Tessa Arias, Chef and Cookbook Author
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One of the first things we learned in my baking class in culinary school was how to temper chocolate.
I was SO excited to learn because it always really intimidated me.
Turns out, it’s actually easy. All it takes is a little practice, precision, and patience.
Learning how to temper chocolate is the key to shiny, smooth chocolate that snaps when you break it and stays firm at room temperature (no refrigeration required).
I’ll walk you through the exact temperatures, best chocolate to use, microwave and seeding methods, and how to fix common mistakes so your chocolate sets perfectly every time.
Reader Love
We made this today, for Valentine’s family activity. We had so much fun!
I tempered in microwave. Followed every step and it worked. Thank you so much. They turned out delicious and pretty. Thank you so much.
–
Sprinkle of Science
What does it mean to temper chocolate?
Tempering chocolate is the process of heating and cooling chocolate to specific temperatures so the cocoa butter forms stable crystals.
When properly tempered, chocolate:
- Sets firm at room temperature
- Looks shiny and smooth
- Snaps cleanly when broken
- Resists white streaks (fat bloom)
Without tempering, melted chocolate dries dull, soft, and streaky — and often needs refrigeration to stay firm.
I’ve included two methods for tempering chocolate in the recipe card below: stovetop and microwave.
Why & When to Temper Chocolate
If you’re dipping strawberries or making homemade candy like truffles or peanut butter cups, tempering gives you a professional finish, without adding stabilizers or refrigerating.
If you’re simply adding chocolate to brownies, mousse, or ganache, tempering is not necessary.
Two Rules for Melting Chocolate
These apply whether you’re melting or tempering.
1. Don’t Overheat It.
- Dark chocolate: never above 120°F
- Milk or white chocolate: never above 110°F
Overheating damages flavor and prevents proper crystal formation.
2. Keep Water Away.
Even a drop of water will cause chocolate to seize and turn grainy.
If your recipe includes butter, liqueur, or coffee, melt it together with the chocolate — not after.
Best Chocolate for Tempering
Use high-quality baking bars or couverture chocolate, NOT chocolate chips.
Good options (chop finely with a serrated knife):
Best option (no chopping required!):
DO NOT use chocolate chips. They contain stabilizers to hold their shape, which interferes with smooth tempering.
For a full breakdown, see my Chocolate in Baking Guide.
Do you need a thermometer?
Yes. I strongly recommend one.
Tempering is about precise temperature control. Guessing increases failure risk — and chocolate isn’t cheap.
A digital instant-read thermometer works perfectly.
Baking Success Tips
- Temper at least 16 ounces.
- Finely chop chocolate for even melting.
- Avoid glass bowls if possible, they retain heat longer.
- Work in a cool, low-humidity room.
- If chocolate thickens too much, gently rewarm to working temp.
- If temperature rises too high, add more chopped chocolate.
- Don’t refrigerate finished dipped items unless necessary.
Storage & Make-Ahead
Tempered chocolate can be reheated and re-tempered multiple times.
Store tempered chocolate creations at a cool room temperature in a dark dry environment. Do not refrigerate unless absolutely necessary.
FAQs
The process involves controlling the melting, cooling, and reheating of chocolate within specified temperature ranges depending on the kind of chocolate.
The goal of tempering chocolate is to ensure the development and longevity of Form V crystals, one of the six types of cocoa butter crystals.
This type of fat crystal is stable and contributes to the coveted textural properties of a delicious chocolate treat!
Maintaining and controlling the development of Form V crystals is also crucial to avoid the unpleasant white, chalky appearance that can form on chocolate when recrystallization occurs.
A double boiler is simply a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan filled with about an inch of simmering water.
You just want to make sure the bowl on top doesn’t touch the water.
This allows the chocolate to be melted gently by the heat.
You can use metal or glass bowls for the top part of the double boiler.
Glass will take longer to cool down as required to temper in Step 2.
I don’t recommend it. They contain added ingredients to help them hold their shape and have a lower concentration of cocoa butter, which will interfere with smooth tempering.
Yes, but not for tempering. The way to fix seized chocolate is completely counterintuitive. Stir in a little bit of melted butter, oil, or water back into the mixture. The fixed melted chocolate should only be used for chocolate sauce or hot chocolate and not for tempering.
Streaks usually mean the chocolate wasn’t fully tempered or the temperature went too high. Reheat gently, add more seed chocolate, and repeat the cooling process.
Dark chocolate should be worked at 88–90°F, milk chocolate at 85–87°F, and white chocolate at 82–84°F. These temperatures maintain stable crystals without melting them.
