---
title: "Seize: what it means in cooking — Tiny Plates"
description: "Chocolate seizes when a few drops of water turn it from smooth and melted to thick, grainy and stiff. Here is how to avoid and rescue it."
url: "https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/seize"
---

# Seize

Chocolate seizes when a few drops of water turn it from smooth and melted to thick, grainy and stiff. Here is how to avoid and rescue it.

Also called Seized chocolate, Seizing.

To seize means to turn suddenly thick, dull and grainy. The word is used most for melted chocolate that meets a small amount of water or steam and clumps into a stiff paste. Caramel and sugar syrups can also seize, crystallizing into a solid, sandy mass.

## Why it works

Chocolate is fine particles of sugar and cocoa solids spread through cocoa butter, with almost no water. A few drops of water wet the sugar and cocoa particles and make them stick together into clumps, which thickens the whole bowl. A large amount of liquid behaves differently: the particles dissolve or spread out in it, and you get a smooth sauce or [ganache](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/ganache). So it is a little water that causes the problem, not a lot.

Overheating can also make chocolate thick and grainy, because the sugar and milk solids start to scorch.

## How to use it

To avoid seizing:

* Use a completely dry bowl and spatula.
* When melting over a [bain-marie](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/bain-marie), keep the water at a gentle simmer and make sure the bowl does not touch it. Steam is enough to cause seizing.
* In the microwave, heat in 15 to 30 second bursts and stir between them.
* When adding liquid such as cream or liqueur, add it all at once, warm, and in a good amount, or melt the chocolate with the liquid from the start.

## Common mistakes

* Covering a bowl of melting chocolate with a lid, so condensation drips in.
* Adding a teaspoon of cold flavoring to melted chocolate.
* Heating white or milk chocolate too hot. Keep them below about 45°C (113°F).

## In recipes

To rescue seized chocolate, stir in 1 teaspoon of boiling water or neutral oil at a time until smooth again. The result will not [temper](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/temper-chocolate) or set glossy, but it works for sauces, brownies and fillings. Badly burnt chocolate cannot be saved.

For caramel, a sugar syrup that seizes into crystals can often be saved by adding a splash of water and heating gently until it dissolves, then cooking it again without stirring. See [caramelization](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/caramelization). A fatty sauce that separates into oil and liquid has a different problem; see [split sauce](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/split-sauce).

## Related terms

* [Temper chocolateTempering chocolate is melting and cooling it to set temperatures so it sets glossy and snaps cleanly. Here are the temperatures for dark, milk and white.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/temper-chocolate)
* [Bain-marieA bain-marie is a hot water bath that cooks or melts food gently, such as custards, cheesecakes and chocolate. Here is how to set one up.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/bain-marie)
* [GanacheGanache is chocolate melted into hot cream. Change the ratio and it becomes a glaze, a whipped frosting or firm truffles. Here are the ratios to use.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/ganache)
* [Split sauceA split sauce is an emulsion, like mayonnaise or hollandaise, that has separated into fat and thin liquid. Here is why it happens and how to fix it.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/split-sauce)
* [CaramelizationCaramelization is the browning of sugar under heat, which turns it from plain sweet to rich, nutty and a little bitter. It is not the Maillard reaction.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/caramelization)

[More in kitchen science](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/category/kitchen-science)[Every term from A to Z](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary)