How do I make candy shells like M&Ms or Reese's Pieces have?
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7With an industrial factory?– bmarguliesCommented Aug 8, 2010 at 22:39
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1 Answer
You can give your candies hard shells by dipping them into a melted mixture of one part water, two parts sugar, and 1/2 part corn syrup. Melt those ingredients together over medium to medium-high heat until the sugar has totally dissolved and the mixture is at the hard crack stage (295-310° F./146-154° C.). Remove your pot of glaze from the heat and place it into a waiting metal bowl of ice water. Once the glaze has stopped bubbling, begin dipping your candies immediately. Once dipped, set them on an appropriate, lightly greased surface to cool (use a flavorless oil or kitchen spray for greasing).
You'll want to skewer your candies to dip them; never attempt to dip candies into hot glaze by hand. You'll also want to set everything up for dipping before you make your glaze: have your bowl of ice water ready; have a greased tray or marble slab/counter ready to receive your dipped candies; have your kitchen to yourself (distractions aren't good when working with hot glaze).
Your glaze will cool very quickly, so work carefully but efficiently.
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5Adding to this, for safety's sake: you will also want a large vessel of ice water handy, one that you can submerge your entire arm in. Also--okay, I'm not a worrywart, but if we're advocating working with 150° sugar I'd like to cover the bases--wear two layers of clothing, or an apron that covers most of your body. That way if you spill the sugar you can remover the outer layer quickly before it hits your skin. I speak from experience at having been half-naked in a professional kitchen that you want to be able to take off clothing as quickly as possible if needed.– danielCommented Aug 9, 2010 at 5:28
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2A couple of notes on this. First, the corn syrup is extremely important in order to keep the glaze from seizing as you cook it. Second, while this will glaze your candies, it won't be exactly like an M&M or Reeses. For coated candies like this they typically use a large tumbler where they tumble the pieces and then pour in powdered flavorant/colorant. Once the pieces are evenly coated, they then pour or spray in a food-grade wax to seal and shine the pieces. Commented Aug 9, 2010 at 16:50
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@GalacticCowboy: (1) what is "large tumbler"? Google returns Batman cars instead of food or other machines. (2) wax?– user2954Commented Mar 21, 2011 at 9:47
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What's the reason/chemistry for putting the hot sugar in a bowl of ice water? It seems like that would only serve to limit the workable time. Commented Jul 23, 2014 at 21:40
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1@antony.trupe As you heat the hot sugar the water is evaporating, and the water is actually keeping the sugar's boiling point lower than it would be otherwise. If you then put the molten sugar in water it behaves certain ways. This is used as a "cold water test" for help know when your sugar is at the right state for a given recipe. See this for more details and examples of the stages including the final burnt state exploratorium.edu/cooking/candy/sugar-stages.html Commented Jul 5, 2016 at 4:03