Chocolate melting with microwave and reheating when set

Hello everybody,

In our bakery we are using melted chocolate for donuts dipping.

Normally we use chocolate melter for melting chocolate. Some times the staff uses microwave oven for melting (simply keeping inside the machine & melting it). 

1. Is it safe to melt the chocolate in microwave (simple microwaving).

2. Is it ok to reheat the chocolate once it became hard.

Your SOP calls for melting it in a proper melter?

Why does the staff "sometimes" think it better to melt in a microwave.

My thoughts on microwaves as a former chef is not good - they should all be baseball batted and tossed in the garbage.

Three things to consider.

• Microwaving chocolate is much less controlled, it's actually possible to burn it!
• Chocolate is well known as being a risk for Salmonella.  Regular melting and reheating may mean it gets to great temperatures for bacterial growth without getting to lethal temperatures.
• Melting chocolate without tempering it means the crystal structure changes and the resulting coated product will be dull.  If left, eventually it will "bloom" (have a whitish colouring.)

So if you do go ahead, you'd need to control all of the above in some way.

Along with chocolate we are also using flavored coatings also for donut dipping.

The company representatives who came for demo preparation showed the similar way, thats why staff blindly following the method (melting inside the microwave). 

Instructed & recomended the usage of chocolate meltor for the prupose

Hi 

Chocolate temperature needs to be very carefully monitored.

To avoid chocolate blooming but also the even coating of chocolate applied to the donuts (to ensure nutritional consistency too).

Reheating is not a good practice so wouldn't recommend, instead keep and monitor the constant temperature using water baths -Bain Marie with temperature dial control.

Hope this helps?

IAFP has a good review of salmonella controls in chocolatebut I'm unsure where that would be controlled, incoming or by lethality:  https://jfoodprotect...-028X-40.10.718

What we're missing to give you the best help for your business is to ask why is your staff sometimes using the microwave? Easier? Saving time on cleaning? Small quantities only?

IAFP has a good review of salmonella controls in chocolatebut I'm unsure where that would be controlled, incoming or by lethality:  https://jfoodprotect...-028X-40.10.718

 

What we're missing to give you the best help for your business is to ask why is your staff sometimes using the microwave? Easier? Saving time on cleaning? Small quantities only?

Why using microwave sometimes is easier & taking small quantity required to dip donut & easy to clean after that. No need to wait the meltor to turn on...

Hi Sawad,

As per my experience within a small confectionery shop, the confectioners are practicing the same. Since they need small quantity of melted chocolate to decorate or coating. Since it is a small shop and the finished products are properly stored in chillers also it is moving very fast to customer(short shelf life). So I couldnot find any microbial, food poisoning issues.

Incase, If the production place have handle high risk foods (ie: raw meat, raw poultry, raw fish etc) the chances of cross contamination and risks are very high. So I prefer that reheating and melting chocolate inside a microwave not to be entertained and it should be monitored properly to avoid microbial growth.

Why using microwave sometimes is easier & taking small quantity required to dip donut & easy to clean after that. No need to wait the meltor to turn on...

Okay, so then figure out why you're using the melter and apply the same standards to microwaving and validate. Do you have minimum temps to reach? Heating and cooling times? If your microbial issues are controlled upstream it shouldn't matter. In  the water activity of chocolate is low enough that you don't need to worry about proliferation of organisms, so you can heat and cool as much and as slowly as you like, it's upstream contamination or contamination from added ingredients that would be the control from the FS perspective.

Regarding OP, It might also be logical to acquire some actual microbiological data somewhere along the line. I guess this is currently not done at all ?.

Hi Sawad,

As per my experience within a small confectionery shop, the confectioners are practicing the same. Since they need small quantity of melted chocolate to decorate or coating. Since it is a small shop and the finished products are properly stored in chillers also it is moving very fast to customer(short shelf life). So I couldnot find any microbial, food poisoning issues.

 

Incase, If the production place have handle high risk foods (ie: raw meat, raw poultry, raw fish etc) the chances of cross contamination and risks are very high. So I prefer that reheating and melting chocolate inside a microwave not to be entertained and it should be monitored properly to avoid microbial growth.

Our confectionery is well separated from other areas. Only confectionery pdts are handling. After dipping direct storage in the chiller display & using only for 2 or 3 days.

Regarding OP, It might also be logical to acquire some actual microbiological data somewhere along the line. I guess this is currently not done at all ?.

We give for food test test to the external labs every month (items selecting randomly). Research articles regarding the chocolate are plenty available but on the chocolate coated foods are not common

We give for food test test to the external labs every month (items selecting randomly). Research articles regarding the chocolate are plenty available but on the chocolate coated foods are not common

Salmonella is the most obvious safety threat (ie post 3).

Sadly, the usual testing tends to only protect against gross contamination but is nonetheless, IMO, better than nothing.