Chopping up a big chunk of semi sweet chocolate aiming for bits the size of chocolate chips and what I end up with is a mix of chocolate powder, some chip size pieces and lots of big chunks.
Anyone have any clever tips on chocolate chopping. I was thinking of a colander with chip size holes but haven’t seen any around that suits this need.
Thanks!
For a large block like the 5kg ones that callebaut makes, first drop the wrapped block on the floor or whack it against the edge of a table a few times to break it up into manageable pieces. Then use a large knife to cut down the corners of all the large chunks.
Sometimes I sift things through a sieve to get rid of the dust then a perforated hotel pan to get the right size chunks.
For flakes of chocolate in ice cream, I melt chocolate, spread thin on parchment, and freeze, then crumble into freshly spun ice cream. No need to temper if it’s going in a frozen product.
But yes, trying to get uniform chip sizes from a large block is a pain and often not very successful. I only buy chocolate in small pieces anymore (feves, rondo, pistoles, anything except blocks!)
I looked at the perforated hotel pans, in the pictures none of the holes looked the size of ch chips. Do they come with dif size perforations? And I like your idea of switching to more manageable sizes for future orders.
There are bigger and smaller, but none quite as big as regular chocolate chips. Look around the kitchen for something the right size. Wire cooling rack? Clean fryer basket?
I saw a pastry chef suggests using a scissors for cutting up the bar.
Then there is the usual way of freezing the chocolate, putting them in a ziplock bag, and beat with a rolling pin with a tea towel.
If you want really regular size, another way is to melt the chocolate, and pipe them the size you want on a wax paper.
I like the way you think. I’m off to the basement of old households (5!) to scavenge.
