Can we talk Cocoa Butter

[Lin19687]

So I have been working with Cocoa Butter that I got a while ago and has been stored in the freezer. It's chunk form.

I just bought more and noticed that there seems to be 'Disks' now instead of the big chunk. Several sellers have this. Great, easier to weight out.

?............. When they make this, do you think that it is heated enough that you don't need to 'temper' it?
I would think that they have it in some kind of a machine where it would need to stay fluid for a while so they can make the little disks?
Anyone bought the disks and noticed this ?

I have only had an issue with graininess in Shea butter. But for those that get it with the CB I thought it would be a good conversation

 

[earlene]

Who is your vendor? I would love to switch to cocoa butter that comes in small discs.

Soap Queen talks about tempering cocoa butter in this article and in the picture show both kinds of cocoa butter (chunks & discs/pistoles). In the Q&A she says she doesn't know of any vendor selling already tempered Cocoa Butter. That was in 2016.

 

[gloopygloop]

As far as I am aware butters and chocolate dont stay in temper its for a period of time only as once the temperature changes about the crystals start to fall out again and so you need to re temper so I imagine that is the reason you couldn't but ready tempered. Chocolate for instance is tempered when you buy it usually but after a little while it will form the white powdery coating which is where it then needs to be re tempered.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

Who is your vendor? I would love to switch to cocoa butter that comes in small discs.

Soap Queen talks about tempering cocoa butter in this article and in the picture show both kinds of cocoa butter (chunks & discs/pistoles). In the Q&A she says she doesn't know of any vendor selling already tempered Cocoa Butter. That was in 2016.

I watched a video yesterday from BB and she was using the cocoa butter discs--so I would assume they have them

 

[Lin19687]

https://bulknaturaloils.com/cocoa-butter-natural.html as in Jedwards.
I didn't know it was 'Wafers' until I read the reviews.... also there are 2 reviews that say that they didn't have to temper the wafers. here is a Pic, it is 8.8# I have not used it yet but Jedwards has the Best supplies I have ever used, great prices (I live 40 min from them so I usually pick up but this was sent to me).
They don't state that it is already tempered but the review is from a Chocolate person so ?

I do not buy from BB, ever. Her videos are great to watch some times though.
I will have to go see Where she buys her product from. They don't say where they are sourced from.

 

[Lin19687]

Sorry forgot the pic

 

[earlene]

https://bulknaturaloils.com/cocoa-butter-natural.html as in Jedwards.
I didn't know it was 'Wafers' until I read the reviews.... also there are 2 reviews that say that they didn't have to temper the wafers. here is a Pic, it is 8.8# I have not used it yet but Jedwards has the Best supplies I have ever used, great prices (I live 40 min from them so I usually pick up but this was sent to me).
They don't state that it is already tempered but the review is from a Chocolate person so ?

That is promising. Maybe make a small batch of a B&B product without tempering just to test it out. Or you could just give Jedwards a call and ask; they might know. I read of another company that makes wafers, and they mentioned the temperature at which they melt the cocoa butter before turning it into wafers.

I do not buy from BB, ever. Her videos are great to watch some times though.
I will have to go see Where she buys her product from

I believe she only uses BB products because it is her company.

 

[Lin19687]

@earlene Yes, she only uses her own products, why not lol.
But I have heard some not so great things about her products, and other things that I will not say in public.
Everyone has their own suppliers they like.
I used Columbus foods before and they are great too. But I have found jedwards to be a a superb product and great staff that emails you FAST !
One of them is on this board too ! She emailed me when I had mentioned them I had to tell her who I was and that I only buy from them

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

will have to check out Jedwards

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Beads are a great idea! Also, I like Jedwards too. They have hard-to-find ingredients I can't find any where else. That's where I found the pharmaceutical grade lanolin I needed to make products for a wholesale customer.

SHORT STORY
Back in the day when my cocoa butter arrived, it came in chunks that I would weigh the amount I needed by using a paring knife and shaving slivers onto the scale. It took a while before I "got smart". Cocoa butter typically has a melting point of around 34–38 °C (93–101 °F), so, I used the "Defrost" setting on my microwave to melt the whole thing down, then pour into re-purposed molds that have 32 round cavities that hold 0.5 oz. each.

Once frozen, I pop the discs out and put them in a ZipLock marked with the date and what's in the bag and store them in the freezer. I do shea & mango that way too. My new microwave has a "Chocolate" setting that I use now.

 

[Lin19687]

@Zany_in_CO Great Idea ! Can't wait to have my own house so I can have a big freezer so I can store things like this !

 

[Andrew]

what are you using the cocoa butter for? i was never able to use it in a lotion or balm as it always lost its temper and became grainy. It does work great in soaps that you want to be super hard though.

 

[amd]

I make the assumption that suppliers melt cocoa butter in large drums and distribute into smaller qty as needed. That doesn't mean it's tempered, of course, because the melting point is 90-100°F (roughly), and tempering temp is around 115°F. I get mine in a 10lb block and temper and portion it out when I get it. If I bought it in wafer form, I wouldn't worry about tempering unless I was using it in something other than soap. For soap, I would just melt it and add it to my oils.

 

[Lin19687]

I'm using it is Lip balm and hand balm. I have not had an issue with grainy with the CB. But Shea I do !

 

[shunt2011]

I use it in lip balm and in lotion bars with no issue at all. Shea does give problems though. Since they discontinued Butter EZ I've started adding a small amount of Cera Bellina with good luck so far.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I use it in lotion (2%), lotion bars, lip balm, soap. I've never had a problem with cocoa butter, shea butter, or mango butter going grainy on me. I switched to the deodorized some time ago, so maybe that makes a difference?

 

[SYT]

I've used cocoa butter in my soap, had no problems. I didn't use deoderized. It gave the soap a lovely aroma, I didn't need to add fragrance. I received great reactions to the soap from family and friends.

 

[atiz]

I've used cocoa butter in my soap, had no problems. I didn't use deoderized. It gave the soap a lovely aroma, I didn't need to add fragrance. I received great reactions to the soap from family and friends.

I don't think it would tend to become grainy in soap since technically the butter is not there anymore due to the saponification. I have had a bit of graininess in lip balms, but not always, and have not been able to identify the real cause. I would be interested to try the wafers.