Candy Melts Sticking To Mold - What's Wrong? Pic Included
Sugar Work By acakedecorator Updated 10 Feb 2021 , 10:45pm by jchuck
I am going crazy trying to figure this out. I am making hot cocoa bombs and my candy melts keep coming out of the silicone mold as seen in the picture.
I have tried so many different things. The molds are clean and completely dry. I have melted them different ways to different temperatures. I have put some in the fridge and left some out to harden. As soon as I think I get it figured out it happens again.
Any ideas from anyone on what is going wrong?
wow that's a new problem for me -- when you say cocoa bombs though I've never made those either -- but I can tell you that chocolatiers either do not wash their molds or they use very mild soap and water -- you want a shiny mold to give a shiny chocolate -- wondering if the chocolate is in temper --
you say silicone, so it's a flexible mold? all my chocolate molds are rigid --
idk
From what I have read, candy melts don't need to be tempered since they don't really contain any cocoa butter? I am melting them low and slow, anyway.
Yes, these are flexible silicone molds. What is driving me nuts is that some are coming out completely fine, and the rest are coming out like this. There seems to be no rhyme or reason!
Quote by @-K8memphis on 1 hour ago
wow that's a new problem for me -- when you say cocoa bombs though I've never made those either -- but I can tell you that chocolatiers either do not wash their molds or they use very mild soap and water -- you want a shiny mold to give a shiny chocolate -- wondering if the chocolate is in temper --
you say silicone, so it's a flexible mold? all my chocolate molds are rigid --
idk
low and slow is great -- I almost always put the filled molds on the fridge to crisp up -- I'm wracking my brain -- is it possibly occurring in the same cavities?
I am, too!
No, that doesn't seem like the issue either. I had another mold identical to this one that chocolate almond bark was coming out fine from, so I tried a red one in that mold to see if it would come out. It did, so I thought I solved it. Then I filled that mold with the red and they all came out like in the picture. That's actually when I took the picture, I was so fed up.
Quote by @-K8memphis on 16 minutes ago
low and slow is great -- I almost always put the filled molds on the fridge to crisp up -- I'm wracking my brain -- is it possibly occurring in the same cavities?
what I learned about chocolate molds is they need to be shiny to produce shiny chocolates -- so maybe polish the cavities -- idk -- what about a couple drops of oil on a paper towel and rub it into each one? maybe
???
Ok my dear, when you say the molds are dry and completely clean... that, in a silicone mold is really hard to assure. Silicone, in opposition to hard molds does not have a polished surface. You may not realize that they might be a fat, calcium, etc. thin film, o even a tiny amount of humidity in the surface, so very small, that is hard to see by the human eye... but is affecting the way your product (because is not real chocolate!) crystalizes. Try to use the same mold using another color of candy melt (use a contrasting color please... not white!) that will tell you for sure if the problem is the mold or your candy melt.
If you ever put that mold in the dishwasher, or used a harsh soap or pad to clean it, that will for sure ruin the surface and/or leave a film on it. That will be easy to notice if the mold is dark colored or transparent... but in a white mold will be almost impossible to tell.
Let me know your findings.
I forgot to mention that there is always a chance to get a bad batch of candy melts... but you said you tried in a different mold and it turned out ok... then the the culprit is the mold!
No harsh soap of any kind. As Regina said, will leave a film you cannot see. I have used very hot water only to “wash” my silicone molds. Then sprayed with vinegar and shook. This removes any traces of grease. Turn upside down on a lint free cotton tea towel to dry. I keep my molds wrapped when not using.
Update:
What ended up working for the most part was rubbing a very thin layer of oil in each cavity. I completed the order of 200 and now will probably never have anything to do with hot cocoa bombs again, ha.
Thanks for all the replies.
hahahahahahaha--
(I was actually waiting for someone to thwack me 'cross the back of my head for attitude)
AND -- acakedecorator, THANK YOU for the update
(and not just because I won [thhwhack]
but because I/we always wonder 
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