The BEST Chewy Brownies are just as chewy as the boxed brownies but packed with way more chocolate flavor. One bowl recipe made in less than 1 hour!
Yield:
9 large or 16 small brownies
Prep Time:15minutes
Cook:30minutes
Tessa's Recipe Rundown...
Taste: Just the right amount of chocolate and sweetness. Texture: CHEWY, of course 🙂 Ease: Super easy. One bowl, no melting chocolate, and no electric mixer. Appearance: You can just see how gooey and moist these are! Pros: Better than boxed and almost as easy. Cons: None. I make this again? Absolutely.
I have shared a whole lot of brownie recipes over the years. Almost 40 to be exact!
Between all that brownie baking and completing my Ultimate Brownie Guide I’m pretty much your go-to brownie expert for the best brownie recipe. Really, I should put that on my business card.
But what I realized in looking at all those brownie recipes is that I’ve never shared a CHEWY brownie recipe. Sure, my Ultimate Brownies have a good level of chewiness. But they’re also very rich and fudgy. So these Chewy Brownies have been a long time coming. If you love box mix brownies, you’ll love these both for their chewiness and for how easy they are. Much quicker and easier than my Ultimate Brownies!
I think if you read some of the comments for these best homemade brownies below you’ll want to make this recipe ASAP. Just see what Susan said:
“These are the BEST brownies ever! My husband says that in the 31 years we’ve been married and I’ve been baking these absolutely his favorite of all time.”
How to Make Chewy Brownies
Let me explain exactly what makes these brownies so chewy and easy. You can skip this if you don’t care WHY these brownies are the way they are and you just want the printable recipe asap.
Chocolate & Cocoa Powder
Unlike my Ultimate Fudgy Brownies, which utilize two types of melted chocolate, these brownies get their main chocolate flavor from cocoa powder with semi-sweet chocolate chips stirred into the batter. Cocoa powder definitely yields a chewier brownie and has a flavor reminiscent of boxed brownies.
The photos on this post show what the brownies look like if you use regular unsweetened cocoa powder. In the recipe video, I used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. It gave the brownies an ultra dark chocolaty appearance with a little less sweetness.
Since creating this video, however, Hershey’s has changed the formula of that specific cocoa powder to a Dutched cocoa powder. I recommend sticking with a natural cocoa powder, such as Ghirardelli Cocoa Powder or Penzey’s Natural Cocoa Powder, for best results. Learn more about the differences between Dutch-process cocoa powder and natural cocoa powder here.
Feel free to fold in any kind of chocolate chips you want from dark chocolate or milk chocolate, but semisweet is my favorite. Whatever you do, don’t skip the chocolate chips! They help to develop that shiny crust on top of brownies.
Fat
With any cocoa powder-based brownie recipe, we need quite a bit of fat to prevent the cocoa powder from drying the brownies out and making them crumbly. In looking at what makes box mix brownies so chewy, it appears that the combination of saturated (solid) fats and unsaturated (liquid) fats is the winning answer. According to Cooks’ Illustrated, boxed brownies have the saturated fat component covered which is why you add oil (unsaturated) to the mix. I opted for a combination of melted butter and vegetable oil for the best marriage of taste and texture.
Make sure your vegetable oil is fresh to avoid any off flavors and use unsalted butter so you can fully control the level of saltiness. I haven’t tested these brownies with canola oil.
For a full breakdown on these two types of fats and how they affect flavor, tenderness, and texture, check out my Butter vs. Oil in Baking article. There are lots more side-by-side comparisons like this one (and not just with brownies!):
Sugar
I stuck with granulated sugar here because although I love the taste of brown sugar, I didn’t want to add any more moisture (brown sugar contributes more moisture due to the molasses that’s added in) to these already very moist and rich brownies. Too much moisture creates brownies that have lots of holes on top instead of that shiny tissue thin crust.
Eggs
2 large eggs is pretty standard for an 8 by 8-inch brownie recipe, but I just had to add in an egg yolk for the extra dose of chewiness and richness it gives. The protein and the fat in the egg yolk helps achieve those textures. We use cold eggs, instead of room temperature, to prevent the brownies from doming and to increase moisture with a tighter crumb texture.
