Chocolate is absolutely gorgeous, but perhaps its tastiest state is when it has been melted. It can get really warm and gooey, allowing for the texture and taste to really melt in your mouth incredibly sweetly.
Generally speaking, you would usually melt your chocolate using a microwave – but what if that’s not possible? Well, you can use the stove! And there are five main ways you can melt chocolate on the stove.
You can use a double boiler, seeding, using a saucepan with low heat, a saucepan with steaming cream or a saucepan with butter. Now, while this allows for more control with your chocolate melting – you’ve got to be careful and know what you’re doing.
Luckily, we’ve written this handy guide which will show you the best ways for how to melt chocolate chips on the stove.
So, if you’re ready to find out the sweet steps – then read on for much more.
What Types Of Chocolate Chips Can You Melt On The Stove?
Before we go on any further, it’s a good idea that we examine the types of chocolate chips you can melt on the stove. It’s important to remember that chocolate chips come in all different shapes and sizes.
There’s options like mini, wafer, chunk, jumbo and standard. While all of these varieties of chocolate chips can be melted on the stove, the time in which they take to melt may be different. Of course, the smaller the chocolate chips, the quicker they will melt.
And it’s not only the size of these chips that varies. Indeed, there are different varieties of the type of chocolate, including white chocolate, milk chocolate, dark chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate.
The critical thing to remember from these categories is that white chocolate will always melt the quickest, whereas dark chocolate will take the longest to melt.
While we’re on the subject of different kinds of chocolate, it’s a good idea to remind you that you shouldn’t simply limit your chocolate melting to chocolate chips. Why not use a full sized chocolate bar after cutting it into pieces?
Whatever you decide to go for, you should remember that the best amount of chocolate to melt on the stove is about one to two cups (which equates to about 6 to 12 ounces). However, if you want to melt more, be sure to do it in small batches for the best results!
The Five Methods To Melt Chocolate Chips On Stove
We’ll now go into the best methods for melting chocolate chips on your stove. As we said earlier, there are five main methods, and we’ll examine them in more detail below.
Double Boiler
Double boilers are also known as bain maries and they are a very well used appliance in professional kitchens because they have a variety of uses. It is devised with two pans stacked together, but the bottom pan has water which is heated until steaming.
The second pan sits on the top of this, known as the upper pan. This is where you would place your food – in this instance, the chocolate chips. The heat travels from the bottom where the hot water is and the chocolate melts on the upper pan (Want to turn your melted chocolate chips into a hot chocolate? Read more here).
If you are using this method to melt your chocolate chips though, it’s imperative that you do not allow the water to boil. When water boils, it causes a lot of steam – but when the steam escapes, it’s possible it can get into the chocolate and this will complicate the melting.
If the water in the double boiler does begin to boil and steam escapes, you will end up with a process known as a “seize”. Seized chocolate comes out lumpy, and grainy and prevents the chocolate from melting properly. You need to remember this and of course, safety.
Using this method to melt your chocolate chips requires your full attention, which means you can’t just place your chocolate chips in the pan and wander off. Chocolate chips can quickly overheat and then burn – so you need to be sure you’re stirring often.
Bizarrely, if you do not have your own double boiler, you can do a few basic things to make a DIY version. As long as you have a large pot and a heatproof bowl, you can do the same steps as below.
The directions for this method are pretty simple, all you need to do is fill the bottom part of the double boiler with about two inches of water. Heat the water enough so it is not boiling but it’s warm (avoid steam escaping).
Place one to two cups of chocolate chips into the upper pan and then place the pan on top of the bottom pan. Heat the chocolate chips for about two to three minutes and ensure you are regularly stirring with a spatula. Continue until all the chocolate chips have melted.
Remove the double boiler from the stove and keep stirring until the heat has cooled and you’re ready to serve.
Saucepan
Perhaps one of the most simple methods to melt chocolate chips on a stove is by using a saucepan, but of course you need to remember to select a very low heat. This is because chocolate burns incredibly easily.
As with the previous method, you need to be sure you’re paying full attention to this method and do not walk away from the stove.
This method will normally yield a much thicker melted chocolate product when compared to the double boiler method.
Requirements For This Method
A small but heavy duty saucepan
A stove
A spatula
Chocolate chips
Directions
As we said previously, this is perhaps the most simple way to melt chocolate chips on a stove. All you need to do is turn on your stove’s burner to the lowest heat possible.
Once the saucepan has warmed, place the chocolate chips in the saucepan and stir frequently using a spatula. As we said, once you have done this, you need to keep a very close eye on the chocolate to prevent burning.
A great idea during this method is to regularly remove the saucepan from the burner and then back on again. This helps you control the temperature in the easiest possible way. Once about 80% of the chocolate chips have melted, take the pan off the burner.
Continue to stir the chocolate chips as the pan will still be hot and do this until all of the chocolate has melted. If you want to make the chocolate a little thinner, you could add some coconut oil to the mixture.
Milk Or Hot Cream
Pretty much any hot dairy liquid can be used to melt chocolate chips. You may decide to use milk, cream, evaporated milk or even a mix of two. Hot chocolate and fudge are made in these ways.
The taste is often much more enhanced and sweeter when you do it this way, and the finished product can be thicker too, which creates a creamier finish.
Requirements For This Method
A dairy liquid like milk, cream, evaporated milk or a mixture
A saucepan or microwave-safe container for the liquid heating
Medium sized mixing bowl
A plate to be used as a lid for the mixing bowl
A heat proof spoon
Chocolate chips
Directions
This method is not especially difficult, but there are a few more steps than the previous two. Start off by heating your chosen dairy liquid in a small saucepan over your stove’s burner using a medium to low heat. Do this until the mixture is steaming.