‘Chocolate’ candy melt products available at many stores produce a similar crunchy coating when dipped. However, most chocolate compound products aren’t actual chocolate because the cocoa butter has been replaced by hydrogenated industrial oils. They taste artificial and don’t provide the same satisfaction.
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Ingredients
- 16 ounces (454 grams) baking chocolate, finely chopped
Instructions
Tempering Chocolate by Seeding:
Tempering Chocolate by Seeding:
- In a double boiler, melt 2/3 of the chocolate, stirring often, until the thermometer registers around 115°F, but absolutely no higher than 120°F. If tempering milk or white chocolate, heat to 110°F. Remove from the double boiler. Make sure all equipment that comes in contact with the chocolate remains completely dry. Any water will cause the chocolate to seize.
- Gradually seed in the remaining chocolate to bring the temperature down, stirring vigorously and constantly. Stir until the temperature drops to 84°F. This can take some time, usually about 15 minutes, so just be patient – it will come down to temperature! A glass bowl will take longer to cool. Speed this process up by carefully placing the bowl of chocolate into an ice bath, making sure not to get ANY water in the chocolate.
- Reheat the chocolate briefly by placing the bowl back over the double boiler for 5 to 10 seconds at a time, stirring, until it reaches 89°F. This is the “working temperature.” Do not leave the chocolate over the water or let it exceed 91°F.
- You’re done! Test your temper by dipping a small piece of parchment into your chocolate. Let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes. The chocolate should be smooth and firm. If it’s streaky or runny, try stirring in more chocolate to the mixture to bring the temperature down further.
- Tempered chocolate can be tempered over and over again. You want to keep the working temperature of about 89°F when working with it. If it goes far below that temperature, set it back over the double boiler until it is 89°F again. If it goes much above that temperature, add more seed chocolate to drop the temperature.
Tempering Chocolate by Microwave:
Tempering Chocolate by Microwave:
- Put 2/3 of the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Melt at 50% power in 1-minute intervals, stirring between each interval, until melted and smooth. The chocolate should only be between 100 – 110°F.
- Add remaining chocolate in small amounts while stirring. Be sure that the pieces are completely melted before adding more.
- The chocolate will thicken and become cool, shiny, and smooth as you continue stirring and “seeding” it by adding additional small amounts. When it has reached the range 84-91°F, the chocolate will be tempered and ready to work with.
Notes
Fun Uses for Tempered Chocolate:
This post was originally published in 2013 and updated with more tips and new photos in 2020 and 2023. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Article Credits:
- Written by Tessa Arias
- Edited by Jessie Bruce, Master’s of Public Health Nutrition and Dietetics Candidate at UC Berkeley
Sources:
- Industrial Chocolate Manufacture And Use (2009). In Beckett S. T. (Ed.), (Fourth ed.). United Kingdom: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
- Amendola, J. (2002). Understanding Baking: The Art and Science of Baking (3rd Edition). Wiley
- Global Education US. VitalSource
- Brenner, M., Sorensen, P., & Weitz, D. (2020). Science and Cooking: Physics Meets Food, From Homemade To Haute Cuisine (First ed.). New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
- Lonchampt, P., & Hartel, R. W. (2006). Surface bloom on improperly tempered chocolate. European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology, 108(2), 159-168.
doi: Wiley - McWilliams, M. (2016). Foods (8th Edition). Pearson Education (US). VitalSource
- Reaver, A. (2021, Nov. 10). Lipids II – classification, function [Course Lecture]. Introduction and Application of Food Science, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States.
- Culinary Institute of America. (2022). Tempering Chocolate for Homemade Candy. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from CIA Foodies
Hi I had a question. Would I be able to use a mug warmer or an electric candle warmer to temper chocolate instead of the double boiler ?
Hi Samantha! We haven’t tried either of those, but I don’t see why not, as long as they reach the correct temperature! Please let us know how it goes if you give it a try 🙂
Hi.
Thank you for the lesson on tempering chocolate. What do you mean when you say, “If your recipe calls for liquid, such as butter, water, coffee, or liqueur, always melt it alongside the chocolate simultaneously.”? do you put it IN the bowl of chocolate while melting, or do you melt it separately, and if so, at what point do you add it to the melted chocolate?
Thank you so much!
Michelle
Hi Michelle! You’ll want to melt the liquid separately but at the same time as the chocolate. Is there a specific recipe you’re following? If so, it should state in the instructions when to add the chocolate to the liquid. I hope that helps!
Hi Tessa!
Thanks for all your notes on tempering.
Can I use the tempered chocolate on hot, nuts made toffees? Will the high temp of the toffees affect the tempered chocolates?
Thank you!
