How in the world do you guys get chocolate sooo smooth on the strawberries??? Can someone give me tips? I have to some for a groom's cake Sat & I just made some yesterday but can't get the chocolate smooth... maybe the first 2 are ok, but it seems like the chocolate is too thick or something... am I suppose to add something to thin it out? I tried crisco but same thing....help, please! =)
I would make sure the berries are completely dry before dipping otherwise the water will make the chocolate thicken up and ruin it. I also I make sure I don't melt it so that it's too hot. I've also added a little butter when mine was too thick. Hope this helps.
What type chocolate are u using?
I always make sure the berries are dry and it helps if they are not too cold.
Its usually really easy to do.
Maybe it is your recipe. I have only done them a couple of times and I used the candy melts. Probably not the BEST tasting thing ever, but I thought they were surprisingly good (for a chocolate snob!) They were very smooth and easy to do.
http://www.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=coppermine&file=displayimage&meta=allby&uname=merissa&cat=0&pos=7
Don't wash your strawberries under water, wipe each one with a damp paper towel. That way they don't take as long to dry and aren't super wet. I dip mine in cany melt or almond bark. Both melt great in the microwave, so there's no double broiler needed and stay melted long enough to dip a lot of strawberries. Just make sure you melt in 30 sec intervals and stir after each on until you melts or almond bark are melted. Good Luck!!!
Carrie
i make a lot of chocolate covered strawberries, all types. i always wash and dry each berry, if you think of it wash them a couple hours before and let them sit on a paper towel to dry. there are many types of chocolate, candy melts are the easiest to work with. if you are using chocolate chips the key is to not get the chocolate too hot in the microwave and i always add a little veggie oil till it is the concistency that i want, be carful and only add a little at a time. the bonus to the oil is that the chocolate is also very shiny too. don't get too discouraged by them, the most important thing is that they taste good. and a easy cover up if your berries arn't smooth is to melt some chocolate put it in a ziplock bag, snip the corner and drizzle it over top the berries. it covers mistakes and looks fancy. 
good luck!
thx all for replying....
I used the ghiradelli chocolate, & I just melted it over a double boiler & nothing else... towards the end I added some crisco. I washed & tried the strawberries ahead of time too.
What kind of recipe am I suppose to be using?
The reason I used chocolate instead of candy melts is b/c of the taste...
Aaah so do you mean you used chocolate chips? Those don't tend to work as well... If you are really concerned about the taste you can always use real chocolate but you will have to temper it. You can also make a thick ganache, but you won't have the hard shell (which is a bonus if you ask me)
I have always used choc. chips and add half a block of gulf wax per bag of chips. I haven't ever had a problem!
i melt chocolate chips or candy melts in a tall plastic cup in the microwave for 30 seconds, stir then 15 second intervals, stirring each time. i will add up to about a half teaspoon of veg.oil or crisco to help it stay softer, but if i need to , i do another 15 seconds to soften it. I wash all the berries and right away just softly dry each one individually by wrapping it in a paper towel and gently rubbing off the moisture, then dip right away. i carefully "shake" off the extra and then lay it on a parchment lined cookie sheet. they will dry at room temp if you use crisco, or for a minute in the fridge if using oil- sometimes they'll dry on their own at room temp with the oil too.
http://kraftfoods.com/main.aspx?s=cookingschool&m=cookingschool/video_display&vid=124
this website should help you a lot. if the link doesnt work, try going to this one http://kraftfoods.com/main.aspx?s=cookingschool&m=cookingschool/video_categories&cid=6
and look for tuxedo strawberries towards the bottom.
thank you that video is very helpful...
now a question though. when you say real chocolate and you have to temper them and such. I always thought that the ghiradelli was real chocolate? is it not? How do I know which is real chocolate and which is not? and where to buy?
I just made them a couple of weeks ago and I used milk chocolate chips with a little bit of vegetable oil. After washing them and drying them each I inserted toothpicks into the tops of the strawberries. Holding the strawberries by the toothpicks, I dipped the strawberries into the chocolate. I turned the strawberries upside down and inserted the toothpick into styrofoam for the chocolate to cool. I had to put mine in the freezer for a bit but they turned out beautiful. I also drizzled them with melted white chocolate, too.
I always use almond bark, it's probably the easiest to do and I made some for work yesterday and everyone loved them. One lady even said that the chocolate left an aftertaste, but that it was an aftertaste that tasted like chocolate so that was a good thing. Strange a bit, but I took it as a compliment.
Anyway, you can find almond bark in your grocery store on the same aisle with the chocolate chips. It comes in large squares all formed together in a package. It's cheap and you dont need to add anything to it. And it comes in milk chocolate and white chocolate.
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