Questions and Answers, Making Fudge, Runny Fudge

Questions & Answers - Making Fudge

Question:
Hi there! My wife and I were trying to make fudge last night for the holidays. We though we did everything right from the ingredients to the proper temperature, but it never set up in the pans and is still runny and kind of grainy. Please save us from this attack of the dripping fudge! - Todd and Melissa

Answer:

chocolate fudge
Follow the directions exactly! Don’t mess with the recipe. The proportions matter in the chemistry of fudge making.

Measuring ingredients has to be precise, as too much or too little of any ingredient could ruin the fudge.

Never double the recipe or substitute main recipe ingredients (except for add-ins such as nuts or dried fruit). as it will affect the cooking time and temperature.

Failure of the fudge to set, is most typically the result of way too much butter or the substitution of an inferior margarine for superior butter.

Adding the butter at the improper time cause most problems. Add the butter after the boil. Adding with the sugar and milk will result in poorly dissolved sugar which crystallized prematurely resulting in fudge with a grainy texture. Adding the butter to the sugar mixture after a rolling boil helps keep the sugar from early crystallization. Adding the butter to the milk-sugar mixture only impedes the milk's ability to dissolve the sugar.

Cool at room temperature or placing the pan in a room temperature bath of water. Too rapid a cooling (like placing in the refrigerator) can cause 'premature' crystallization and result in a lumpy, grainy fudge."

Check out the following article on fudge making:

The Physical Chemistry of Making Fudge, by Sue Ann Bowling

If all else fails, failed fudge that refuses to set up still makes incredibly decadent frosting.