Flour
All-purpose flour is the way to go here, cake flour makes these brownies way too tender and light. We can achieve enough chewiness without having to use bread flour, which can prevent an extra trip to the store for a lot of people. To make chewy AND fudgy brownies, we only need to use a little bit of flour. Any more flour will create drier or cakier brownies. If you want to be super accurate and weigh your flour, 1/2 cup equals 63 grams or 2.25 ounces. Check out my How to Measure Flour article for step-by-step instructions for weighing dry ingredients using a digital scale.
If you live in a very humid environment, or really dislike any kind of “greasiness,” you may want to add an extra 2 tablespoons of flour to your brownie batter mixture.
Leavener
With my brownie recipes, I usually prefer a very small amount or no chemical leavener (baking soda or baking powder). The reason is because I like brownies to be very rich and on the denser side, not even remotely cakey. Since they lift and give a lighter airier texture to baked goods, we’re only using 1/8 teaspoon baking soda here for just enough leavening to get a nice thick texture.
Cornstarch
This little secret ingredient really helps to improve the texture of these brownies so they’re that much closer to the box mix kind. 1 tablespoon of cornstarch makes the brownies thicker and improves that crust on top.
Make sure to measure correctly, and don’t skip this ingredient! When shooting the photos for my article on how to make brownies with a shiny, thin crust, my food photographer captured the shocking differences between a batch made with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch vs brownies made with an accidental amount of 1 teaspoon cornstarch. The bottom brownies also had no chocolate chips. Take a look:
Can I add nuts to brownies?
Yes! You can add 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans. You can add them either in addition to the chocolate chips or in place of the chocolate chips. Just note if you remove the chocolate chips your crust on top may not be as shiny. For best flavor, try toasting the nuts on a lined tray in a 350°F oven for about 6 to 8 minutes, stirring once.
How long to bake brownies:
Bake these brownies in a 325°F oven for about 30 minutes to avoid overbaking. There will absolutely be moist crumbs attached to a tester by the end of the baking time. That’s what we want. Even after 30 minutes if the middle still seems too moist, just remove the brownies from the oven. Carry-over cooking, the residual heat of the oven and pan, will continue to cook the brownies.
Some readers have said their brownies were really undercooked after 30 minutes. I’m guessing they used a glass baking pan, which I DON’T recommend for this recipe. I recommend a metal baking pan like this one lined with foil or parchment paper. Learn more about the differences between Glass vs. Metal Baking Pans here.
Also, you might want to check your oven temperature with an oven thermometer as many home ovens run cold (especially when they say they’ve just preheated).
For best results, allow the brownies to cool completely before slicing and serving.
How to store brownies:
The brownies definitely taste best the day they are baked, but can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge. They are even more fudgy when they’re chilled.
Brownies substitutions:
This brownie recipe is written exactly the way it is for very specific reasons, as noted in the explanations above. If you can’t use one of the ingredients listed, take a look at my extensive brownie index for other options (including coconut oil brownies). If you try to reduce the sugar, use a sugar substitute, use a butter substitute, or make this recipe vegan the results will NOT be the same. Feel free to add in nuts, chips, toffee bits, or anything else to the batter (1/2 cup to 1 cup, depending on how much you’d like).
The BEST Chewy Brownies are just as chewy as the boxed brownies but packed with way more chocolate flavor. One bowl recipe made in less than 1 hour!
Ingredients
5tablespoons(71 grams) unsalted butter
1 1/4cups(249 grams) granulated sugar
2large eggs plus 1 egg yolk,cold
1teaspoonvanilla extract
1/3cupvegetable oil
3/4cup(75 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2cup(63 grams) all-purpose flour
1/8teaspoonbaking soda
1tablespooncornstarch
1/4teaspoonsalt
3/4cup(128 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a 8 by 8-inch pan with foil or parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
In a microwave safe bowl, add the butter and sugar. Microwave for about 1 minute, or until the butter is melted. Whisk in the eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla. Stir in the oil and cocoa powder.
