Candy Making Temperature Chart

Candy consists of foods made with large amounts of sugar. This includes lollipops, brittle, taffy, nougat, chocolate, fudge, toffee, licorice and jelly beans. Candy is made by combining water and sugar and exposing it to heat. Eventually the heat causes the sugar crystals to melt and darken and the water to evaporate. The water evaporation causes the mixture to get more dense. The extent to which this happens is what makes the difference between caramel syrup, chewy taffy or hard rock candy. This is because the heat is one of the most important factors that determine how these sugar crystals reform when the mixture cools.

Keep in mind that humid days (over 60%) and some rainy days can affect how your candy making turns out because the candy absorbs more moisture from the air. Some people increase their candy making temperatures by a degree or two higher than indicated on the recipe but it's still a gamble. We recommend waiting until a less humid day if you're interested in consistent results.

Before making candy, test your candy thermometer for accuracy by putting the probe in a pot of boiling water. The thermometer should read 212F.

Use the candy making chart below in conjunction with a candy thermometer to determine which temperatures are optimal for your desired type of candy.

Candy Temperature Chart

Temperature	Sugar Stage	Description and Uses
400F 204C	Burned Caramel	Too bitter- You've gone too far
375F 191C	Very Dark Caramel	Dark and bittersweet
350F 177C	Dark Caramel	Dark and intense. Glazes
345F 174C	Amber Caramel	Rich and sweet. Glazes
325F 163C	Light Caramel	Sugars start to break down and form more complex flavors. Brittle/Spun Sugar/Lollipops/Glazes
320F 160C
285F-315F 141C-157C	Hard Crack	Becomes Brittle. Caramel stage begins at 310F.
275F-280F 135C-138C	Crack
270F-275F 132C-135C	Soft Crack	Separates into bendable threads. Taffy/Butterscotch
260F-265F 127C-129C	Hard Ball	Nougat/Divinity
245F-255F 118C-124C	Firm Ball	Firmer Caramel
240F-245F 116C-118C	Soft Ball	Fudge/Fondant/Soft Caramel
230F-235F 110C-113C	Thread	Makes a long thread when dropped in cold water. Italian Meringue
225F 107C	Clear	Syrup/Delicate sugar candy
213F-223F 101C-106C		Syrup/Jelly/Some icings
212F 100C	Boiling

Tags:

candy

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Here's a Tip!

Chopping chocolate with a serrated knife such as a bread knife is considerably easier than chopping with a sharp chef or santoku knife. Why? The serrated knife edge creates cracks in the chocolate that enables separation whereas the sharp knife cuts through which requires considerably more effort.