Are you sick and tired of stirring your candy melts to get rid of the thick bumps and lumps? Forget about this exhausting work! In fact, this task is much simpler than you can imagine.
Here we are to share the best and simplest ways to thin candy melts!
What are candy melts?
Candy melts are a super-tasty food creation that is made to cover and decorate different sweet treats. You can make use of it as a candy coating, decorative elements, and patterns, or pour it into molds and harden it into different shapes.
The main ingredients of candy melts are sugar, oils, powdered milk, cocoa powder, and other additives like food coloring or flavoring.
As a store-bought product, candy melts usually come in a solid form. All you need to melt these hard drops and stir them well to reach the desired consistency. However, it is often hard to reach as the melted candy melts can be too thick with bumps or lumps inside.
One more benefit of candy melts is that you can store the leftover. Just place the extra candy melt in the airtight container, so as not to get it dry and stale. As a variant, you can place it into a ziplock bag and flatten it.
Then, you can store your extra candy melts both in the fridge or at room temp. The next time you need it, just open it and heat it to a thin consistency.
Where to use candy melts?
Candy melts are an awesome sweet ingredient that you can use in multiple ways.
In other words, candy melts are easy to make and versatile in use.
Generally, candy melts are used in baking and decoration. You can use candy melts on different food products such as cookies, cakes, pretzel sticks, chocolate lollipops, peanut butter balls, Oreo balls, desserts, and fruit. It is extremely popular to use any color candy melts that match the theme and vibe of any event.
Why to thin candy melts?
Unfortunately, the proper melting of candy melts is not always an easy task. Even if you melt your candy melts well, the result can be thick enough to cause some problems. If the melted candy melts are too thick, it can be difficult to dip your cake pops and other treats in them.
If you want to fill the lollipop molds with hot candy melts, then it is better to be thinner. The mixture will form better, and it will be much easier to get the ready treats out of the lollipop molds.
In addition, too thick melted candy melt means having lumps and bumps on the treat’s surface when it hardens. So, as you can see, the thick candy melt is definitely not your best bet. That’s why many people are curious about how to thin candy melts.
6 easy ways to thin candy melts
If you can’t get the right consistency when preparing candy melts, don’t give up. Of course, it is not a good idea to coat the cake pops with too thick candy melts. So, here are multiple ways to solve this problem and make your candy melts thinner!
#1. Oils
Adding oil is nearly the easiest way to thin candy melts.
Most oils become liquid at room temperature. That makes them great helpers in thinning candy melts.
Here is a list of oils that you can use for thinning candy melts:
- Coconut oil
- Vegetable oil
- Canola oil
Keep in mind that using olive oil is not a good idea. When mixed with olive oil, your candy melts won’t set properly. In addition, this type of oil can change the taste of your candy melts.
Generally, vegetable oils are the easiest to get and add to your candy melt mixture. However, you can choose from many variants depending on your aims. If you want to avoid affecting the taste of your candy melts, then canola oil is your best bet. If you don’t mind adding a slight coconut taste to your candy melts, then opt for coconut oil.
Again, one more thing to keep in mind is that most oils are liquid at room temperature. As a result, if you add too much oil, your candy melts can harden not as firm as you need.
If you want to have your birthday cake properly coated, use coconut oil. Along with a nice coconut flavor, it provides one more benefit. When at room temperature, it is solid, so it hardens much better than many liquid oils.
Keep in mind that you don’t need too much oil to make candy melts thinner. Start with a 1/2 teaspoon of the chosen oil to hot candy melts, and stir properly.
Then, you can add more until it fits.
Remember that you can add no more than half a teaspoon at a time, or else the added oil can affect the candy melt texture. To keep the structure, add the oil slowly and sparingly, and keep stirring the mixture well.
In general, you can use up to two teaspoons of chosen oil with a bag of candy melts. Heat the mixture to the temperature you normally select when you melt candy melts. Make sure that you mix the ingredients well and make them fully combine.
#2. Store-bought thinning aid
The thick consistency of candy melts is such a common issue that several brands developed a special solution for that. Have you ever thought about thinning aids? Well, it is absolutely easy to get and use!
This is a store-bought substance that is made of an oil mixture. You can select from several brands that are different from each other. For example, you can try Wilton Thinning Aid or EZ Thin, as well as many others. Thinning aids are not difficult to find, so you can get them in any store.
Follow the instructions given on the package of your store-bought thinning aid. Generally, you should add two tablespoons of this substance to a 12 oz bag of candy melts. Do it only after they have been melted to the melted candy melts, so you can easily stir the mixture to the desired texture.