With a rubber spatula, stir in the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Spread the brownie batter evenly into the prepared pan. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until the brownies are set and a cake tester inserted into the center has moist crumbs attached. Do not overcook. Let cool completely before cutting and serving.
Brownies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
To double this recipe, use a 9x13 pan and bake for the same amount of time.
Course :
Dessert
Cuisine :
American
Keyword :
brownies, chewy brownies
May 2021 Baking Challenge
This recipe was the May 2021 pick for our monthly baking challenge! Every month you can join the challenge by baking the recipe and snapping a photo for a chance to win prizes! Click here for full challenge details. Check out everyone’s brownies:
This recipe was originally published in 2017 and updated in 2021 with more tips and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
I share trusted baking recipes your friends will LOVE alongside insights into the science of sweets. I'm a professionally trained chef, cookbook author, and cookie queen. I love to write about all things sweet, carb-y, and homemade. I live in Phoenix, Arizona (hence the blog name!)
About Tessa...
I share trusted baking recipes your friends will LOVE alongside insights into the science of sweets. I'm a professionally trained chef, cookbook author, and cookie queen. I love to write about all things sweet, carb-y, and homemade. I live in Phoenix, Arizona (hence the blog name!)
My husband loves those, they outdone the previous recipe, which I didn’t think was possible. Love your side by side comparisons and explanation of how different ingredients affect the outcome, hats off to you!
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— November 30, 2022 at 2:12 pm
Hi Anna! So glad you and your husband love these brownies so much! So glad you also enjoyed Tessa’s terrific tips and science of baking information, too! 🙂
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— November 29, 2022 at 10:58 am
Hi Amy! I’m so glad to hear that you enjoy these brownies! We don’t have nutritional information for our recipes, as we believe that dessert should be an indulgence! You should be able to find a nutritional calculator online to assist with this, if you wish! 🙂
I made these brownies twice. The second time with 10% less sugar. The brownies had a nice smooth top from the corn starch. It was easy to make and easy clean up. The brownies were really rich and not as chewy as boxed brownies. And with10% less sugar, it was still too sweet. I used Ghiradelli Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips. If I make these again, I would use Ghiradelli’s 60% which is less sweet.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— November 21, 2022 at 1:32 pm
Hi Leilani! I was going to suggest a darker/bittersweet chocolate chip to counteract the sweetness, but you’re way ahead of me 😉 You can also try using a darker cocoa powder, and even adding a little espresso powder (if you like coffee) to play up the bitter tones, without messing with the chemistry of the recipe! Happy baking 🙂
Absolutely LOVE this recipe, I only make this recipe for special occasions. If not, I find myself devouring it all on my own. Thanks for posting!
Quick question, any recommendations on how to make it a touch sweeter? I was thinking of increasing sugar by a 1/4 cup, not sure if that’s a good idea.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— November 21, 2022 at 1:29 pm
Hi Michelle! I’m so glad you enjoy these brownies so much! We haven’t tried increasing the sugar of these brownies, but feel free to give it a try! It may take some experimenting, but it should be fun to figure out your preferred sweetness level! If you’re not up for experimentation right now, you can always swap in a sweeter chocolate chip (such as milk chocolate or even white chocolate chips) inside the brownies, and you can also add a frosting, icing or ganache to the top once they’ve cooled, if you’d like – that will definitely kick up the sweetness level, without having to experiment 🙂 Let us know how it goes! Happy baking 🙂
I’ve been baking for a long time and this recipe is the best hands down. It gave the that chewy, fudgy taste I was looking for and let’s not forget, the crackly top.This recipe will definitely replace my old brownie recipe
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— November 15, 2022 at 10:47 am
Hi Alexis! Unfortunately, silicone pans don’t conduct heat well, so they will often result in brownies with very dry edges and underdone middles. Of course, feel free to give it a try if that’s all you have, but I’d recommend following Tessa’s recommendations in this article about Metal vs Glass pans here (silicone will act similarly to glass in that it’s not a great conductor of heat). This is the pan Tessa recommends for baking brownies – or anything in an 8×8-inch pan! I hope that helps! 🙂
Literally the best brownie I’ve ever made, EVER!! I baked for 28 minutes and it was absolutely perfect! Not too sweet, but the perfect amount of sweet, chocolate and chewy!! 5 stars ALL THE WAY
In your reply to one question you stated that the brownies wouldn’t rise with Dutch processed cocoa powder because there wouldn’t be anything to react with the baking soda.