Pour your chocolate chips into a mixing bowl and when your mixture has finished, pour it directly over your chocolate chips. Put your plate over the top of the mixing bowl to trap the heat inside for around five minutes.
After this time has elapsed, remove the plate and then use your heat proof spoon to stir and whisk the chocolate mixture until it’s all smooth and creamy.
Butter
You will notice that, if you’re a fan of making brownies, they usually require the use of butter in the recipe. Essentially, it’s a case of melting the chocolate chips with butter in a pan over the stove but using a low heat. Of course though, you could use a double boiler instead.
You’ll normally find that the end result by using butter when melting chocolate chips is a far richer, salty-sweet taste. However, you can change this by using unsalted butter.
Requirements For This Method
A heavy duty saucepan
A whisk or spatula
Unsalted butter (or salted depending on your preference)
Chocolate chips
Stove
Directions
This method can be one of your favorites but it might be a little more complicated than others. Place your butter into the saucepan and then heat your burner to a medium to low heat. Then, warm your saucepan over the heat.
As soon as the butter starts to melt, you need to add the chocolate chips and as soon as these begin to melt, stir the mixture with your spatula or whisk.
Continue to do this until all of the chocolate chips have melted and you see the mixture’s texture has turned smooth. You may be interested to know that if you use sweetened condensed milk with this mixture and put it in the microwave, you’ll make fudge!
Seeding
The final method you could use is seeding. This is a particularly easy way to temper chocolate and it involves adding unmelted chocolate chips to melted chocolate. It’s a great way to control the temperature of the chocolate and it will normally result in hard chocolate.
It’s important to note here that if the chocolate has bloomed, it won’t temper at all. However, if you manage to do this right – you’ll end up with a great product with a glossy finish that can snap nicely.
Requirements For This Method
Double boiler (or the DIY version)
A whisk or a spatula
A candy thermometer
Chocolate chips
Stove
Directions
There’s not a lot of difference when it comes to this method and the double boiler method. You start off by preparing your double boiler with two inches of water at the bottom and then heat it on a medium boiler heat until the water simmers (not boils!).
Add around two thirds of the chocolate chips to the upper pan and then stir until you see the chocolate melting. Continue to stir and then get your candy thermometer to check the heat. It should be between 110 to 113°F once it melts.
Take the double boiler off the burner and then continue to stir the chocolate in the mixture. Then, add the rest of your chocolate chips and continue stirring until they melt in the hot chocolate mixture. You can then return it to the heat and stir until it’s fully melted.
Hardened Chocolate When Melting
If you’ve noticed that during the melting process, your chocolate actually hardened, this is because it either burned or it seized. More often than not, it’s because moisture has got into the mixture and caused seizing.
You’ll notice this more if the chocolate goes lumpy and grainy. It only takes a small amount of moisture to get into the mixture for this to happen and it’s a very common occurrence if you are using a double boiler to melt your chocolate chips, because the steam can escape.
Another way this can happen though is if you opt to use a wooden spoon. Wooden spoons often trap a lot of moisture and this can transfer into the chocolate mixture, which results in it seizing.
Can Seized Chocolate Be Fixed?
If your chocolate seizes, don’t panic as there may be a way to fix it, so not all is lost! To fix seized chocolate, simply add three tablespoons of warm water for every cup of chocolate chips – even despite the fact that water was technically the culprit to the problem!
However, with that said – it does actually work. As long as the water is warm and you’ve used the right amount, you should be fine. Just stir the chocolate over a low heat until you see the texture go smooth.
It’s important to note here that you will likely notice the taste of the chocolate dilutes when you add water. This is just something you need to deal with as there are no other options.
What Can I Use Melted Chocolate Chips For?
Once you have got your bowl full of melted chocolate chips, you may now be wondering what exactly you’re supposed to do with it! Well, we’ve got some answers for you below. Consider making some of these!
Topping
One of the best ways to use melted chocolate chips is as a topping, perhaps for a cake or as a dessert pizza. There’s so many desserts that can be enhanced when you add melted chocolate over the top of them – especially if you also add ice cream!
You can even add melted chocolate on toast! Some people even use the chocolate as a toast spread and then add chopped banana slices or chopped berries on top.
Dipping Sauce
Melted chocolate can also act as a sweet dip. Many people may enjoy using strawberries or unflavored bread sticks to pick up some of the melted chocolate and enjoy it as a very small, but sweet snack!
Cake/Donut Filling
You may decide to use your chocolate in a filling for a cake or donuts etc. This can significantly make your desserts pop with flavor and add a much needed filling to them!
What Chocolate Should I Use?
The choice is really up to you. However, you need to remember the points we raised earlier, that the size of the chocolate chips will play a role in how long they take to melt and white chocolate always melts faster.
Aside from those points, it will just come down to you and your guests’ taste preferences. You may even decide to make separate batches of chocolate chips and melt them!
What Should I Do If I Burn The Chocolate?
You will need to start again unfortunately. The taste of burned chocolate is unpleasant and generally can’t be fixed. Be sure to clean the saucepan or double boiler thoroughly before you start again though.
Final Thoughts
Melting chocolate chips can often seem a difficult task, but if you follow some of our tips that we’ve provided in this guide, you should be totally satisfied and find it really easy.
Just remember the main points like stirring regularly, keeping an eye on the mixture and how quickly each chocolate burns.
Have you ever made something so delicious that you wished you could savor it forever?
Only to find that the recipe has now mysteriously vanished from your phone and the entirety of the internet. Yep, there’s not much more painful than that.
Hi, my name is Mark Williams and I have been infatuated with cooking since I was young. I would beg my mother to pull a chair up to the counter so I could watch what she was doing.
