How to Melt Chocolate Perfectly (3 Easy Ways)

Today we’ll be learning something my son already knows how to do: we’ll learn how to melt chocolate! Yes, and not just one way – we’ll be melting that chocolate in the microwave and on the stove. We’ll melt the chocolate with milk and we’ll see how you can make melted chocolate for dipping. And white chocolate? You can melt that one too.

There can hardly be a good dessert without chocolate. A quick chocolate drizzle makes the most basic treat irresistible. I am the kind of person who loves making cakes, especially chocolate ones. If you fall into the same category, then you probably also love making and indulging in cupcakes, candies and all sorts of sweet chocolate temptations.

Well, if you’re new to baking and making your own desserts, you may then be wondering how to melt chocolate for the best results. Nothing too difficult to worry about, I assure you. However, when it comes to melting chocolate, there are a few slightly different methods that you can use, depending on what equipment you have. So, have a look at them and choose the one that best suits your needs.

Tips for Melting Chocolate

Here are some important things to keep in mind before we start with the actual chocolate melting process:

• Choose chocolate that has a higher surface-to-volume ratio. Meaning, you don’t want to start with a thick block of chocolate.
• For best results, use chocolate chips or flakes. They are equally sized so that they will melt at the same time. However, if you decide to use a chocolate bar, then make sure you chop it into relatively uniform pieces.
• Keep the chocolate away from water. When using the stovetop method, don’t allow even a tiny drop of water to enter your bowl of chocolate…otherwise, you may end up with a ruined melted chocolate batch.
• Always melt your chocolate at a lower temperature. Otherwise, high heat will scorch it, which may be hard to come back from.

How to Melt Chocolate Chips on the Stove

If you want to melt a lot of chocolate without a microwave, then this method is for you. The process is quite straightforward but requires a bit more time. You’ll need a cooking pot, a heat-proof bowl that is similar in size to the pot and can fit over it, as well as a fork, or a spatula.

Once you have all the equipment, follow the steps:

• Fill the cooking pot with water so that it is about 1/3 full. Fill the heatproof bowl with the chocolate you want to melt – do not overfill. You will be stirring and you don’t want any chocolate chunks to fall out while you’re doing it. So give yourself space to stir!
• Next, fixate a bowl over the pot and bring the water to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a low temperature.
• Begin to stir the chocolate chips gently and keep doing it until all the chocolate is melted completely and becomes smooth.

Depending on how much chocolate you have the time here can vary. For 1/2 cup of chocolate, this could take 5-7 minutes.

How to Melt Chocolate in the Microwave

If you don’t have a ton of chocolate to melt and only little bit of time – this is the way to go! Melting chocolate in the microwave is much faster and easier. However, there are a few things to watch for:

• 1 ounce of chocolate will need about 1 minute of microwaving, but you should never heat the chocolate for more than 30 seconds at a time.
• After taking the chocolate out of the microwave, stir well while scraping the sides and the bottom of the bowl.
• Stop heating when your chocolate is about 90% melted and then stir to finish the melting – you do not want to burn the chocolate!

 So, with these simple tips in mind, make sure you have a microwave-safe bowl and chocolate chips or chunks! Now, let the melting begin.

1. Put the chocolate in the bowl and microwave for 30 seconds on high. 
2. Then, take out of the microwave, and stir well, scraping both the sides and the bottom of the bowl. 
3. If the chocolate is not melted completely, then put it back and microwave for 15 more seconds. 
4. Keep doing this until the chocolate is melted to 90%, then stir until it’s all smooth and melted!

Melting Chocolate Without A Microwave or A Stove

To melt chocolate this way you won’t need a stove or a microwave, but you will need an electric kettle to boil water. I actually discovered this method a few years ago when I didn’t have a microwave and didn’t feel like stirring for a long time. This method will work perfectly for a smaller batch of chocolate (think 1/2 or 1/3 of a cup of chocolate.

You’ll also need chocolate, a small bowl, a larger bowl of similar depth and a plate the same size as the larger bowl (all heatproof)

• The first thing you want to start with here is preparing the chocolate. If you don’t have chips or flakes – chop the chocolate into smaller chunks. Then add them to a heat-resistant bowl. Place the heat-resistant bowl into the larger heat-resistant bowl.
• Boil some water in the kettle and carefully fill the larger bowl, so that the smaller is halfway deep in the hot water. Please, avoid adding water to the bowl full of chocolate.
• Now that you’ve got everything in the bowl, cover the small and large bowls with the plate. The chocolate will start melting immediately, but be patient! Let the melting proceed for about 5-10 more minutes.
• Then uncover and if there are any unmelted chunks, stir until they do melt.

Melting Chocolate Chips with Milk

If you are wondering whether you can melt chocolate chips with milk, then here is the answer. Yes, absolutely! You can use this milk as a glaze for cakes, muffins or other desserts. You can even dip fruit in it!

If you don’t know how much milk you will need – depending on desired thickness of the melted chocolate – be sure to warm the milk ahead of time. This way you can add more milk to the already melting chocolate. If, on the contrary, you use cold milk the melted chocolate will quickly firm up and it will seize. So, here is what you should do if you want to melt your chocolate with milk.

• Use a pot with a fitted bowl over it. Fill in about 1/3 of the pot with water, bring it to a boil and turn the heat to low.
• Add the chocolate chips to the bowl and then pour in the milk. Again, be sure to not overfill the bowl.
• Stir gently and continuously with a spatula until all the chips are melted and the chocolate is smooth.

Take the bowl off and enjoy the melted chocolate or use it in your recipes!

Melting Chocolate for Dipping

If you have decided to impress your guests or family with a little chocolate dipping party, then you need to melt some chocolate a little bit differently.

You do not want to just melt the chocolate chips, they will firm up at room temperature and won’t be good enough for dipping. Chocolate has a very high saturated fat content and this makes it harden even at room temperature.

Therefore we need to add something a little bit extra to the chocolate, in order to make it melty enough for dipping. Some unsaturated fats and liquids will do the trick!

So melt your chocolate using any of the three methods above. Then, while the melted chocolate is still hot, stir in a few tablespoons of either nut butter, warm milk or cream. Remember, you want these additions to be warm or at room temperature, so that the melted chocolate doesn’t firm up when you add them.

Stir the chocolate continuously until smooth and creamy and serve for dipping!

How to Melt White Chocolate?

If you are a fan of white chocolate, then you may consider it a part of your next dessert. And you want it melted? No worries. It’s a piece of cake. You can melt it pretty much the same way you would any other type of chocolate – chop it into small pieces, add to a bowl, heat it in whichever way you want (stovetop, microwave or kettle) and TADA – it’s melted! Enjoy it in your favorite white chocolate recipes!

Easy Recipes With Melted Chocolate

Now, as you can tell lately I’m pretty obsessed with chocolate! So much so, that I rounded up some of my favorite healthy chocolate dessert recipes here.

From dark chocolate bark to these black bean brownies and peanut clusters you can use melted chocolate in many many ways.

If you have some melted chocolate you can even make your own chocolate mousse, chocolate dipped strawberries or if you’re super ambitious – this classic Sachertorte.

I’m telling you, the sky is the limit when you have a block of chocolate!

---

I hope you enjoyed this guide on melting chocolate and hopefully learned something useful for the next time you feel like making dessert!