crystals while retaining the stable ones.
The Art of Tempering Though an accurate
thermometer and careful temperature control
are necessary for successful tempering, they
aren’t sufficient. The art of tempering lies in
recognizing when the chocolate has
accumulated enough stable crystals to form a
dense, hard network as it cools. Insufficient
tempering time, or insufficient stirring,
produce too few stable crystal seeds and
undertempered chocolate, which will form
some unstable crystals when it cools. Too
much stirring or time produce too many or too
large stable crystals and overtempered
chocolate, in which individual crystals
predominate over the joined network.
Overtempered chocolate is stable, but it can
seem coarse, crumbly rather than snappy, dull
in appearance, and waxy in the mouth.
Testing for Temper Molten chocolate can be
tested for its temper by placing a small, thin