Hi Angela! We haven’t tried this chocolate on toffee’d nuts (if I’m understanding you correctly), though we have tried toffee bark! Sometimes some of the butter can separate from the toffee and concentrates on the top, which can cause your chocolate to not adhere to the toffee. Be sure to blot any butter you can see with paper towel before spreading the chocolate on top. You want the surface to be matte, not shiny. You could also have your toffee come to room temperature before adding the melted chocolate on top to ensure success. I hope that answered your question! Please let us know how it goes if you give it a try 🙂
Do you have a recipe to make Belgian chocolate sauce?
We don’t! Here’s a link to our Homemade Chocolate Sauce recipe if you’re interested though! https://handletheheat.com/homemade-chocolate-sauce/
Thank you so much but to make it quick and to use as a Belgian chocolate sauce is it possible just to melt Callebeaut callets and drizzle on ice cream or you prefer to mix heavy cream as well and make it ganache and then use it as a drizzle. I am just looking for a right way of it.
I honestly think that’s a personal preference. It really depends on how soft or hard you prefer the chocolate on top of your ice cream. Adding heavy cream will result in a softer, more fudge-like consistency, whereas using just the chocolate callets will result in a hardened chocolate. Hope that helps!
Just a question! After you tempered the chocolate and put it in a mold to set, should you put them in the fridge to harden or should you just gently let them sit and cool down at room temperature and avoid the fridge at all cost?
Hi Madeleine! Nope, anything made with tempered chocolate doesn’t require refrigeration 🙂 Tempered chocolate products will stay hard at cool room temperature. Hope that helps!
Great video and explanation. I use the microwave method and find that it doesn’t always set up and will bloom or be dull. I am using van leer chips and add the seed chocolate until 94 degrees. I know you say not to use chips but was hoping these were better quality. Should i continue to add seed all the way to 89 degrees? I seem to have more problems on warmer days. Also the chocolate will pop off my toffee bark when i break it apart. Any tips? Thanks so much!
When using the microwave to temper chocolate, you want to your chocolate (after adding the seed chocolate) to reach a range of 84°-91°F, so I’d continue to add seed chocolate until you’re in that range.
For toffee bark, sometimes some of the butter can separate from the toffee and concentrates on the top, which can cause your chocolate to not adhere to the toffee. Be sure to blot any butter you can see with paper towel before spreading the chocolate on top. You want the surface to be matte, not shiny. You could also have your toffee come to room temperature before adding the melted chocolate on top to ensure success. Hope that helps!
Thank you!
Is it possible to temper carob? If I buy carob pods, form it into a “chocolate”state then add cocoa butter to it, could that be tempered? Or what do you suggest I do? I don’t eat chocolate but I can have carob.
I actually haven’t tried tempering carob before, so I can’t say for sure!
Can I use Belcolade extra dark chocolate 72% wafers? Also bittersweet or milk?
Or
Belgian Chocolate wafers? Also white, milk and semi sweet?
I am in Ontario, Canada
Thank you
Riss
Belcolade should be fine! I’d double check on the Belgian chocolate wafers-most wafers don’t need to be tempered; however, couverture wafers do need to be tempered. Even though most couverture chocolate is already pre-tempered, melting it actually destroys the tempered state of the chocolate, so re-tempering will be necessary. Hope that helps!
Is tempering almond bark done the same way?
I actually don’t prefer almond bark in recipes. Almond bark is an artificial chocolate made with vegetable fats, whereas regular dipping chocolates are made with cocoa butter. From what I understand, almond bark does not need to be tempered as it’s actually produced for melting-it can simply be melted in the microwave or on the stove and used immediately.
I watched a lot of video, read a lot of explanation but failed to understand it, you’re explanation is so detailed I finally get it, thank you very much ❤️
Wonderful! So glad you found this helpful 🙂
I have a question about tempering chocolate in a microwave. So, there is no need to bring the temperature up just like you did when using a double-boiler?
Correct, just make sure the temperature stays between 84-91˚; otherwise you will have to reheat 🙂
I’m so glad you said to bring it up to 115-120 degrees in a double boiler and 100-110 degrees in the microwave. Other places have said to bring it up no further than 95 degrees with milk chocolate and 91 degrees for white chocolate. If the temperature goes above the temp you suggested for each chocolate and you have to add more to cool it down, is that chocolate then still tempered or do you have to bring it lower than 84 and then raise it to 84-91 degrees for it to be in temper again?
Tempered chocolate can be tempered over and over again. As long as you get the temp back down to 89˚ when you add the seed chocolate, it will be fine 🙂
Did I miss the temperature requirement difference between microwave vs double boiler for dark chocolate? I thought it was a keep it between 115-120 for either method.