I was a trainee chef in a 3-star restaurant, and there I had to temper the chocolates starting from the blending.
Well, it may sound fun and games, but it's clearly not! Even I thought that toying with bigger machines and making chocolates from scratch would be exciting, but little did I know that it actually takes a lot!
Mostly, when it comes to cleaning a chocolate tempering machine! Because when you temper the blocks of your chocolate, it’s supposed to adhere to the surface, and thus, removing them later becomes challenging.
Hence, the cleaning process of a chocolate tempering machine is intricate, and if that's constraining you to start with your tempering machine, then today's article is for you!
Let me share with you how to clean a chocolate tempering machine and a few crucial facts that you need to know!
Chocolate Tempering Basics
Accept my apologies, but I like to be a little precise! So here before spilling the main topic, I would like to provide some necessary information that might help eliminate any pertinent concern or question of yours!
First thing first, let's see what's tempering!
Tempering is basically a process where two liquids or fluids are prone to correspond with each other harboring the same temperature before blending them entirely.
This is actually when you try to keep the eggs from getting boiled or cooked while retaining your candy's glossy appearance.
Now, typically tempering is used in chocolate. As if you are talking about kitchen tempering, then it more likely refers to candies or chocolates.
It would help if you tempered to hold the glossy and polish avatar on your chocolate, which eventually makes it look more alluring and luscious.
Speaking of chocolate tempering, as I have mentioned before, it has inherent intricacy that can be eliminated by knowing the right process.
Besides, it requires an experiment or at least a conscious mind with excellent reading and monitoring skills.
So, it generally involves heating up at first then needs chilling to get stable. The term "crystallization," which brings the sheen and gloss, happens during the tempering process.
You will have a thermometer to control the temperature for different tempering aspects depending on the chocolate type, shape, storage, and production.
How to Clean a Chocolate Tempering Machine
Well, the best chocolate tempering machine is considered as an art. And the reason why it is categorized in this class is because of the sensitivities and loopholes it yields.
Meaning, when it comes to cleaning the tempering machine, you will need to have enough knowledge regarding each of the parts of your tempering machine and how they work individually.
So, when you want to clean your tempering machine, you might think that a squeegee and a dishwasher will help. Sadly, it doesn't! This is a baffling machine where all the parts are involved in the tempering process.
Thus, most of its parts get coated with chocolate remnants. You will probably need to dissect each part or separate them to clean them one by one.
In fact, when I was doing my research, I saw a practical demonstration of cleaning a chocolate tempering machine where you need to disconnect the tubes, conveyor, tanks, and every part with chocolate excess.
The Cleaning Complexities
Now, first thing first, it's a risky thing to do! Because once you split up all of them, recollecting them or keeping them in their right place will feel downright intimidating and complex.
It's also advised not to dissect them all if you don't have any experience or helping hand.
Another complication is that when you temper your chocolate, it sticks to your machine organs' internal walls such as the pump and removing them properly becomes impossible sometimes.
However, if you manage to extract them properly and clean them well, then it can be helpful, yet as I have mentioned above, it comes with innate drawbacks!
The Cleaning Process - Step by Step
Let’s have a glance on the cleaning process of a chocolate tempering machine step by step!
Step 1: Cleaning the Mixer
· Remove the mixer
· set-up a water connection into the nozzle
· Place the tank sensor
· Turn on: prewarm, mixer, pump buttons
· Turn on the water and clean the tank using a paintbrush
· Connect the release point with a pipe and open the valve to discharge
Step 2: Cleaning the Nozzle
- Clean it with the water without inserting more than 5cm of pipe inside
- Keep the release valve open
- Now open the upper panel, remove and clean the nozzle
- Replace the Nozzles
- Extract the screws that shelter the screw pump
- Remove the screw pump
- Close the screw holes
- Clean the screw pump cylinder with water (open and clean the cylinder)
- Replace the screw pump (fix it with the upper screw)
- Now close the upper panel
Note: Before using the tempering machine, turn on the prewarm button for 5 hours minimum.
So, these are how a tempering machine or a Selmi tempering machine is cleaned!
However, there is a method called cocoa butter cleaning, where you have to inject the butter into specific places with chocolate excess and then apply heat to melt them.
After they get melted, the chocolate debris automatically softens and comes out! It is not that cost-efficient and creates higher effluent load, yet this is an effective way to clean your tempering machine.
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Alright! That’s a wrap! I hope the article was helpful. Indeed, the cleaning process is demanding and seeks excessive labor and time, yet if you learn to do it by yourself, then it will be easier to deal with the machine when money is short.
Make sure you share your cleaning experiences or if you have implemented other techniques that I haven't mentioned!