Split/Oily/Grainy Ganache – Fix it & Prevent It
Split/Oily/Grainy Ganache can ruin the brightest day.
You’re combining relatively expensive ingredients and hoping for super shiny, luscious awesomeness and then wamp wamp wamp…
It all splits into a greasy, grainy MESS! It totally sucks.
Do you make MORE ganache? But what if it splits again? And the thought of dumping these expensive ingredients in the bin just about burns your soul…
But fear not my friend! You DON’T need to throw out that split, grainy, greasy ganache because – you CAN SAVE it!! And in today’s blog post I’m going to show you how 🙂
On top of that I’m also going to show you all my tips and tricks for PREVENTING chocolate ganache from splitting in the first place.
Let’s do this!
What is Chocolate Ganache?
Chocolate ganache is a smooth and shiny mixture of chocolate and cream used in cakes, desserts and pastries. Only 2 Ingredients, but a whole lot of things can cause it to split or break.
Photo: josephcphillips.com
I generally use 65% Dark Chocolate. If I’m making truffles, then a 2:1 ratio of chocolate:cream is best. For covering cakes, or as a filling between cake layers, I use a 1:1 ratio.
White chocolate and Milk Chocolate are naturally softer, so a 3:1 ratio of chocolate:cream for covering cakes. For truffles use a 4:1 ratio.
Whatever your ratio of chocolate to cream is, don’t fuss too much about it. That’s most probably not where you are going wrong.
I’ve found that it’s usually in the method and technique where things go wrong. That’s what splits ganache.
For this post in particular I am going to focus on how to achieve the smoothest, shiniest result which is ideal for covering cakes with or spreading on top of cupcakes.
And most importantly, I’ll share a few tips that are GUARANTEED to save your Broken/Oily/Grainy Ganache!
What Causes Broken/Oily/Split/Grainy Ganache?
Ganache is essentially an emulsion. Remember that word from 7th grade science? It’s when 2 ingredients are mixed together that don’t actually want to be mixed together – oil and water.
Generally, if the temperature of your ganache goes too high, it will cause the fat in the chocolate to separate. This results in a oily/split/grainy ganache. The severity of the graininess will depend on how overheated your cream was.
Now before we get into fixing a broken ganache, there are a few things you can do to prevent it from happening in the first place.
Basic Tips for Preventing Oily/Split/Grainy Ganache:
- Do not let the cream boil – only bring it to a simmer. If the cream is too hot it will overheat the fat in the chocolate, causing it to separate.
- Don’t let the chocolate overheat. If you make ganache in a microwave, this is KEY. Just 10 seconds too long and boom! The fat in the chocolate separates. For this reason I prefer to heat the cream gently on my stove top. It gives me more control over the heat.
- Chop your chocolate very finely. It just makes it easier for the chocolate to melt into the cream.
- Stir all you want in the beginning to incorporate the chocolate into the cream. As soon as your chocolate has melted into the cream, the mixture is smooth and fully combined – STOP stirring. The ganache will now begin to set. Just leave it be and let it cool down to the desired consistency. It firms up as it cools down. Avoid putting it in the fridge and let it set at room temperature. The fridge won’t harm it, you will just need to stir to combine the more set ganache with the less set ganache which involves STIRRING. Not good. Plan ahead and let nature take its course.
- Choose your heat. Microwave OR stove-top. I once made ganache by heating the cream on the stove, but after I combined it with the chocolate, it started setting too quickly. In a panic I placed the setting ganache in the microwave for 10 seconds and it split into oblivion. Generally I avoid the microwave altogether when I work with chocolate. The rate at which it heats food is just too intense for chocolate in my opinion. A stove gives you so much more control. If I’m in a rush I’ll heat just the CREAM in the Microwave till it’s hot and steamy (but not boiling over) and then add the chocolate to it outside the microwave. The heat from the cream is usually enough to melt the chocolate.
I’ve also found some extra little tips that have made all the difference in my ganache!
Extra Tips for Preventing Oily/Grainy Ganache:
- Do not use a plastic bowl. Use a glass bowl. The ganache comes out so much shinier. For about 2 months I made ganache in a plastic bowl and it was dull & slightly grainy every time. I switched back to glass and never had problems again. A glass bowl yields the best results.
