Dessert

How to Melt Chocolate

by:
April  8, 2011

Oh no! That recipe calls, yet again, for melted chocolate. Do you really need to bust out the double boiler? No!

Watch as A&M break (the little blocks are your friends) and melt a bar of chocolate with a subtle but surefire method -- no burning here!

Shop the Story

This week's video was shot and edited by our buddy Drew Lavyne, the founder/director of Six Minute Stories and the producer of the super helpful Teach Me Sushi iPhone app -- and the new Teach Me Sushi Expert app (glimpses of both below).

Teach Me Sushi iPhone App      Teach Me Sushi Expert iPhone App

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • Jessie Kaye
    Jessie Kaye
  • Lesley
    Lesley
  • Bob Y
    Bob Y
  • deanna1001
    deanna1001
  • AntoniaJames
    AntoniaJames
Food52 (we cook 52 weeks a year, get it?) is a food and home brand, here to help you eat thoughtfully and live joyfully.

7 Comments

Jessie K. June 25, 2012
Oh this makes me so sad!! I was so excited to learn a new method. I really enjoy your other videos and have the utmost respect for the artistry of your cooking, but please educate yourself about the damage caused by using microwaves. A little bit of time savings isn't worth the cost of your health! http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/05/18/microwave-hazards.aspx
 
Lesley April 25, 2011
Why the parchment paper?
 
Bob Y. April 9, 2011
For over a month now, the embedded Vimeo video will not play from your site, If I go to the Vimeo site however, it plays perfectly. Bad link?
 
deanna1001 April 9, 2011
I would love to see you break a block of Callebaut chocolate into even pieces. I usually struggle with a large knife to break it up and the pieces are never even. That said, it still melts just fine in the micro...but there's no paper to rip or tear ;-(
 
AntoniaJames April 8, 2011
Thanks so much for posting this! I've always had trouble figuring out the nuances in the ripping vs. tearing technique. Your explanation and demonstration de-mystified that tricky step, brilliantly. ;o)
 
mrslarkin April 8, 2011
GREAT tip! Works with chocolate chips too!!
 
boulangere April 8, 2011
In culinary school, of course we were harangued to ALWAYS melt chocolate over a bain marie, NEVER in a microwave. And, of course, since grades were involved, we all followed that direction assiduously. Fast forward to one summer afternoon when I was rushing to get a huge batch of brownies for a special order into the oven before lunch rush. I threw the chocolates and butter into a square plastic container, tossed it in the microwave in one of those *I know what I'm doing* moments and hit 30 seconds on the keypad. Then I stepped out the back door to the art gallery next door. I was standing in the open doorway, when I caught a whiff of something burning. Not scorched, burning. I ran back, and smoke was pouring out of the microwave. How could that possibly be, I screamed to myself. I screamed something altogether different out loud. You see, I had hit *minutes*, not *seconds*. The charred mess had very nearly melted through the bottom of the plastic container. I still have it, and display it as a cautionary tale. Do I use a microwave to melt chocolate now? Of course. But I pay attention to my minutes and seconds.