When making your own fudge, it’s important that you get the consistency of it right. No one wants fudge that is too soft or hard – but if your first results weren’t perfect, what can you do to get the texture right?
Here we are going to be taking a look at what ingredients make fudge hard. This way, you can avoid making super soft or hard fudge in the future while still including everything you need to get that classic fudge texture!
Check out the information below and consider it carefully. This should help you improve your homemade fudge in the future! Good luck!
What Are The Key Ingredients In Fudge?
At its core, fudge is nothing more than a confection made from sugar, milk, and butter. Different recipes will add different ingredients to add flavor, like vanilla extract, cocoa powder, nuts, marshmallows, and more. However, traditional fudge only requires three ingredients – sugar, milk, and butter, and that’s it!
So, which of these ingredients is responsible for making fudge hard?
What Makes Fudge Firm?
Fudge is renowned for its unique firm texture, so let’s take a look at how you can achieve it!
The Key Ingredient For The Right Fudge Texture
Technically, it’s the sugar that achieves that classic firm but silky fudge texture.
When you make fudge, you add your butter, milk, and sugar all together in a pan and heat it up so it melts together. The sugar is dissolved in this process, and when you are done cooking your fudge and have left it to set, the sugar crystallizes and makes the fudge set into a dense, firm texture.
So, this means that the ingredient that makes fudge hard is the sugar.
This doesn’t mean that if your fudge is too soft, you should have added more sugar than the recipe called for. If your batch of fudge won’t set or is way too soft, that doesn’t mean that you didn’t add enough sugar – you just messed up one of the steps in the recipe!
How Temperature Impacts Fudge And Its Texture
Fudge needs to be cooked at a very specific temperature to allow the sugar to dissolve, cook, and set at the right temperature.
The maximum temperature your fudge should reach is 234 degrees Fahrenheit or 237 degrees Fahrenheit – and no more! If your fudge gets any hotter, then you have overcooked it. On the other hand, if it’s any cooler, then you will have undercooked it, and the sugar hasn’t had a chance to dissolve properly in the mixture.
This is why so many fudge makers recommend you use a candy thermometer to closely monitor the temperature of your fudge. This will prevent you from overcooking or undercooking the fudge so you can get the right texture!
Not only that, but how you cool your fudge will have an impact on its texture too. Most recipes will tell you to cool your fudge at room temperature, but some people will try to use the refrigerator as a shortcut to get their fudge to set quickly. However, this has a huge impact on the texture of your fudge.
Cooling your fudge in a refrigerator and not at room temperature causes the sugar to cool and crystalize way too quickly. This can result in the fudge turning much harder in texture than it should be.
Traditional fudge should be silky and melting on your tongue – but most batches of fudge that have cooled in a refrigerator are grainy, brittle, and hard to sink your teeth into!
So, in truth, it’s not reality; it’s not the sugar that is responsible for fudge that is either too soft or hard – it’s the techniques and methods you use to make your fudge!
How To Fix Your Fudge
If your fudge has not set properly or has set but tastes very grainy, hard, or brittle, then don’t worry – you can still rescue your fudge! All you need to do is remelt the fudge and try again!
You will need to return the fudge to your pan and add around half a cup of water to help it melt back down. Do it over a low heat, gently stirring, until your fudge is back to its liquid form. Then, follow the recipe again from this step!
Not a lot of people realize that they can remelt their homemade fudge, so don’t settle for that batch of imperfect fudge – remelt it and try again, making changes based on the information above!
Frequently Asked Questions About The Hardness Of Fudge
How Long Does It Take For Fudge To Get Hard?
Once your fudge has been cooked and thickened, it’s important that you leave it to set. This will help it harden into the right consistency so it will taste delicious!
However, how long it takes for your fudge to set comes down to the recipe you have followed. Generally, most batches of fudge will set in for about 3 hours at room temperature.
If you are cooling your fudge down in the refrigerator, then this may speed up the process, so your fudge may set in just an hour! However, setting your fudge in a refrigerator will impact the texture and consistency of the fudge. Check out the guide above for more information!
Do You Put Fudge In The Refrigerator To Harden?
This question is one that divides a lot of fudge makers.
Some die-hard fudge bakers will insist that you avoid refrigerating your fudge at all costs. This is because when fudge cools too quickly, the sugar crystallization process happens too soon and causes a grainy texture in the fudge.
Many people think that this also reduces the quality of your fudge, making it feel cheaply made instead of the smooth, creamy texture that comes with high-quality professional fudge.
However, if you are short on time, some people will say that it’s fine to let your fudge set in the refrigerator – but there’s no doubt that letting your fudge set in the refrigerator will have a big impact on its texture.
Final Thoughts
So, the ingredient that makes fudge hard (or soft) is the sugar, but simply adding extra sugar to your fudge is not enough to help turn a soft batch into the right consistency.
The temperatures at which you cook and set your fudge have the biggest influence over whether or not your batch will turn out soft and gooey, hard and brittle, or a perfect balance between the two.
You need to cook your fudge at a hot enough temperature so the sugar melts but not too hot, or the other ingredients (the butter and milk) will turn oily. You also should cool your fudge at room temperature so the sugar has enough time to properly crystalize as the fudge sets.
So, what really makes fudge hard is the temperature it is cooked and cooled at!
We hope this guide has helped you understand why your fudge has turned out too soft or too hard. Perhaps you did not pay close attention to the temperatures while it cooked, or maybe you thought letting it set in the fridge would speed up the process with no other consequences.
Now you know where you went wrong, you should be able to remelt your fudge and start again. Good luck!
Fancy improving your fudge-making skills? Check out our recipes here:
- The Best Peanut Butter Fudge Recipe
- Jack Daniels Whisky Fudge
- Delicious Apple Pie Fudge Made With Double Cream