However, in the Chocolate section of the recipe explanation it states that the version prepared in the video used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. My understanding is that that is Dutch processed.
I used Dutch processed cocoa powder from King Arthur and my brownies definitely puffed up. Not as much as in the pictures, but that is probably due to the fact that I only had a 9×9 pan.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— November 4, 2022 at 9:35 am
Hi Steven! At the time Tessa created this incredible recipe, Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa was not fully Dutched; it was a combination of natural and Dutched. Our understanding is that this has recently changed, and it is now a fully Dutched product. We are working to update this information across our entire site, now that the product is different. What I said to that reader about the baking soda is true, however, that particular reader was asking only if she should then skip the baking soda. There is very little baking soda in this recipe (just enough to give a little lift, without making the brownies cakey), so it’s not a huge deal if you do use Dutched cocoa – as you found out first-hand! I’m glad these brownies worked out well, and I hope you enjoyed them!
I just finished making this recipe. I added in a few other ingredients and used black cocoa powder. My oven is a little finicky, so I had to bake them about 5 additional minutes.
I made them for my friends Birthday. I added more chips and a secret ingredients. And don’t ask what it is cayse i can’t say what it is. Sorry Are Brownies were delious. He LOVED them!!! Thank you Keep all the recipes comming.
These are the BEST brownies I have ever made! The only two things I did differently; I used a 9×9 metal pan and I added a pinch of cinnamon. You won’t regret making these – Delicious!
A while back I went on a quest for a brownie recipe that was better than box mix but similar in texture..crisp exterior but chewy and not cakey.. I found this winner. I make it a lot but always double or even sometimes quadruple it. I’m just not too crazy about the amount of eggs used because that’s a whole breakfast meal amount.
These are so delicious!! I made them
Twice in the last few days and didn’t get the shiny top though. I cooked them in a round cake pan but definitely used the right amount of corn starch so I’m not sure where I went wrong. These are definitely my go to brownies though!
I have my brownies in the oven (as I type this), but it is probably the 50th time I have made these wonderful brownies! This recipe is THE BEST I have ever made. In fact, I always check this site before baking as I am ALWAYS steered in the right direction! 22 more minutes …
The chewiness of these were perfect upon cooling but they were WAAAAAYYYYY too sweet. I had to toss the initial batch away and make a new batch with less sugar. Could hardly taste the slight bitterness of the chocolate from this recipe. Was really hoping for the natural bitter sweet flavors of the chocolate to come through. Not sure if it was the organic sugar I used or if these brownies are supposed to be this sweet.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— October 12, 2022 at 9:33 am
Hi Han! Hmm, it sounds like something may have gone wrong in the process of your first batch, as these brownies should be a little sweet, but not extremely sweet. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure sugar and other ingredients, and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe – or end up with something too sweet. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! I’m glad you enjoyed the chewiness of the brownies, and hope you’ll try them again sometime! 🙂
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— October 10, 2022 at 9:33 am
Hi Cherry! I’m sorry to hear these brownies didn’t go as planned! I’d love to help you figure out what went wrong, so you can try again and enjoy these delicious, thick, chewy, decadent brownies!! Firstly, how do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! I also wonder what type of pan you’re baking the brownies in? Glass vs metal pans can make a big difference on the baked result, as Tessa shows in this article here. Your oven also might be running a little hot. Do you have an oven thermometer to check that? Check out Tessa’s article here about ovens, full of tips!! I hope something here helped, and I hope you give these brownies another try sometime – they really are incredible!! Check out the pink tip box, above the recipe, for ever more tips and so much terrific information! Happy baking!
I love chewy brownies and can’t wait to try making this. By chance I was wondering if at the end I can mix in a couple of raspberry couli swirls to the brownie batter?
