Rocky Road Crumbling When Cut | Ask Nigella.com (2024)

FAQs

Rocky Road Crumbling When Cut | Ask Nigella.com? ›

Most likely it was just a bit too cold which will mean that it is very firm and, unless you have a super-sharp knife, it would crumble as you apply force on the knife you are cutting with. It may help to let the whole sheet of Rocky Road stand out of the fridge in a cool place for about an hour and then cut it.

This could be water in the form of steam or accidentally dripping water into the chocolate, using a wet bowl, etc. Ensure you add the correct butter/golden syrup ratio to the chocolate mixture when making Easter egg rocky road to avoid split chocolate. Also, keep the temperature low, even when adding these ingredients.

Chocolate seizes when it comes into contact with even a small amount of liquid or moisture during the melting process. This is because the water causes the sugar in the chocolate to dissolve and then form a syrup, which binds the cocoa particles together, creating a grainy, thick, and clumpy texture.

Rocky Road is best kept in the fridge but you can enjoy it at room temperature. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks or at room temperature for 1-2 weeks. It can also be frozen, just let it come up to room temperature before eating.

Funnily enough, it's super simple. First boil some water. Second, very slowly, as in 1-2 tsp at a time add in the boiling water and whisk the chocolate vigorously until the mixture is smooth again. The hot water will essentially melt the clumps back to a liquid consistency.

Adding enough water (about 20% by weight) will un-seize the mixture although it will of course contain much more water. Similarly, seized chocolate can be recovered for some purposes simply by adding additional water.

Fixing Seized Chocolate

This may seem counterintuitive, but the way to fix seized chocolate is to add 1 teaspoon of boiling water at a time, then mix vigorously until it becomes smooth once again. This is ideal when planning to use the chocolate for a drizzle or a sauce since the chocolate will be somewhat diluted.

If your rocky road is overly soft, it might be that you added too much butter or syrup or too little chocolate. To avoid mistakes with ratios, I always recommend measuring everything out before you start. If you have everything measured out in advance, you're less likely to make mistakes.

If your chocolate does seize, you can bring it back by adding a small amount of milk (1-2 tablespoons to start). Stir really well and it should become smooth and glossy again. If not add another tablespoon and stir again. Be careful not to add too much milk as this could make the mixture too runny.

Be careful heating your chocolate – If you find that your rocky road is a bit greasy or the chocolate is feels grainy the the chocolate has possibly seized; this usually occurs when the chocolate is overheated.

How long does it take for rocky road to set in the fridge? ›

Stir to coat all the pieces in the chocolate then pour into your prepared tin in an even layer. Don't press it down too much, you want quite a bumpy 'rocky road' surface. Leave to set in the fridge for 1-2 hours or overnight then dust with icing sugar and chop into bars or squares to serve.

At least much longer than it will take you to eat it! Rocky Road lasts in the fridge for up to a month. Remove the Rocky Road from the fridge at least 30 minutes before slicing - this will help it to stop cracking. Use a large sharp knife to cut the Rocky Road (or check out my top tips for cutting rocky road here).

The most popular version of rocky road in the U.S. is in ice cream form, which consists of chocolate ice cream, marshmallows (or sometimes a "marshmallow swirl"), and nuts. Although not as popular, slabs of rocky road can also be found at confectioner's shops.

FREEZE AHEAD: Make the Rocky Road as above and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in a cool place.

And so Rocky Road was born. Its name was a play on words referring to the yummy chocolate chunks, but also the 'rocky road' that people had to walk during America's Great Depression.

It may help to let the whole sheet of Rocky Road stand out of the fridge in a cool place for about an hour and then cut it. You can store the cut bars in an airtight container in the fridge. It is also possible that the chocolate became a little too hot and siezed as you melted it.

Reversing the reaction means adding just enough water (or other liquid) to dissolve most of the sugar and cocoa particles in the seized chocolate clumps. It's easy to do: Simply add boiling water to seized chocolate, 1 teaspoon at a time, and stir vigorously after each addition until the chocolate is smooth.