- Add a bit more sweetness. *It works wonders! This is particularly effective with Dark Chocolate ganache! I usually replace about 15-20% of the dark chocolate with milk chocolate which contains more sugar. If, however, I want the ganache very dark, I simply dissolve sugar into the cream (1 tsp sugar per 100 ml cream) while it’s heating up. I even like dissolving some Milo/Ovaltine powder to the cream which gives the ganache a little malty flavour! Super shiny, super yummy. It works – really!
- Do not use a balloon whisk (or wooden spoon for that matter) to stir the ganache. Use a stainless steel spoon instead. I’ve found that a whisk provides too much friction and irritation for the chocolate ganache. It may be a very subjective opinion, but I do find the ganache to be a tad grainy when it sets. A metal spoon is gentler and as a bonus, it incorporates far less air.
- Add a tiny bit of sea salt to the cream before heating. This doesn’t make a difference in the texture of the ganache! It just brings out the chocolate’s flavour 🙂
How to Fix Split/Oily/Grainy Chocolate Ganache:
So for some reason that no one knows a ganache can often still break or be slightly grainy even though we really did EVERYTHING right. Good news is that there are a myriad of options available to you! I will list them from most effective to least effective.
- The milk fix. Works great on warm ganache that has just split. Place your ganache in a saucepan on the lowest setting and whisk it as bit. In a separate pan (or bowl in the microwave), heat up about ¼ cup skim or low fat milk to simmering point. Dribble little bits of the warm milk into the ganache while constantly whisking with a balloon whisk. This hack is the least strenuous and works extremely well! This hack is perfect for fixing ganache that will be used as a glaze/covering over your cake.
- Melt & Stir. I LOVE this hack. It’s perfect for grainy ganache that has cooled down. I especially use it on frozen and thawed ganache (which obviously splits) ALL the time. Place the grainy ganache in a saucepan. Place the saucepan directly on the stove over the lowest heat possible. As it begins to melt, stir it with a balloon whisk. Keep stirring and gently whisking. By the time all the ganache has melted, it will have come together again completely. So amazing!
- Add more chocolate. If you just made the ganache and it is still warm, adding some more chopped chocolate can bring it back together quite quickly. I don’t always like this method because it makes the ganache a lot stiffer. If you will be using the ganache underneath fondant or for truffles, a stiffer ganache won’t be a problem.
- Add more cream. Heat about 2 Tbsp of cream till it begins to steam slightly. Turn off the heat and whisk your broken ganache into the cream little by little till everything is once again incorporated, smooth and glossy.
- Blending or whisking. Many people recommend this technique across the web. By whisking the mixture together at a high speed you will force the fat and water to combine. I have tried this technique many times, but it has not worked for me. The ganache often does smoothen out initially, but as it sets again, you end up with an at least slightly grainy ganache.
If you want to read more posts on chocolate ganache, here are my favourites:
- Crafty Baking – Ganache
- Kara’s Couture Cakes – How to Save a Broken Ganache
- Tales from the Chocolate Shop – Rescuing a Split Ganache
Want More Chocolate Tips & Tricks?
Then you’ll LOVE these posts:
🍫 How to Make Luscious Dark Chocolate Shavings/Curls
🍫 The Easy, Foolproof Way to Temper Chocolate
🍫 How to Write on Cake with Chocolate
👉 Want to SELL your home baked goods so you can do what you love for an income?
There you have it! If you have any other questions or struggles with grainy ganache, please comment below because I would love to help!
Chat soon!
Aurelia 🙂
POPULAR BAKING TIPS
Got a question? Something to add? Let’s chat in the comments section down below! (I respond to every single comment)
Thank you so much! Tried the warm milk method and you just saved my ganache for my little boys birthday cake! Thank you! 🥳
YAY!!🥳 So happy to heat this Shannon and thank you for letting me know! 🤗
Thank you for the instructions on how to save a broken ganache- you saved the day on an important birthday cake!
YAY! I am so happy to hear your birthday cake was saved! 😍
My god, you’re a wizard. Ty
YAY!!🥳 So happy to help!
Saved my brownies ty so much
Awesome! Thanks for letting me know!
Thanks Aurelia. The Melt & Stir + milk methods worked to save my splitting ganache. Think it was mostly the melt + stir though! Glad I didn’t try to add even MORE chocolate, which you were right—it does tend to stiffen up my mixture.
So happy to hear Samanatha that it helped saved your ganache!
Hi Aurelia, I just want to thank you for saving my ganache! I have never made this before and yes, it split. The low fat milk worked like a charm. Thanks again!!
