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You are here: Home / Recipes / Chocolate Water Ganache Recipe

Recipes

Chocolate Water Ganache Recipe

Many people labour under the misapprehension that chocolate and water don’t mix, but in actual fact, nothing brings out the pure taste of chocolate better than water.  Although cream is traditionally used in ganache, it tends to alter the flavour of the chocolate.  It also adds A LOT of calories to the ganache.





So, if you love ganache – who doesn’t? – you simply HAVE to try this recipe.  I can guarantee that you won’t be disappointed!

There are many variations and methods.  Some people tell you to boil the water first and then add the chocolate, some tell you to melt the chocolate first and then add the water a tablespoon full at a time (I don’t like this one at all!)…

With this recipe, you just chuck it all together and melt.

Note:  the quality of the ganache will depend solely on the quality of the chocolate.  If you aren’t fussed, use stale chocolate bars.  If you want the best of the best of ganaches, use the best chocolate you can find.

Christina’s Chocolate Water Ganache

This is my Godmother’s Chocolate Water Ganache Recipe and it is both simple and divine!

Ingredients

  • 250g Chocolate
  • 100 ml water
  • Optional:
    • Coffee:  half a teaspoon of coffee dissolved in a teaspoon of boiling water – this will enhance the taste of the chocolate!
    • Chilli:  you can always add a pinch of dried chillies or chilli powder to your ganache.  This is a particular favourite of my Christina’s and makes the chocolate taste “warm”.  People often mistake the taste, if subtle enough, for added alcohol.

Method

  1. Place the water and the chocolate into the top of a double-boiler (or a bowl placed over a pot of boiling water) and melt, stirring to mix the two ingredients.
  2. Once the chocolate is all melted, keep heating and stirring the ganache to let some of the water evaporate.

If you are going to drizzle the ganache over a cake, wait about half an hour for the ganache to cool down and then pour it over the cake.  If you are going to spread it onto a cake, wait until the ganache is the consistency of peanut butter and then spread/pipe it onto your cake.  Don’t put it in the fridge to cool down, though, as this will make the ganache set!  Not necessarily the end of the world as you can make truffles instead :)

Storing the Ganache

If you are intending to keep the ganache, place it in a clean mason jar and keep it in the fridge.  It will last for ages and ages (if you don’t eat it all first).  The ganache will become very stiff once refrigerated so if you want to use it as an ice-cream sauce later on, just spoon out a little bit and blast it in the microwave for a few seconds to make it nice and runny again.

Cream Ganache

If you have your heart set on cream ganache, Savoury Sweet Life has a lovely recipe and tutorial for making Chocolate Ganache 3 Ways (glazed, whipped and piped).  Her photos are beautiful!

Adding Alcohol to the Ganache

You might want to add some alcohol to your ganache.  You COULD add the alcohol to the water and the chocolate before heating, but that would cause some of the alcohol to evaporate.  Instead, you could make the ganache as stipulated above, heat some alcohol in the microwave for 10 seconds, and then mix the two.  Alternatively, have a look at this Very Informative Post.

Chocolate Macarons

If you are more interested in the Macarons than in the ganache, that’s ok too.  I made the macarons using THIS TUTORIAL for Almost Foolproof Macarons by My Food Geek.  The recipe uses the Italian meringue method, which makes the macarons a lot more stable and a lot less prone to failure.  I have made 3 batches now and all three of them came out lovely!

If you’re after a fancy tutorial with a lovely recipe for Italian Meringue Macarons with Lemon Verbena Ganache, head over to Dessertfirstgirl.  Like my Pieter says:  “it makes me want to eat my face off!”

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Happy Baking!

Dedri

This blog post contains affiliate links. I only link to products I personally use or would use.  All opinions are my own.

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15 Comments April 16, 2013

Comments

  1. Melissa says

    December 16, 2018 at 3:19 pm

    Thank you for this posting :) How would you add alcohol to a water ganache?

    Reply
    • Dedri Uys says

      December 22, 2018 at 8:14 pm

      I would add it once I have finished making the ganache, warming it before adding (just slightly) and stirring it in thoroughly. You could also add it to the water and chocolate before melting, but that will evaporate some of the alcohol. Have a look at this very informative post.

  2. Heather says

    July 19, 2018 at 3:30 pm

    Can this ganache be whipped? I’d like to make it into more of a frosting, and I need it to be dairy free (I already have appropriate chocolate).

    Reply
    • Dedri Uys says

      July 21, 2018 at 10:51 am

      Hi. I have used the water ganache recipe and THIS technique with success.

  3. Suzy Turner says

    February 26, 2018 at 7:12 am

    Could I make water ganache with white chocolate? If so, what would the recipe be? The same? :)

    Reply
    • Dedri Uys says

      March 9, 2018 at 10:27 pm

      Hi Suzy. I find white chocolate to be a tricky beast, almost as if it isn’t a cousin of regular chocolate at all… It buns so easily! This is the recipe I use when I make white chocolate ganache.

  4. Nana says

    January 7, 2017 at 7:32 pm

    Could i also pipe it on to cupcakes?

    Reply
    • Dedri Uys says

      January 7, 2017 at 9:00 pm

      Not when it’s just made. You can pipe it if you wait until it has set to exactly the right consistency, but I always find that it takes ages and ages to start setting and when it does it goes very quickly, so I always miss the window between runny and completely set.

  5. Anna says

    July 17, 2015 at 1:31 am

    I’m going to make my mom a chocolate Bundt cake with a variation on a water ganache. I will use a Diet Coke reduction instead of water. What kind of chocolate compliments the taste of Diet Coke?

    Reply
    • Dedri Uys says

      July 21, 2015 at 10:11 pm

      Hi Anna. That is a brilliant idea, but I have never tried it myself, so am at a loss. I would guess dark chocolate, as diet coke is already fairly sweet!

  6. shriya says

    October 8, 2013 at 5:33 pm

    hi i am interested in water ganache, but unfortunately there is nothing much on the internet. I would like to know can this ganache used to make chocolate truffles, coz I have tried making water ganache it did not set and was to runny to make truffles
    thanks

    Reply
    • Dedri Uys says

      October 14, 2013 at 7:43 pm

      Shriya, the setting is dependant on the amount of liquid, not the type of liquid. This ganache will set firm in the fridge and can then be scooped into truffle balls. If it doesn’t set, just melt a little bit more chocolate and then stir the ganache into the melted chocolate. Refrigerate again and it should be good to go.

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