#3. Paramount crystals
Paramount crystals are designed for melting different types of coatings, such as melted chocolate or candy melts. These are small crystals that are made of hydrogenated palm kernel oil and soy lecithin.
Unlike most oils that are liquid, this substance has a form of crystals. Despite these crystals seeming dry, they will instantly melt in the hot candy melts.
The most essential benefit of these crystals is the perfect texture of your candy melts. When added to the melting pot, solid crystals melt and make the candy melts thinner.
However, at room temp, the mixture easily gets hard solid. So, your candy melt coating will be perfectly smooth and crisp.
In fact, both EZ Thins and Paramount crystals work almost the same. Both of them are solid and made of the same ingredients. You can opt for any of these products with similar results.
Usually, you need two tablespoons of Paramount crystals for every twelve ounces of candy melts. Mix them well in the melting pot and keep stirring.
When thinning your candy melt with these crystals, keep an eye on them to reach the desired consistency. Remember that too-thin candy melts will make the candy melts slip off the cake pops and other treats.
#4. Shortening
Shortening is a food product that is also good at making your candy melts thinner.
When you prepare candy melts for dipping Oreo balls or cake pops, shortening is your easiest choice.
You can quickly get it at any food store at a low price.
By nature, shortening is fat. Unlike most oils, it is solid at room temperature. It looks and works similarly to butter. However, while butter is about 80% fat and 20% milk and water, shortening is 100% fat. It means that shortening doesn’t contain any extra moisture, so there is no risk for your candy melts to split.
To make candy melts thinner with a help of shortening, add them in sparingly in small amounts. Stop adding as soon as your candy melts and get the consistency you like.
#5. Pure cocoa butter
Adding pure cocoa butter, or theobroma oil is one more great way to thin out your candy melts.
Since cocoa butter is a major ingredient in the chocolate industry, it makes this method is the closest to the chocolate origins of candy melts. In addition, if you want to make chocolate-flavored candy melts, cocoa butter is your good natural helper.
The only drawback of cocoa butter is its high price. That’s why this method is the least recommended of all mentioned above. However, if cocoa butter is not too expensive for you, why not try it?
To make candy melts thinner cocoa butter, grate it finely so that you can add it gradually to the hot candy melts. Keep adding butter and stirring the mixture slowly until you get the best consistency.
#6. Melting methods
Before adding any thinners, you have to melt your candy melts first. The melting quality may depend on the methods you use, though.
The most popular variant is to simply melt your candy melts in the microwave oven. Turn it on at 40-50% power and melt your candy melts in it for 30 seconds intervals. Between each round, take the candy melts out and stir them well.
As soon you get the desired consistency, pour your candy melts into molds or start dipping while it is still hot.
One more way to make candy melts thinner is by using the double boiler method. It is also known as the bain-marie. Despite sounding tricky, the double boiler melting method is absolutely easy.
Heat some water in the pot. Then, put your candy melts inside a large bowl and place them over the top of a pot with hot water. Keep boiling the water and stirring your candy melts to help them dissolve faster.
FAQ
What can I add to chocolate melts to make them thinner?
You can choose from multiple ways to thin chocolate melts. Here is a list of the most popular thinning solutions:
- Oils
- Paramount crystals
- EZ Thin
- Solid cocoa butter
What to do when melting chocolate is too thick?
As well as candy melts, melted chocolate is also prone to be too thick when heated. Of course, if you are going to make a smooth chocolate coating, you have to thin the melted chocolate out.
A good idea is to use EZ Thins or Paramount crystals that both contain hydrogenated palm kernel oil.
If you can afford it, make use of cocoa butter. It is costly but is perfect for thinning candy melts. Besides, it brings a tasty chocolate flavor to your candy melts. So, it is a great option for coating your delicious cake pop.
How do you thin out candy melts for drips?
Since you need to make candy melts thin and smooth, the best idea is to thin them by adding EZ Thin or some Paramount crystals. The texture of candy melts will be perfect for dripping cakes and other treats.
Make sure that you don’t add too much of any thinner, as the hardened candy melts can be softer than you need.
How do you thin out make and mold candy wafers?
To control the consistency of the candy wafers without changing the overall structure, you can use either EZ Thinning Aid or solid vegetable shortening.
Once the mixture sets, it will be shiny, and you can set it properly. Make use of these baking helpers, and enjoy your perfectly done wafers!
Final thoughts
As you can see, you can try so many ways to thin candy melts. Just choose the best one for you, and you will have no trouble with coating your cake pops and other delicious treats.
We hope that you will find all these thinning methods simple and helpful.
Bon appétit!
