What to use instead of dark chocolate
It depends entirely on what it's doing in the dish. Here's the job, what else does it, and what to skip.
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Melted coating that sets hard and snaps
The set comes from cocoa butter crystallising. A dark bar at 32 percent cocoa butter or more flows thin enough to coat evenly and then firms up with a clean break.
Any bar between 60 and 72 percentRan out
1:1 by weight
Higher percentages flow thinner and taste more bitter. Below about 55 percent the shell sets softer and sweeter and fingerprints more easily.
Couverture wafers or calletsRan out
1:1 by weight
More cocoa butter, so it flows thinner and snaps harder. This is what a chocolatier would reach for.
Dairy-free dark chocolateDairy-free
1:1 by weight
Most 70 percent bars already qualify. Check for added milk fat, which some brands include and which softens the set noticeably.
Chocolate plus coconut oil, if the melt is too thick to coatRan out
1 tsp coconut oil per 4 oz chocolate
Thins it so it coats evenly and lowers the set point, so the finished shell is softer and marks under a thumb.
What doesn't work: Chocolate chips. They are formulated with less cocoa butter and often added stabilisers so they hold their shape in a hot oven, which is the exact opposite of what a coating needs; melted, they go thick and claggy and set dull with no snap.
Chocolate flavour and fat in a batter, ganache or mousse
The chocolate is supplying three things at once: cocoa solids for flavour, cocoa butter for richness and structure, and sugar. Swapping it means adjusting the ratio between those three.
Unsweetened baking chocolate plus sugarRan out
1 oz unsweetened + 1 tbsp sugar per 1 oz semisweet dark
More cocoa punch at the same sweetness. Slightly less rich, since you added dry sugar rather than more cocoa butter.
Cocoa powder plus fatRan out
3 tbsp cocoa powder + 1 tbsp butter or oil per 1 oz unsweetened chocolate
Works in a batter and fails in a ganache, because there is no cocoa butter to set it. Cakes come out a shade drier.
Mexican chocolateRan out
1:1 by weight, and cut 1 tbsp sugar per oz from the recipe
Sweeter and grittier with cinnamon built in. Excellent in mole, distracting in a souffle.
Dark chocolate with coconut cream, for ganacheDairy-free
4 oz chocolate + 1/3 cup coconut cream
Sets a touch firmer than a dairy ganache and tastes faintly of coconut. It splits if the cream comes to a boil.
What doesn't work: A splash of milk or water added to help chocolate melt. A small amount of liquid makes the sugar and cocoa particles clump and the whole bowl seizes into a grainy paste. Keep it bone dry, or commit and add enough for a proper ganache, at least 1/3 cup per 4 oz.