu buy the temper chocolate or yu can use any kind of chocolate??…im little-bitt confuzed…lol …by the way i lov♥♥♥♥ yur blog on yutub..

  10. hello I’d like you tell me how to work with white chocolate, I like to make tuffles covered with white chocolate, but the chocolate is too thick to cover the truffles. thank you.

  11. I’m having trouble subscribing to your site so that I can be notified of new videos. Help!

    • Hi Fern, if you click to subscribe by email and then you will get an email from feed burner saying click here to confirm your subscription. Once you’ve done that you will be emailed when there is a new post. if you don’t see the feedburner one check your junk mail box 🙂

  12. Hey ann,
    i was wondering does using fake chocolate effects the taste of the chocolate decorations
    thanks

    • hi tanaya yes it has a higher melting point so doesn’t melt in your mouth as well as normal chocolate does.

  13. I LOVE YOUR CHANNEL! I was just wondering if you needed to temper “fake” chocolate? And if I used “fake” chocolattè how long would it be solid for before it melts? I’m baking cupcakes for my sisters surprise birthday & I’m not sure if I should put some chocolate garnish on them, I’m afraid they might melt? Thank you! Please get back to me asap!

    • Hi Chentelle, fake chocolate does not need tempering it will set firm and will not melt unless the temp goes over 27 degrees

  14. Thanks Ann

    • 🙂

  15. Hi Ann,
    Luv your website…its awesome…
    I am going to try making these truffles u posted. Please tell me whether i can use fake cooking dark chocolate for coating the truffles or else can i use the ganache for coating.
    Awaiting your reply eagerly because iam planning to give away these for my little girl’s 1st bday as return gifts

    • hi muthu you can use the fake chocoalte for coating but not ganache.

  16. hi Ann !
    thanks for all your wonderful recipes, I’d like to try to do some chocolate decorations,but I don’t have any microwave and I usually melt chocolate with a little bowl in hot water, how can I temperate it ?

    thanks again for your recipes 😀

    • Hi barbara it is tricky to temper on the stovetop, there are several youtube videos on tempering on the stovetop but as yet I have not found a reliable method, apart from microwave, or the marble slab method – do you have a marble bench top?

  17. hi ann i watched your videos and they’re great. i just wondering can we temper chocolate without microwave? I mean are there any other methods that not using microwave? cos i don’t have one. thanks a bunch, ann.

    • hi muthia yes there are other methods but the microwave is easiest, if you look on youtube you’ll see a few other methods

  18. thanks a lot for your help AND for sharing your video

  19. Dear Ann

    Thank you for all the wonderful videos and recipes you’ve posted. You have simplified everything and make it so inspiring for all to follow. I have tried a few times to tempere the chocolates but have not been successful, almost at the verge of giving up. Perhaps it’s the weather condition in Singapore. We have very humid weather or the chocolate droplets that I used contains 73.5% cocoa and is not appropriate.
    Just that you’d know, very much like you, I’ve been playing host to my church group and international students ministry and when they asked for recipes, I’d refer them to your web. We thank the Lord for you and have been so blessed by you even miles apart. Thank you Ann!

  20. What chocolate do u use? Would bars like hershies and bars like that work? Please help i want to get this right. Your videos are awsome btw

    • Hi Max, I mainly use cadbury, check your ingredients on your hersheys chocolate if it contains cocoa butter it needs tempering.

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