choc dipped strawberries

[Alky]

After trying to post this yesterday twice and it indicated thank you for your post and both times nothing showed up on the board, I'll try one more time!! I attempted to dip strawberries in chocolate and would like to hear some tips from the experts on tried and true methods. What I did was to melt semi-sweet choc chips in the double boiler and added a tsp of shortening to thin. It still seemed too thick but I was afraid to add too much shortening incase it wouldn't set up. They did take quite a while to set up and I finally put them in the fridge. I also wanted to drizzle white choc over the top. What do you guys think??

[ewatkins]

I use the same "recipe" you did, but have to use a knife to scrape off the extra choc.so it's not too thick. Then I put them in the fridge to set up --I don't think room temp will work.

[Gail]

Alky,

The fact that you indicated it took a long time to set up makes me suspect you used too much shortening. They should not require refrigeration to set. Really, you just want enough to make the chocolate easy to stir and manageable. Next time, just add a bit at a time till you think you've reached that state. Once you've dipped, the chocolate should set in a matter of minutes. Normally, I put a huge sheet of waxed paper on my bread board and just line 'em up. By the time I'm done, the ones I started with initially have already set.

...but did they TASTE good? Hopefully it all worked out in the end.

Hmmm...since I posted, I see you got a differing answer. I should add that I'm not using chocolate chips, though I don't know that that would make an appreciable difference since I've used the chips for other coatings. Generally I just break off a hunk of Trader Joe's bittersweet chocolate off a bar, and melt it with a bit of shortening. As I work, it starts to get thick and lumpy, so I will occasionally have to melt in a bit more shortening to regain the consistency.

[This message has been edited by Gail (edited 05-14-2001).]

[Tiger]

I don't add anything to the chocolate. Just melt it in a double broiler. For Mother's day I made choc. covered strawberries, bananas and prezels. I did refrig. them. I used a mixture of chips and baking blocks.
I would be interested to know if others add anything. I did know you were suppose to add something to white choc.

[Meg O'C]

I do not add anything to the chocolate. I use large Ghirardelli (not sure if I spelled that correctly) chocolate bars (this is what my neighbor recommended the first time I made them). I just melt them slowly over low-medium heat in a double boiler. The consistency is just right.

I have heard of others adding cream to the melted chocolate.