Perfect Classic Chocolate Eclair Recipe (FOOLPROOF)

Eclairs covered with chocolate glaze and filled with pastry cream.

4.99 from 92 votes

Perfect Classic Chocolate Eclair Recipe (FOOLPROOF)

This is seriously the BEST classic chocolate eclair recipe that will take you through how to make them at home step by step. A foolproof eclair recipe that works even in home kitchen environment, besides, I am also including a detailed troubleshooting guide!

Prep Time20

Cook Time40

Waiting time2

Total Time3

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: French

Servings:

Calories: 211kcal

Author: Katalin Nagy

Equipment

Ingredients

For the eclairs

60 g Unsalted butter 82% European style butter at room temperature, in chunks.
60 g Water
60 g Whole milk
¼ teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Granulated sugar
70 g Bread flour high protein content flour, eg. 13%
110 g Egg Approx. 2 eggs at room temperature. Might need slightly more or less, see the tips below.

Pastry cream filling

240 g Whole milk 3% fat
50 g Granulated sugar
40 g Egg yolk approx. yolk of 2 eggs
12 g Corn starch
12 g All purpose flour
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
28 g Unsalted butter 82% fat, at room temperature

Chocolate ganache glaze

170 g Semi sweet chocolate use high quality chocolate e.g., Callebaut or Lindt
77 g Heavy Cream 36% fat
15 g Unsalted butter 82% fat, at room temperature

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Classic Chocolate Eclairs step-by-step

Sift the flour and set it aside.
In a saucepan, combine the butter chunks, water, milk, salt, and sugar, and heat over medium until the mixture begins to simmer. To not boil it.
Once simmering, remove from the heat, add the flour all at once, and vigorously whisk with a rubber spatula until a smooth ball forms and no flour bits remain visible.
Return the saucepan to the stove and cook the dough for 3-5 minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly. During this time, the water will evaporate, and a thin skin should form on the bottom of the saucepan.
Transfer the dough to the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk on low speed for about a minute to allow it to cool slightly (use the paddle attachment). Gradually add the lightly whisked eggs, a small amount at a time, while the mixer is running. Let the mixer fully incorporate each addition before adding more. The dough should come together and become glossy and pipeable in about 2-3 minutes.
The dough is ready when it slowly falls from the paddle in a V shape. It should not be runny—this consistency is key. The exact quantity of egg may vary depending on how much moisture evaporated during the cooking stage and the type of flour used, so use your judgment here.
Transfer the dough to a pastry bag fitted with a French star nozzle (0.5 inch / 1.3 cm in diameter) and the best if refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.
After resting, pipe 14 equal-sized eclairs onto a perforated "air" baking mat, leaving enough space between each one to allow for puffing. Alternatively, pipe the dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Pipe the dough at a 45° angle, applying even pressure. Once all the eclairs are piped, gently tap the ends with a lightly wet finger to smooth them out and "close" the tips.
Lightly dust the piped dough with powdered sugar to help prevent cracking. Place the tray in the freezer for at least one hour or freeze the dough at this point for a longer period.
Preheat your oven to 200°C / 392°F (no fan).
After one hour of freezing time, place the tray in the oven, reduce the temperature to 170°C / 338°F (no fan) and bake the eclairs for 40 minutes. Avoid opening the oven door for the first 30 minutes. If baking for the first time, it's helpful to remove one eclair at the 40-minute mark to check its consistency. It should be golden, nicely puffed, and not deflate at room temperature. The center should not be raw (a slightly wet interior is fine, as it will dry during cooling). If it meets these criteria, your eclairs are done.
Cool the eclairs on the perforated air mat and let them come to room temperature before filling and glazing.

Pastry cream filling

Whisk together sugar and egg yolks in a bowl for 1-2 minutes until fluffy. Add cornstarch, flour, and vanilla, mixing until smooth.
Heat milk in a saucepan until it just begins to simmer (not boil). Slowly pour it into the egg yolk mixture while whisking to temper the yolks.
Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, mixing constantly, until thickened (about 1 minute after boiling). If lumpy, keep whisking until smooth. Remove it from the stove. Strain if necessary.
Gradually mix in softened butter in chunks until fully incorporated.
The pastry cream needs to be completely cool before using it to fill the eclairs. Place the cream in a shallow bowl and cover the entire surface with plastic wrap to avoid skin forming on top.

Chocolate ganache glaze

For the glaze, semi-melt the chocolate in the microwave. Meanwhile, heat the cream in a saucepan until it just begins to simmer.
Pour the simmering cream over the melted chocolate and stir until smooth, then mix in the butter.
Set aside and allow the glaze to cool to about 30°C (86°F). It should have a smooth consistency—not too runny or thick—before use.

Fill and glaze the eclairs

To fill the eclairs, either create three small holes in the bottom using a skewer or piping nozzle, or insert a piping nozzle into the side of each eclair. Gently pipe the pastry cream into each eclair until fully filled.
Once filled, dip the tops of each eclair into the cooled chocolate glaze, ensuring an even coating. For a smooth finish, gently tap the eclair on the side of the bowl to remove any excess glaze or use your fingers to clean up any exxess.
Allow the glaze to set and firm up before serving. This will take about 2-3 minutes in the fridge and ensure a glossy finish.
Eclairs are best served immediately after filling. Once filled, they will gradually lose their crispiness over time, so it's best to enjoy them fresh. Any leftovers can be stored refrigerated for about a day.

Notes

INGREDIENT NOTES:

Measure your ingredients with a Digital scale for accuracy
For the eclairs, use high protein content bread flour for the best results, I am using 12% protein content flour. Do not skip the salt and use lightly whisked room-temperature eggs.
Good quality butter and pure vanilla extract are the heart of making pastry cream. Use high-quality 82% fat-content European butter and the best quality vanilla you can access.
For the chocolate glaze, use good quality semi-sweet chocolate, e.g., Callebaut or Lindt.

TECHNIQUE NOTES:

Make sure you read my Expert tips section above to maximize your success. A short recipe alone is not able to cover all the necessary details, and science behind baking. Consider this recipe more like an in-depth tutorial, literally the only recipe you will ever need to make eclairs.
While heating the milk, water, butter, salt, and sugar mixture, make sure that the sugar and salt fully dissolve. Best to start with room-temperature butter so the mixture will melt together at the same time.
Do not skip sifting flour as you don´t want to deal with flour lumps while making this recipe.
Please note that you might need slightly more or less egg - and that is normal - depending on the flour you use and how much you dried the mixture while cooking it. Pay very close attention to the consistency while mixing the egg in and apply the V shape test.
There are 2 chilling times involved - one fridge resting before piping, and one freezing before baking. Both of them are important to achieve neat, crack-free results.
Use a closed star nozzle tip so your eclair will puff up neatly. Neither round nor open star nozzle tip will give you the desired results.
If you have never used a piping bag and piping nozzle before, it is worth practicing before.
I strongly advise using a digital oven thermometer to be able to measure your exact oven temperature as most home ovens are either over or under heat.
While baking, do not use the fan in your oven, it can encourage cracks on your eclairs.
Use a small/medium sized saucepan with good heat distribution to avoid burning the milk when making pastry cream.
Let the cream set in the fridge before using. It will further set as it cools into a silky, pipeable consistency.
While glazing, you want to make sure that the ganache is at the right temperature. If it is too thick (cold), the glaze will set in a wrinkled way. If it is too thin (warm), the glaze will run to the side. Test and try with one eclair and wait for the right temperature to glaze the rest.

Nutrition