Emulsifiers in chocolate

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Permalink Reply by HughD on January 20, 2009 at 6:55pm

Honest question?
Simple answer.

lecithin sticks to the non-fat particles in chocolate, making it easier for the fat particles to coat them.
The reasons why lecithin make the fat stick better has to do with simple chemistry (Hydrophobic/Hydrophilic interations).

In particular, the tiny sugar crystals can contain very very small amounts of water which make them harder to coat with fat. So where you have more sugar, like in milk chocolate, and more other components (like milk powder - again minuite amounts of water) it can be good to add a bit of lecithin. Some purists say lecithin is a 'pollutant,' but it's not that simple.
Because lecithin is very efficient at what it does, only tiny amounts are needed to have an effect. And when carefully used, it is completely undetectable by flavour. Used judiciously, it has its place in the finest of fine chocolates.

Of course, fat will still stick to the non-fat particles, but less efficiently, without lecithin.

What I think is unfortunate is when too much is used and you can taste it. But usually only the usual suspects will do this. And they tend to due to practical realities of keeping the water content of massive bulk stored sugar and milk powder, very low.

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Permalink Reply by Robert Shea on February 20, 2009 at 5:18am

Unfortunately, lecithin is typically used with an eye toward stability and as a cheap alternative to additional processing (smaller particles have greater surface area within the same mass and thus create amore stable product).

Lecithin makes the chocolate a lot easier to work with though more likely to sieze. It increase the shelflife of truffles type products by decreasing water activity and helping to maintain proper water/fat/solids dispersal.

Lecithin has many great uses, but I prefer chocolates that lack it, so I may add only when I deem appropriate. For thinning, I prefer to take the additional cocoa butter path.

cheers,

rob

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Permalink Reply by Brad Churchill on April 20, 2009 at 8:22pm

One other thing to note with regard to lecithin, is that it is a double-edged sword. Yes, it helps to thin chocolate out so that it flows better, but once a certain threshold is reached, it can also thicken the chocolate.

...just my 2 cents for what it's worth.

Brad.

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Permalink Reply by Robert Osgood on June 6, 2009 at 1:37am

I make small batches of chocolate, about 1 kg, from my own beans. I use lecithin as an emulsifier but not sure how much to use. Some say a pinch but how much is this? The lecithin I use is liquid. Is there a solid formulation?

Bob

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Permalink Reply by Theo brominum on June 12, 2009 at 4:20pm

As described above, lecithin molecules have one end that is water soluble ”hydrophilic” and another end that is oil soluble ”lipophilic". When lecithine is added to a chocolate mixture, the lecithin will cover the polar substances in the chocolate (like sugar and moisture) with his hydrophylic head attached to these components and its, hydrophobic tail reaching out to the to the fat phase.
So the hydrophilic particles become lipophylic. You can compare it with the egg yolk in mayonnaise. Only there we want to dissolve the fat in the water and not vice versa.

When you add to much lecithin (depending on your recipe >0.6%,0.7% ) to your chocolate a double layer of lecithin will be formed and the polar components which just became fat loving become polar again . At that moment the yield value of your chocolate will rise again and will even attract moisture from the environment. This is something that we don't want.

If you want to use lecithin, use it at a rate of 0.4-0.6% and add it at the end of your conching stage. If you add it from the beginning the moisture that is in your other raw materials will already be bound to your fat phase and will be difficult to evaporate.

By this mechanism a chocolate producer can save up to 5% of cocoa butter ( for a smal part of the price) that he would otherwise need to cover all the sugar particles with a fat layer. Also your chocolate will be better homogenized and more stable.

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