Best Easy Brownies

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Homemade brownies are just so much better than box mix. Especially with this Best Easy Brownies recipe. The chocolate flavor is just unparalleled in this best brownie recipe!

That’s why I’m SO excited to share this easy brownie recipe from scratch with you. These are SO much better than boxed brownie mix, and just as easy.

I was inspired to create it randomly last week when an intense chocolate craving hit. Within a few days I had the recipe nailed and I realized I just had to film a recipe video to show you exactly how to make these babies.

These brownies did not last long at our house! They’re especially good with ice cream and you could even drizzle some caramel sauce on top for an extra decadent treat.

Brownies may seem super simple, but there are some interesting things happening behind the scenes with the ingredients and techniques. Achieving tall, fudgy, chewy, and moist brownies with that shiny crust on top is totally doable, but requires some understanding of how baking works.

So be sure to watch the video before you give this best brownie recipe a try. I crammed in as many tips and tricks as I could.

I didn’t quite realize it until the camera was on, but I have a LOT to say about brownies. Almost as much as I do about cookie recipes.

So if you’re curious about how to really perfect your brownies, check out the tips below. I also tried to answer any questions I thought you might have below.

How to Make the BEST Easy Brownie Recipe

Easy Brownies Recipe Ingredients

• Butter – Use unsalted butter to control the amount of salt in your brownies.
• Semisweet chocolate – I fold in chopped chocolate baking bars for this perfect brownie recipe. You could also use semisweet chocolate chips instead, they just won’t melt down as easily.
• Granulated sugar – White sugar sweetens and moistens the brownies. Don’t reduce the sugar. Learn more about sugar’s many roles in baking brownies here.
• Eggs – 2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk provides the perfect chewy texture.
• Vanilla extract – Rounds out the flavor perfectly.
• All-purpose flour – Measured accurately. It’s crucial to weigh your dry ingredients with a digital scale to make sure you don’t end up with crumbly or dry brownies.
• Cocoa powder – I used unsweetened natural cocoa powder for these brownies. Again, make sure to measure accurately! Find out the differences between Natural vs. Dutch Process Cocoa Powder here.
• Fine salt – Just 1/4 teaspoon of salt is enough to balance out the sweetness. I prefer fine sea salt, but table salt is fine too – learn more about different types of salt here.
• Semisweet chocolate chips – You can’t forget the chocolate chips in the best easy brownie recipe! I used semi-sweet chocolate chips, but milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or chocolate chunks would also work.

Oil vs. Butter in Brownies: Which is Better?

This recipe calls for butter instead of oil for the best flavor and fudgy, melt-in-your-mouth texture. The melted butter also helps to provide that beautiful crinkly crust for perfect brownies (more on how to achieve that below).

For more side-by-side baking experiments of Oil Vs. Butter in Baking, check out this article.

How to Make Brownies with Shiny, Thin, Crinkly Crust

You know that tissue-thin shiny crust on top of brownies that we all love and want? It’s easier to achieve than you might think. I show you how to do this in detail in the video above.

But the basic idea is to beat the eggs and sugar in the batter extremely well to create a sort of foam. I discovered that I can shortcut my way to that shiny crust by whisking the wet ingredients extremely well, until the batter itself is ultra smooth and shiny. Learn more about how to achieve crinkly crusts on brownies here!

What Is the Secret to Chewy + Fudgy Brownies?

Although my goal for this recipe was to make EASY homemade brownies, I still wanted them to be chewy. For the first batches I made, I found the brownies to be delicious, but lacking a bit of that chewiness I wanted. So I added an extra egg yolk to the recipe, and it was the perfect simple way to achieve that extra chewy texture. Why the yolk? The fat and protein in the yolk helps to create a rich and chewy texture.

If you don’t want that chewiness, or don’t want to deal with adding an extra yolk, feel free to skip it.

For fudgy brownies, it’s important that the batter is very moist and rich. That’s why we use a relatively small amount of flour and cocoa powder. Enough flour to provide structure and chew, but not too much that the brownies are dense or cakey. Enough cocoa to provide that rich chocolate flavor, but not so much that the brownies are dry.

Baking Tip: Measure Your Ingredients Accurately!

To ensure you don’t accidentally add too much flour or cocoa (which is very easy to accidentally do), I would recommend using a digital kitchen scale. At the very least, be sure to lightly spoon your flour and cocoa into your measuring cup so you don’t unintentionally compact too much into the measurement. Read more about how to measure your ingredients accurately here.

The Best Brownie Baking Pan

For the best brownie recipe, I highly recommend using a metal baking pan. I love this light-colored metal pan, or any quality metal baking pan that isn’t too dark in color. The darker the color, the more likely you are to burn the edges or have dry edges.

Glass pans and ceramic pans will take LONGER to bake these brownies, and the texture may become dense. Learn more in my Glass vs. Metal Baking Pans article.

I like to line my pan with parchment or foil, leaving an overhang so I can easily lift out the entire pan of brownies to cut and serve.

Can I Double this Easy Brownies Recipe?

You can easily double this recipe and bake in a 9 by 13-inch metal baking pan for about 35 to 40 minutes.

How Do You Cut Brownies Cleanly for Perfect Brownie Slices?

1. Allow the brownies to cool completely.
2. Run a large, very sharp knife under hot water for 5-10 seconds. Carefully dry the knife with a towel.
3. Carefully press the knife through the brownies in one firm slice.
4. Repeat with the remaining brownies, continuing to run the knife under water and drying in between each slice.

Check out my How to Cut Brownies Cleanly in 5 Steps article for even more tips.

How Long to Bake Easy Brownies

Do NOT overbake brownies. There should still be moist crumbs attached to a cake tester or toothpick by the end of the baking time. I find that 25-30 minutes results in perfectly baked brownies. Err on the side of under-baking here.

How to Store Best Easy Brownies

The brownies definitely taste best the day they are baked, but can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature or up to 4 days in the fridge. They are even more fudgy when they’re chilled! If you prefer, you can microwave them for a bit to serve them warm too.

Baking Magic

If you’re still curious about how baking ingredients and techniques work, and how I create my recipes using the science of baking, then I have a little invitation for you. Come join me in my online baking class The Magic of Baking. Everything in the class is already there, waiting for you to go through at your own pace and at your convenience. I go in-depth on how baking works, so you can have complete confidence every time you enter the kitchen. Learn more about The Magic of Baking here.

More Homemade Easy Brownie Recipes:

• Best Ever Chewy Brownies
• Nutella Brownies
• Brown Butter Brownies
• Peanut Butter Stuffed Brownies
• Toffee Brownies