Easy Ganache Recipe | Smooth, Silky Chocolate Ganache
Mix two simple ingredients together - chocolate and cream! An amazing and breath-taking thing happens, resulting in a delicious, smooth, silky and luxurious taste sensation that is Ganache.
Initially the thought of making chocolate ganache may seem hard even intimidating. Making chocolate ganache at home is super simple and easy, once you get the hang of it! I must admit in the beginning, I had my fair share of attempted fails, making seized chocolate, split or grainy ganache, mostly due to being impatient! (Ssssshh, being impatient still happens every now and then, but…) I have now mastered it and know the solutions to remedy it if it does go wrong, I have made it so many times over the years and all these years later and I am still amazed that two simple ingredients can be so delicious, when mixed together and so versatile. So how could I manage to mess up two simple ingredients?
It wasn’t until I understood the nature of chocolate and learnt how unpredictable it can be, did some troubleshooting and worked through the niggly chocolate problems. That I could truly begun to understand how to make ganache.
JUMP TO RECIPE
What Is Chocolate Ganache?
Ganache can be used for doing chocolate drips, filling a cake - layer cakes, used under fondant, making truffles, for a glaze, added to buttercream, spread or piped. It is super versatile!
The basic chocolate ganache recipe, is cream heated up, then poured over chocolate. The heat from the cream melts the chocolate, then the two ingredients are stirred until smooth. Other flavourings can be added, or butter can to make it extra shiny or corn syrup to help stabilise it
It is great for using on sculptured cakes, since it helps to hold the structure of the cake. Ganache can be made from white, milk or dark chocolate and flavours can be easily added to it. White chocolate also has the added bonus of being able to colour it.
Whipping chocolate ganache, elevates the texture which enables it to become like pillowy clouds melting in your mouth. Whipped ganache is great for coating cakes, layering cakes, and patisserie style desserts.
The great thing that I have also discovered, adding Ganache to buttercream makes the buttercream super stable in hot weather, therefore it does not melt quickly. Which is great for outside events in the summer! Adding corn syrup to the whipping cream (heavy cream), when making the ganache further helps to keep the ganache stabilised. Check out my Chocolate Ganache Buttercream recipe.
Use Good Quality Chocolate
Using good quality chocolate is essential to making ganache. Chocolate that is at least 50% cocoa solids or higher up to 70% is good. Using chocolate with a lower percentage will result in ganache that is either too sweet, or chocolate with too high a percentage, may seize the ganache. I like to use a semi-sweet chocolate containing 55% cocoa solids. Semi-sweet chocolate is a nice alternative since it is sweeter than bittersweet or dark chocolate varieties.
Important note - Do not use chocolate chips, because they will not melt properly. If you absolutely must use chocolate chips, make sure it is a really good quality chocolate.
Make sure you use cream with a high fat content at least 35% - 36% - whipping cream, heavy cream or double cream. The more fat content a cream contains, the more stable it is likely to be when it is whipped.
Ratio - Chocolate:Cream Rule
The chocolate ganache recipe can differ depending on the chocolate you are using and what you want to use it for. I also advise using scales to weight your ingredients, using cup measurements can greatly effect how your ganache turns out. Here is a basic rule of thumb of the Ratio -Chocolate to Cream Rule.
If you are looking for thicker ganache consistency, use equal parts of chocolate and cream at a 1:1 ratio ie. 8oz chocolate use 8oz whipping cream. This creates a very soft spreadable coating for a cake, chocolate drip or for a glaze.
Dark Chocolate Ganache: Making ganache at a 2:1 ratio - Which means however much cream you use double the amount of chocolate i.e. 8oz chocolate use 4 oz of cream.
White Chocolate Ganache: When making white chocolate ganache much less cream is required, this is because white chocolate is made up of a much higher content of cocoa butter and milk solids, with no cocoa solids, Therefore it needs to be made at a 3.1 OR some people use 4:1 ratio i.e. 3:1 = 9oz chocolate use 3 oz of cream - Which is triple the amount of white chocolate to a single ratio of cream. I do however, prefer to use a ratio of 3.5:1 based on the white chocolate I use, and taking into account the heat in Thailand, 3.5:1 ratio is more stable against the heat, therefore I use i.e 10.5 oz of white chocolate to 3 oz of cream. Making white chocolate ganache sometimes takes a bit of experimenting to get it right.
White Chocolate Ganache: 3.5:1 Ratio
Milk Chocolate Ganache: The ratio for milk chocolate ganache is 2.5:1 i.e. 10oz chocolate use 4oz of cream. I personally tend not to make milk chocolate ganache much, I also didn’t have many order requests for it. People were generally more than happy with dark chocolate (using semi-sweet chocolate) ganache or white chocolate ganache.
