Making chocolate shavings
The easier sibling of curls, and the one where cold chocolate is an advantage rather than a problem.
Shavings are fine flakes rather than formed curls, and they are what a cold block gives when you try to make curls from it. Treating that as the objective rather than the failure makes the technique trivial.
A microplane or the fine side of a box grater over cold chocolate produces them faster than a peeler does, and they scatter more evenly over a cake or a dessert than curls do. Cold is the requirement rather than the enemy.
- What it is for
- To produce fine chocolate flakes for scattering as a finish.
- Working temperature
- 12–18°C — Colder than curls want. The chocolate should be firm enough to fracture rather than to shear.
- Works with
- Chocolate shavings, Dark chocolate
Method
1. Chill the block for fifteen minutes so it is firm and brittle.
2. Grate over a microplane or the fine face of a box grater, directly onto the dish.
Where people go wrong: Grating onto a board and transferring, which melts the shavings against warm hands.
When it goes wrong
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Shavings clump together | Warmed by handling. | Grate directly onto the dish and do not touch them. |
Related
Works with
- Chocolate shavingsThe easier sibling of curls, and the one where cold chocolate is an advantage rather than a problem.
- Dark chocolateThe easier sibling of curls, and the one where cold chocolate is an advantage rather than a problem.
Covered in
- Making decorationsThe easier sibling, where cold chocolate is an advantage.
Sources
- ChocolateHQ editorial synthesis — ChocolateHQ(citation identity confirmed; passage not re-read)