Chocolate Series | How to Dip Chocolates by Hand

Once you get the hang of tempering chocolate, the world is your oyster, in terms of design and decoration. Shapes can be formed, decorations can be piped, and all sorts of confections can be dipped. In a previous post on simple ganache, truffles were rolled in cocoa powder to finish them. To finish truffles the professional way, they need to be coated with a thin layer of tempered chocolate. This protects the center, giving products a longer shelf life, and also makes them look pretty.

Dark Chocolate Truffles Topped With Cocoa Nibs

Equipment Needed:

kitchen towel
bowl of tempered chocolate
appropriate dipping forks
parchment paper
a paper weight (to prevent the parchment from moving)
desired topping(s)
room temperature truffles or confections

Directions:

1. To begin, place your bowl of tempered chocolate onto a towel so it is resting at an angle, with the chocolate reaching the rim of the bowl, as shown below.

This angle makes it easier to dip, if you don't have a filled-to-the-brim bowl of chocolate.

2. Toss a truffle into the tempered chocolate and submerge with your dipping tool. For round truffles, use the circular dipping tool. Scoop up the truffle from underneath and begin to bounce up and down, using the viscosity of the tempered chocolate, to pull off the excess from truffle. It will help to just touch the surface of the chocolate on the downward motion. Click on the picture to see more detailed notes.

3. Before moving over to the parchment paper, catch a bit of the drip on the edge of the bowl that may remain underneath the truffle (this avoids dripping everywhere). Move over to the parchment, hold your hand still, and turn directly over in a quick and steady motion. The truffle should easily release from the dipping tool. If you take too long, the truffle may stick to the tool. Quickly re-dip before the chocolate sets.

4. Once you have placed the truffle on the parchment paper, be careful to not move it. Sprinkle on a topping, if desired, while the surface is still wet. This will make the topping adhere to the truffle. Alternatively, you can line a sheet with a smooth layer of your chosen topping and rest the dipped truffle directly onto the layer of topping. Let set and then remove the truffles. This is a faster method and will give you an even coating of topping on the top of your truffles.

Here I have sprinkled the surface with raw cacao nibs. To obtain a shiny surface on raw cacao nibs, place them on a tray, in a very low oven for 30 seconds at a time. You do not want to heat them or burn them. Just stir them around and take them out as soon as they have a nice, dark sheen.

Dark Chocolate Truffle Topped With Cocoa Nibs

5. If you discover any bubbles, you can gently poke them before the chocolate sets. Bubbles occur when the tempered chocolate is too cold/thick, or you may have incorporated too much air during the tempering process. Warm the chocolate to the proper range and continue. While dipping, remember to keep the chocolate at the proper working temperature, by occasionally placing it over the bain marie. Stir often and scrape down the sides of the bowl, to keep the temperature of the entire mass consistent throughout. Click on the picture to see more detailed notes.

Troubleshooting Bubbles

6. The goal is to have a very thin and even layer of chocolate on the truffle, with a minimal "foot". A foot is the base/underside of the truffle. You don't want globs of chocolate on the bottom, as it doesn't look as refined. If you wind up with a mess, pick the chocolate up quickly and re-dip it before it sets. Click on the picture to see more detailed notes.

Poorly Dipped Truffle