• To liquify chocolate in solidified (flake) form: dessert and milk chocolate at 45-50°C and white chocolate at 45-47°C.
• Liquefaction on an industrial scale should be carried out in water-jacketed tanks equipped with a stirrer (stirring speed 12-15 rpm), and on an artisan scale – in a water bath.
• The liquefied chocolate mass should be tempered on tempering equipment and, on the artisanal scale, it should be tempered manually (on a marble table or on a water bath).
• Use the tempered chocolate according to its intended use: forming bars, praline shells, coating pastry, bakery or confectionery products.
• Properly tempered chocolate is characterised by its brittleness, crunchiness and gloss, enhancing the sensory qualities and attractiveness of the finished products in which it is used.

Liquid form: Store by stirring in water-jacketed tanks at 40-45°C. Shelf life of liquid dessert mass at 40°C – up to 6 weeks from production date.

Solidified form (flakes): store in a dry, ventilated room, free from foreign odours, away from sources of heat, at 12-18°C, RH <75%, in unopened packaging for 12 months.

Tempering

Terravita semi-finished chocolates are available in liquid form (in a tank) and as solidified flakes. The silvery tarnish that occurs on their surface is not a quality defect. It is the result of a production process in which the tempering of semi-finished chocolate is deliberately not used. This product is intended for further technological processing in the production plants of the recipients. Only there is the chocolate in liquid form (after the flakes have melted) subjected to the tempering process.

The tempering process involves a cycle of cooling and reheating the liquid chocolate mass. This is done in order to obtain a stable structure of cocoa butter crystals, the main fat that forms the structure of chocolate. Thanks to a properly carried out tempering process, the chocolate is sensorially attractive: crunchy, glossy and not melting in the hand. For this reason, each of the potential applications of chocolate requires a tempering process in order to obtain a durable and high-quality end product.

The temperature ranges in the different phases of the tempering process differ between the types of chocolate masses: dark, milk and white. These differences are due to the raw material composition of the chocolates, including the composition of the fat phase. In the case of dark and dessert chocolates, this is:

• Liquefaction of chocolate from solidified form: 45-50°C.
• Cooling (crystallisation of cocoa fat in stable and unstable form takes place): 27,7-28,8°C
• Slight heating to obtain only the stable crystalline form of the cocoa fat – tempered mass, ready for use: 31,1-32°C.

Rheology (liquidity) of chocolate

Terravita semi-finished chocolates, depending on their application, are offered in several variants with different rheologies, expressed through a combination of viscosity and liquefaction limit parameters. Moderate and high liquefaction standards, characterised by low viscosity, are dedicated to coating. The lower liquefaction of the chocolate mass, expressed in terms of high viscosity, allows the forming of bars, praline shells, drageering, as well as being used as an additive for mousses or cream masses based on whipped cream or mascarpone.

To meet individual customer needs, in the category of semi-processed chocolates, we offer tailor-made solutions through the development of individual recipes and chocolate rheologies, adapted to specific applications.