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— October 10, 2022 at 8:59 am
Hi Ren! We haven’t tried that, but it should work just fine! Alternatively, Tessa also has a delicious recipe for Raspberry Brownies you could try!! Happy baking 🙂
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— October 6, 2022 at 9:33 am
Hi Julie! We typically don’t write our liquid measurements in grams because standard liquid measuring cups are easier for measuring liquid accurately, and liquids don’t contain air, so there’s far less room for error, compared to measuring dry ingredients. That being said, according to King Arthur (a source we trust and respect), 1/3 cup of vegetable oil should weigh approximately 66 grams. I hope that helps! Happy baking! 🙂
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— October 6, 2022 at 7:49 am
Hi Gina! So happy to hear that you enjoyed these brownies!! Here at Handle the Heat, we believe that desserts should be an indulgence, and should never be punished, so we therefore don’t count calories! You should be able to find a nutrition calculator online to assist with this, though, if you wish 🙂
The brownies are chewy and have a great almost crust on the top. But I needed to bake it twice as long as stated on the receipt. I was still quite liquid until about 45 minutes. I wonder if anyone had that issue and did you just move to a 9 x 13 pan? Overall a great brownie receipt though.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— October 6, 2022 at 7:54 am
Hi Brenda! I’m glad that you enjoyed these brownies, but it definitely sounds like something went wrong in the process here! These brownies should definitely only take 30 minutes or so to bake in an 8×8-inch light-colored metal pan. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! Also, your oven might be running a little cold. Do you have an oven thermometer to check that? Check out Tessa’s article here about ovens, full of tips!! Lastly, I just want to check that you did bake these in a light-colored metal pan? Using a glass pan, as Tessa mentions in the pink tip box above the recipe, will take much longer to bake, as glass doesn’t conduct heat well. I hope something here helped! Feel free to reach back out to us if you would like to troubleshoot any further – we’re always happy to help! 🙂
How long would you recommend keeping these in the oven if you double up on the recipe? I think my pan is rather large for the ingredient list – so they come out a little thin (but taste amazing)
I made these yesterday at my Mom’s house (she’s 82). They were so quick and easy. The brownies turned out tall with a beautiful shiny top and smelled wonderful. It was rainy all day due to hurricane Ian. When we finally lost electricity, we had these perfect brownies to enjoy by candlelight as Ian raged outside. Thank you for a great recipe.
Made these brownies. Amazing! I’ve been looking for a chewy brownie and have tried many recipes. This is the best. I use processed cocoa and it taste great and it was easy to make. I used my scale to measure flour and cooked an additional 4 minutes. My new go to brownie recipe. Love this recipe as it gave many ideas in the highlighted areas as well. Great source of information.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— September 29, 2022 at 7:52 am
Hi Mary Ann! Thanks so much for your wonderful review! We are SO happy to hear that you enjoyed these brownies so much, and so glad that you found Tessa’s tips and information helpful, too!! Thanks again, and happy baking 🙂
These brownies really do live up to their name! Best ever indeed. I will make this recipe again and again, they’re so easy to whip up in under an hour. I will never use box mix again!
These brownies were absolutely amazing and they were eaten so quick! My new go to brownie recipe!
I baked them in a metal pan, but I still had to add on 8 extra minutes for the knife to not come out with wet batter on it.
Caved in, couldn’t get done in the middle. I tried 2 different batches, both terrible. Tried a different recipe and it was great. Sorry. I won’t use this one again.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— September 26, 2022 at 9:35 am
Hi Bev! It definitely sounds like something was going wrong when trying to make these brownies! I’m glad you found a different recipe that worked for you, but just in case you wished to troubleshoot, here are a couple of thoughts. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! Also, I wonder if you’re baking in a glass pan? We never recommend using a glass pan for baking brownies (or most things, really), as glass pans don’t conduct heat well, so the middle is often left gummy and raw. We recommend using a light-colored metal pan – you can read more about that here! I hope something here helped 🙂 Happy baking!
These turned out so wonderfully for my boyfriend’s birthday!
