How can it be so hard to melt chocolate??

[Teeki]

Ooh thanks Rouge, I'll remember that for next time!

I was wondering, was the butter really stuffing it up? The first three times I persisted with the butter, as per the recipe. I guess it was supposed to help make it smooth or something. But today I ditched it and it finally worked perfectly!

[LimeSlice]

No, the butter shouldn't have made any difference at all.

But you should definitley be able to get a low simmer out of a gas stove. Were you using the smallest element? Bad quality chocolate can also be a ***** to melt.
The main things though is water. Water ruins chocolate. So EVERYTHING has to be bone dry before you begin, and you need to make sure the bowl you are using fits the saucepan properly, so there is no steam coming up the sides of the bowl.

Glad you got there in the end!!

[Teeki]

I used the Cadbury melts. They're delish just on their own lol. I know it was a steam issue from the boiling water the first two times, no idea about the third time with the microwave but possibly it was too hot cos it had that yucky burnt smell.

I don't know about the stove top, but the bigger the flame the hotter it is right? It's strange, because you turn it on at the highest heat, and then turn it down. My last one was opposite, you turn it on and it's on low, then turn the knob until it's at the hottest. I dunno, it's strange!

[Kimbles01]

That's the thing Kimbles, they were choc melts! I have no idea why it failed so many times this time around when I've done it so often before.

Oh, weird then! I'm lazy though, I melt in the microwave for 1 min then stir, 1 min again and stir until it's melted.

[LimeSlice]

They have to work like that because you need that amount of gas to get them lit first off
There should be at least 2 different sizes to teh burners on your stove. The size of the circle in the centre will show you this. Usually there are 2 very small ones, one medium and one large. The smaller ones on low will give you a simmer.

When you use teh microwave you need to only have it on for 15-30 seconds max depending on its strength. Then you need to stir it, and put it on again. Personally, I loathe melting chocolate in the microwave, just a PITA. lol The stove you can set it there and forget about it.

[Teeki]

Hmm, I reckon I just need to spend some more time with the stove then. I think I used the middle sized one cos it was at the front, but there is a smaller one that might have worked better.

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[Nes]

I think you have actually cooked the chocolate instead of melting it. The wooden spoon also could be the culprit.

I usually use a glass bowl and metal spoon. Make sure you don't have too much water in the saucepan so that it doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl and produce too much heat. The water just needs to create steam to melt the chocolate. Also, make sure you keep stiring until the chocolate has melted.

Good luck!

[Rouge]

I thought the same thing. And for me it's happened when there are a combination of chocolates that require two different temperatures to melt.

Another thing to remember when melting chocolate in the microwave is that it keeps cooking. So stir for a bit before reheating. I melt chocolate all the time in the microwave and I generally have no trouble. I very rarely have issues with water causing the chocolate to seize even when using a double boiler. But I always use metal spoons too. When I did my chocolate decorating course we were advised to use glass jars in an electric frypan on a low heat half filled with water as a perfect way to melt and temper chocolate (as Onyx suggested).