Chocolate

The chocolate in ganache provides cocoa butter for firmness in addition to cacao solids, sugar, and chocolate flavor. Since chocolate is the greatest part of ganache, it is no surprise that the chocolate used has tremendous bearing on the texture, flavor, and handling characteristics of the finished product. Using chocolate that is extremely high in fat results in a harder set and can contribute to the separation caused by excessive fat. (See Emulsions.) Insufficient fat will lead to ganache that is not firm enough to handle when set. When selecting chocolate to use in a ganache formula, consider its fat content as well as its flavor profile. Once a formula has been balanced to perform well with a given chocolate, a change in chocolate is likely to require changes elsewhere in the formula, either in fats or liquids. The chocolate used in confectionery ganache must usually contain more than 32 percent cocoa butter in order to ensure proper firmness upon setting.