Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

By Eric Kim

Updated Feb. 15, 2024

Chocolate-Covered Strawberries
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
40 minutes
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
35 minutes
Rating
4(147)
Comments
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When you bite into one of these chocolate-covered strawberries, the shell will snap audibly and crack with a crisp, satisfying sharpness before pooling on your tongue as it melts. By tempering the chocolate, essentially melting and cooling it to the right temperature, it forms a delicate shell that yields to juicy berries. This type of stabilized chocolate is glossy and doesn’t melt at room temperature. The easiest way to temper chocolate at home for candy making, as this recipe does, is to melt a portion of store-bought bar chocolate in the microwave or in a bowl set over recently simmered water, and to then cool it down by stirring in more unmelted chocolate (called seed chocolate). There’s no need for a candy thermometer because you can rely on your senses: The chocolate is ready for dipping when it’s just a touch warmer than your bottom lip.

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Ingredients

Yield:8 to 10 servings
  • 1pound large strawberries
  • 2(3 ½-ounce) bars dark (bittersweet) chocolate (60 to 70 percent cacao) or high-quality white chocolate (see Tip), broken into small pieces
  • 1teaspoon olive oil (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

125 calories; 7 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 15 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 14 grams sugars; 1 gram protein; 18 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Prepare the strawberries: Rinse and drain the berries well, then dry them off with paper towels. (If you have time, let them further air-dry in the refrigerator, about 1 hour.)

  2. Step 2

    Melt the chocolate: Fill a small pot with ½ inch of water, bring it to a simmer, then turn off the heat. Place a medium heatproof bowl over the pot. The bowl should not touch the water. Add two-thirds of the chocolate to the bowl and melt completely, stirring occasionally with a flexible spatula. Stir in the olive oil, if using, for a shinier end result. (This oil method is called faux tempering and is great insurance; just note that your final chocolate shell will be less snappy.)

  3. Step 3

    Cool the chocolate: Remove the bowl from the pot and add the remaining chocolate, stirring constantly until melted. Then, keep stirring until cool and starting to thicken (if too thick, return to the hot water to melt again). The mixture should feel slightly warmer than your bottom lip.

  4. Step 4

    Dip the strawberries: Holding each strawberry by its stem, dip it into the chocolate, twisting it to cover completely, then let any excess chocolate run off before placing on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Successfully tempered chocolate should set in 10 to 15 minutes at room temperature. If the chocolate doesn’t set at room temperature, refrigerate until it does. Stored and refrigerated in an airtight container lined with a paper towel, the chocolate-covered berries can keep for up to 2 days.

Tip
  • For this recipe, it’s important to use a chocolate bar from the candy section of the grocery store, not the baking section. Baking chocolate and chocolate chips have additives, such as stabilizers, that make them harder to temper. When picking white chocolate, go for high-quality bars, such as Lindt or Ghirardelli.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
147 user ratings
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Comments

Thea Neal

For the bold folks attempting this recipe - just use a thermometer. Remove the chocolate from the heat at 115 F degrees. Stir in rest of chocolate, then keep stirring until you get to 90 F degrees. Then dip your berries.

Jane

Start with your largest strawberries, and save the smaller ones for the end when your chocolate level is lower. You'll thank yourself!

Arianne

Instead of olive oil, I typically use coconut oil. That helps preserve the "snap" of the chocolate.

Peaches

If you are eating them within a few hours, you can use a food injector to infuse the fruit (after dipping) with a bit of liqueur. Do it long enough before serving that the fruit will macerate a little. Amazing! It’s especially good when the strawberries are not as flavorful as you would like, which happens a lot these days. Try crème de cassis.

Dfuser

My family loves chocolate covered fruit, and I've made hundreds. this is good with strawberries, great with bananas, and perfect with crisp apples. For a real chocoholic treat, hull the strawberries, leaving a nice big hole. Using a flat kabab skewer, dip the dried berry into the chocolate filling the hole with chocolate. tap the excess off the berry, then carefully push the berry onto the parchment or silicone covered tray.

AlBM

I used a bit of coconut oil instead of olive oil.

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