Another question re: salt bars...

[xxlasxx]

Today was my first attempt at salt bars. I found the following recipe
on About.com/ David Fisher's site...

• 9.75 oz coconut (75%)
• 1.3 oz. lard (10%)
• 1.3 oz. sunflower (10%)
• 0.65 oz. castor (5%)
• 2.05 oz. lye (approx 8% superfat)
• 4.94 oz. water

I added 1 1/2 tsp. red clay at trace
I used fine sea salt at 60% total oils

It went into an individual cavity mold, poured easily
they seemed to be hard after approx. 6 hours.
When I went to pop them out of the cavities, I had to
be very careful because they looked hard, but were actually
still soft and dented easily with very little pressure. Is this the
normal course for curing salt bars? I keep reading that they are
super hard very quickly.
Can you all check this recipe for possible problems?
Thanks so much....Lisa

 

[IrishLass]

Welcome, Lisa!

If the salt bars got hot enough to go through the gel-stage after you poured the batter into your individual molds, then they would be fairly hard after 6 hours (at least that has always been experience with salt bars that have gelled). But if they did not go through the gel-stage, then it would be quite normal for them to be more soft and dent-able.

Since you poured the batter into individual molds, the chance of them going through gel is pretty slim since the surface area is too small for the bars to hold in enough heat to generate gel, but not to worry- your bars will harden up over the next few days to be able to unmold with denting them.


IrishLass

 

[xxlasxx]

Thank you, Irishlass!
I thought the whole process went well...but as you said,
the bars never went through gel phase. I realize that now.
They just firmed up, but never got hot. I did gently pop
them out of the molds with little or no damage, but they are
tacky and definitly soft. I will let them be for a few days, then
see how they are. Thanks so much for your input!
Lisa