Awesome Sharon, so happy to hear it was saved!😊
Thank you!! I’m having a crowd today and you saved my cheesecake that’s covered in ganache!
I am eager to get back to this website and explore! What a wondeful idea!
The Mike Winger quote at the end of the recipe… now I love you sister!
Yayyy! I’m so happy to hear you could save your ganache Andrea! Mike Winger is the best 😀
Great information that confirmed my science-sense of what needed to be done to save my ganache that split and had a huge oily lake on it 😐 I used a combination of your ideas 2 and 5 – reheated the whole batch very slowly over a pan of simmering water – then when everything was warm, I used an immersion blender to emulsify it – it gave the mist beautiful shiny chocolate you could imagine – portioned it out and let it cool slowly and it turned out perfect! Thank you! 😊👨🍳
That’s AWESOME Allen!! So happy for you!!
Absolutely wonderful! You are my Saviour Aurelia! I was baking a cake for my daughter on her birthday and bummer! My ganache turned so grainy and oily. I was so upset that I ruined the ganache, which is my daughter’s favorite! And then I came across your website and Vola! My ganache came back to actual consistency! And I used your adding low fat milk method! I am so happy that I made my girl’s favorite cake successfully and this wouldn’t have happen without your tip.Thanks a ton!!!!!
It’s such a pleasure!! I’m SO happy to hear you could save your daughter’s cake!!
Honestly, the cake turned out so tasty! My daughter loved it. Wish I could share the picture! Thanks for your valuable inputs. I’m sure this will be a such an informational one for all the beginner bakers like me out there! Thank you❤️
You’re most welcome 🙂 That’s the best news ever! I’m so happy to hear that xxx
Hi Aurelia:
I make premium chocolates, using the best chocolate from organic farmers in So Am. All has been perfect until I used a 70% dark chocolate with 70% dark chocolate ganache. The ganache inside the tempered chocolate shell turned moldy within 2weeks. Mortified!!! I used a magnetic star mold. I think there were air pockets in it which I believe to be a factor. Will dissolving sugar in the cream prevent this? How do I prevent this from happening again? HELP please.
Hey Jan! I’m so sorry to hear about your moldy ganache! I don’t know anything about “magnetic star molds”, but I do know that adding sugar to ANY ganache, helps to preserve it. Sugar, salt, and vinegar preserve food. So, you could add a bit of sugar and even a small pinch of salt as well! Salt helps to amplify the flavour of the chocolate anyway 🙂
Thank you so much – I think your add milk and heat gently just saved my chocolate truffles which had split and gone oily! Bloody Gordon Ramsay never warned me about that… It’s looking good now.
Lol! “Bloody Gordon Ramsay”. I’m so grateful to hear you could save your ganache Michelle!
I make coffee Truffles which I hand roll before coating in tempered Chocolate. However the Ganache is not the easiest to roll, a little crumbly which then becomes slightly greasy; not selling it am I! I wonder why this might be. I temper the Chocolate carefully, Emulsify the ingredients and leave overnight in the garage to set. Any suggestions I could try?
Hey Missy! If your ganache is quite crumbly, then you might have added too much chocolate to your ganache. For truffles, a 2:1 ratio of chocolate to cream usually works well. If the ganache becomes a bit greasy when you roll it, it could be that your ganache split when making it – even though it seemed fine at the time. I’d melt the ganache on the stove on the lowest possible heat. When it feels warm to the touch, whisk it vigorously with a balloon whisk (at this point also add in the extra cream you need if your ganache didn’t have a 2:1 ratio). When it’s warm, totally smooth and uniform, remove it from the heat, cover it with glad wrap and let it sit on the counter till room temp. Then refrigerate till cold and roll.
The extra cream worked perfectly. Lots of whisking required but totally worth it! Thank you!
Wonderful! I’m SO happy for you Meagan! 😀
Thank you so much for this gem of information! It’s midnight. My wife’s birthday is today (!) and my ganache turned into a separated, lumpy mess. The milk fix worked beautifully and the cake has turned out exactly as it was meant to. From the bottom of my heart, thank you!
Wonderful!! I’m SO happy for you Scott!
Absolute legend!
Didn’t think I was saving that but the tablespoons of cream was a winner.
Many thanks!
You’re welcome Peter! I’m so grateful that you could save your ganache!