Whipped Ganache
Whipping chocolate ganache, elevates the texture which becomes like pillowy clouds melting in your mouth. Whipped ganache is great for layering cakes, and patisserie style desserts.
Whipped white chocolate Ganache
3 Ways To Make Ganache
Note: If you are not using chocolate coins or smaller pieces of chocolate -Always chop the chocolate as fine as possible. This will help the chocolate to melt quicker. Use a glass or metal bowl NOT plastic.
Option 1. Simmer (NOT BOILING) whipping cream (heavy cream) in a sauce pan until you just start to see bubbles or ripples around the edge of the pot. when this stage has been achieved, pour the cream over the chopped chocolate. Let is sit for 5 minutes before stirring.
Option 2: Melt the chocolate over a Bain Marie (double boiler). Heat the cream separately then pour the cream over the melted chocolate.
Option 3: This option can be tricker, therefore if you are a newbie working with chocolate or making ganache for the first time, try one of the first two methods first. Melting the chocolate in a microwave - when melting chocolate in a microwave, you have to be very careful not to burn the chocolate. Once chocolate is burned it can not be save. I recommend melting the chocolate in 5 - 10 second intervals, check then stir, the heat from the bowl will also help to melt the chocolate, so keep an eye on how hot the bowl is getting as well. You may find that the heat from the bowl is enough to finish melting the chocolate.
3 Ways To Troubleshoot Chocolate Ganache
Chocolate Not Melting: If the chocolate is not melting probably, it may have not have been chopped fine enough or the cream was not warm enough. If you find yourself in this situation, the best and safest option is to place it over a bain marie (double boiler), stirring the ganache constantly and carefully, for the chocolate to melt and the consistency to become smooth. Do not let the base of the bowl touch the simmering water.
Chocolate Seized: When chocolate seizes, it becomes gritty and is a solid mass of chocolate. Unfortunately, when it has reached this stage, it will not melt! One of the reasons chocolate seizes is when it has come into contact with water. DO NOT let even a drop of water touch the chocolate or enter the bowl! Here is a great article on overheated and seized chocolate.
Greasy or Grainy: Use a glass or metal bowl. Use good quality chocolate; cheap chocolate chips result in a grainy ganache. Use a metal spoon, or small rubber spatula to stir the chocolate and warm cream together. You can use a whisk, but do not whip vigorously, the aim is not to incorporate air, but to combine the chocolate and cream together only. Whisking or over stirring at this stage could also cause the fat (cocoa butter) to separate even further and turn greasy as the delicate chocolate melts. If the fat separates and it becomes greasy, stop mixing, allow it to cool for a few minutes and then stir to get the cocoa butter and milk solids to re-combine and comes back together.
How To Store Ganache
Depending on which temperature climate you live in, ganache is fine to be stored at room temperature for two days, in the fridge for two week or frozen for 3+ months. When storing be sure to cover and seal it or store it in an air tight container. When removing from the freezer thaw the ganache at room temperature and ganache away!
I hope you found this post helpful. If you have any tips of your own on how you make (or save) ganache, I would love to hear your comments!
Dark Chocolate & White Chocolate Ganache Recipe
Ingredients
- 20 oz Dark Chocolate (good quality semi-sweet chocolate that is 50% - 70% cocoa solid).
- 10 oz Whipping cream (heavy cream)
- Makes: Approx 2lb
- 10.5 oz White Chocolate (good quality)
- 3 oz Whipping cream (heavy cream)
- Makes: 13.5 oz
Instructions
- Chop chocolate into small to fine pieces (if not small already).
- In a saucepan, simmer whipping cream (heavy cream). Do not over boil the cream.
- Pour cream over chocolate. Let it sit for 5 minutes before stirring.
- Whisk gently to combine cream and chocolate, do not whisk vigorously to incorporate air.
- Cover surface with cling film (saran wrap) and allow ganache to set up to peanut butter consistency. Then stir to a creamy consistency before apply a cake.
- Chop chocolate into small to fine pieces (if not small already).
- In a saucepan, simmer whipping cream (heavy cream). Do not over boil the cream.
- Pour cream over chocolate. Let it sit for 5 minutes before stirring.
- Whisk gently to combine cream and chocolate, do not whisk vigorously to incorporate air.
- Cover surface with cling film (saran wrap) and allow ganache to set up to peanut butter consistency. Then stir to a creamy consistency before apply to a cake.
Notes:
Calories
2054.51Fat (grams)
142.44Sat. Fat (grams)
86.82Carbs (grams)
177.50Fiber (grams)
19.84Net carbs
157.66Sugar (grams)
140.14Protein (grams)
18.07Sodium (milligrams)
108.27Cholesterol (grams)
191.05