How to Buy Chocolate Chips

Even if you've never met a chocolate chip cookie you didn't like, professional bakers agree that chocolate chips vary in taste and quality. The secret to making a great chocolate chip cookie, as opposed to a mediocre one, lies in using a superior quality chocolate chip. The tips below explain how to buy these decadent little morsels so that your chocolate chip cookies stand out from the rest.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Read the label ingredients on the chocolate chips. Make sure they don't contain more than 25 to 30 percent fat. High fat content makes chocolate melt easily, which is what you don't want your chocolate chips to do.

2. Make sure the chocolate chips contain at least 15 percent fat. This amount of fat ensures that the chips taste smooth and creamy.

3. Examine the label ingredients for the sugar content. Sweeter chocolate chips taste more artificial and less like real chocolate. In professional taste tests, the sweetest chips got the fewest votes.

4. Check the color of the chips. It should be dark and even. Dull, light brown-colored chocolate chips suggest an inferior quality chocolate or that the chips are old.

5. Buy several different brands of chocolate chips and compare them for taste. Higher quality chocolate chips taste smooth and only slightly sweet without any trace of bitterness.

6. Plan to test the different brands by adding the chips to a moderately seasoned, all butter cookie dough. When cooled, taste the cookies to make sure the chocolate chips maintained a distinct flavor but did not overpower the rest of the dough.

Tips & Warnings

• Chocolate "chips" are also sold as "chunks" that you can easily substitute in any recipe calling for chocolate chips.

Resources

• View results from taste tests on chocolate chips.

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