why are white chocolate chips i am melting immediately turn solid after adding food colouring?
i am using a double boiling method. they melt fine but as soon as i add liquid red colouring the chocolate goes from melted and smooth to chunky and solid/ashy.
by m0useg1rl
23 Comments
DramaMama611
What kind of coloring are you using?
the_baking_engineer
Chocolate seizes when water is added. Are you using a water/ gel food coloring? You need to use either powdered or oil based coloring with chocolate to prevent this.
Spare_Step_3729
Water based coloring will seize chocolate. Need lecithin to mix with it to emulsify OR use an oil based food coloring
sassythehorse
You can add canola oil in to save it after it has seized.
Pristine_Scholar5057
Use gel color
swerve_7
White chocolate is a confection not actual cocoa..
TooObsessedWithOtoge
I suggest gel colouring or drying stuff like crushed freeze dried strawberries to achieve your desired colour. As others have said, water and chocolate *really* don’t mix.
belladora17
If you mix in a little shortening or oil you can save this!
pagesinked
I find candy melts that are pre dyed much easier to use and you can melt them in the microwave.
Competitive-Care8789
Because the water is making the cocoa butter seize up
bea_8090
Try using oil based food color. I was able to buy some online. The brand name I was able to buy is Chefmaster.
Matt-the-Bakerman
I’ve made this mistake before and it’s so annoying. Good tips on this thread!!!
Internal_Salt9557
Based on your comments it might be :
1. Water / moisture – make sure that the steam from your double broiler is not going over the bowl 2. Low quality chocolate chips 3. You might have over cooked it / the temp was too hot 4. Use an oil/gel based food coloring
Depending on the goal you want, you can save this by adding:
Whipping Cream = Ganache output Any Neutral oil = just smooth melted chocolate
nerddigestive
Worked with chocolate a lot before (making bonbons and truffles too, as well as with baking). 100% this is because it is a water based food colouring. Even the smallest drop of water will cause your chocolate to seize like this.
While it is technically possible to bring it back with additional oil and an emulsifier, particularly if it is a compound chocolate (uses lecithin + oil rather than cocoa butter), I would advise starting again. You will never get the original consistency of the chocolate back and it will always be a little bit more oily. If it is a real chocolate it will also be very difficult to temper as the water interrupts crystallization.
You’ll need to either use oil based food colouring, or what is more common commercially – blend a pigment powder into cocoa butter and use that.
Beefeater1109
You need to use either powdered colouring or you can get special colourings for chocolate that are oil based, not water. I learned this the hard way too by doing exactly what you have done
ayatheclown
As a lot of people have said it’s because of the water in the dye. If you use powdered or gel based, make sure it says it’s lipo-soluble. There is both powders that also only is for water based products.
Don’t throw it away tho, you could still chop it down and use in cookies. We normally did that with messed up chocolates at the bakery I worked at. Worked perfectly as long as it isn’t burned 🙂
AdventurousTrvlr1688
The moisture in the food coloring causes this. Youneed powdered food coloring.
Maxxxirosean
I always use the powder one it works everytime:^)
Wolf_Paw03
Along with using the right coloring for it make sure to temper the chocolate correctly. Helps it
Cahsrhilsey
It’s definitely the food colouring, also a little tip as well that using a wooden spoon (I know you haven’t here) can cause the chocolate to seize like this too as it’s porous and can harbour water in the wood for quite some time 🙂
Sure-Squash-7280
Just a question, what were you going to make with the melted chocolate?
Sweb76
This happened to me when I used poor quality white chocolate. When I used some from Germany, it stayed melted.
MissMoogle85
There is fat soluble food coloring available on Amazon and probably other places too!
23 Comments
What kind of coloring are you using?
Chocolate seizes when water is added. Are you using a water/ gel food coloring? You need to use either powdered or oil based coloring with chocolate to prevent this.
Water based coloring will seize chocolate. Need lecithin to mix with it to emulsify OR use an oil based food coloring
You can add canola oil in to save it after it has seized.
Use gel color
White chocolate is a confection not actual cocoa..
I suggest gel colouring or drying stuff like crushed freeze dried strawberries to achieve your desired colour. As others have said, water and chocolate *really* don’t mix.
If you mix in a little shortening or oil you can save this!
I find candy melts that are pre dyed much easier to use and you can melt them in the microwave.
Because the water is making the cocoa butter seize up
Try using oil based food color. I was able to buy some online. The brand name I was able to buy is Chefmaster.
I’ve made this mistake before and it’s so annoying. Good tips on this thread!!!
Based on your comments it might be :
1. Water / moisture – make sure that the steam from your double broiler is not going over the bowl
2. Low quality chocolate chips
3. You might have over cooked it / the temp was too hot
4. Use an oil/gel based food coloring
Depending on the goal you want, you can save this by adding:
Whipping Cream = Ganache output
Any Neutral oil = just smooth melted chocolate
Worked with chocolate a lot before (making bonbons and truffles too, as well as with baking). 100% this is because it is a water based food colouring. Even the smallest drop of water will cause your chocolate to seize like this.
While it is technically possible to bring it back with additional oil and an emulsifier, particularly if it is a compound chocolate (uses lecithin + oil rather than cocoa butter), I would advise starting again. You will never get the original consistency of the chocolate back and it will always be a little bit more oily. If it is a real chocolate it will also be very difficult to temper as the water interrupts crystallization.
You’ll need to either use oil based food colouring, or what is more common commercially – blend a pigment powder into cocoa butter and use that.
You need to use either powdered colouring or you can get special colourings for chocolate that are oil based, not water. I learned this the hard way too by doing exactly what you have done
As a lot of people have said it’s because of the water in the dye. If you use powdered or gel based, make sure it says it’s lipo-soluble. There is both powders that also only is for water based products.
Don’t throw it away tho, you could still chop it down and use in cookies. We normally did that with messed up chocolates at the bakery I worked at. Worked perfectly as long as it isn’t burned 🙂
The moisture in the food coloring causes this. Youneed powdered food coloring.
I always use the powder one it works everytime:^)
Along with using the right coloring for it make sure to temper the chocolate correctly. Helps it
It’s definitely the food colouring, also a little tip as well that using a wooden spoon (I know you haven’t here) can cause the chocolate to seize like this too as it’s porous and can harbour water in the wood for quite some time 🙂
Just a question, what were you going to make with the melted chocolate?
This happened to me when I used poor quality white chocolate. When I used some from Germany, it stayed melted.
There is fat soluble food coloring available on Amazon and probably other places too!