I had to make a few tweaks based on what I had available in my pantry (I only had bread flour instead of A.P. and about 3/4c of granulated sugar so I subbed brown sugar for the remaining 1/2c.) and it turned out splendidly. It’s an excellent base recipe! I also added 1.5tsp of instant espresso powder in with the cocoa powder and topped the finished, cooling brownies with flaky salt and truly they are DIVINE.
Really quick and easy, EXCELLENT effort to payoff ratio.
Yassss. I’ve been searching for years for an actual chewy brownie, that is as good as box mix. This is better, and really easy!
And obviously perfectly chewy! Absolutely love it, thank you so much.
I needed to use a slightly wider pan, and they were perfect after 26 mins for me.
I’m in the UK and sometimes find US recipes don’t seem to work as well as described (even with conversions), but this recipe was brilliant for me!
One note – cornstarch is ‘cornflour’ in the UK.
Tessa, I like these but I like Cake-like brownies better. Do you have a good recipe for Cake-like brownies ? How could I modify this recipe if you don’t. I make the Ultimate Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies all the time and I love them.
Kiersten @ Handle the Heat
— September 9, 2022 at 8:08 am
Hi Scott! Unfortunately, we don’t have a cakey brownie recipe, basically because Tessa doesn’t prefer cakey brownies! In order to modify these chewy brownies into cakier brownies, it will definitely take some playing around and experimenting. You will want to start by eliminating the extra egg yolk and cornstarch from this recipe, as they are both there to encourage chewiness. I would then recommend experimenting with creaming together the butter and sugar, as you would do for a cake, rather than melting them together as the recipe states. You will also want to play with the amount of flour (more flour = cakier brownies). I would also recommend adding more baking soda, to give the brownies lift and more of a cakey texture. Again, this will take some experimenting for you to find the process and ratios of ingredients to meet your desired outcome! Good luck and happy baking 🙂
As a trained chef and cookbook author, I share trusted baking recipes your friends & family will love alongside insights into the science of sweets. I help take the luck out of baking so you *always* have delicious results! Learn more here.
Over 200 pages with 50+ cookie recipes that'll make
you a COOKIE PRO. Discover how to turn your biggest cookie flops into WINS by mastering the
sweet science of baking. Even learn how to customize your own recipes! Beautiful, hardcopy,
full color, photos of every recipe so you know EXACTLY how your cookies should look. Order
now to have the book delivered to your doorstep!
Do you want a more delicious life?
Instead of digging through cookbooks and magazines and searching the internet for amazing
recipes, subscribe to Handle the Heat to receive new recipe posts delivered straight to your
email inbox. You’ll get all the latest recipes, videos, kitchen tips and tricks AND my
*free* Cookie Customization Guide (because I am the Cookie Queen)!
This is great! Always a hit. Only complaint is that it dirties a lot of dishes. Overall amazing! Would make again! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My husband loves those, they outdone the previous recipe, which I didn’t think was possible. Love your side by side comparisons and explanation of how different ingredients affect the outcome, hats off to you!
Hi Anna! So glad you and your husband love these brownies so much! So glad you also enjoyed Tessa’s terrific tips and science of baking information, too! 🙂
Gorgeous and tasty brownies! 🙂 Using generic ingredients, how many calories would you estimate is in one serving?
Hi Amy! I’m so glad to hear that you enjoy these brownies! We don’t have nutritional information for our recipes, as we believe that dessert should be an indulgence! You should be able to find a nutritional calculator online to assist with this, if you wish! 🙂
I made these brownies twice. The second time with 10% less sugar. The brownies had a nice smooth top from the corn starch. It was easy to make and easy clean up. The brownies were really rich and not as chewy as boxed brownies. And with10% less sugar, it was still too sweet. I used Ghiradelli Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips. If I make these again, I would use Ghiradelli’s 60% which is less sweet.
Hi Leilani! I was going to suggest a darker/bittersweet chocolate chip to counteract the sweetness, but you’re way ahead of me 😉 You can also try using a darker cocoa powder, and even adding a little espresso powder (if you like coffee) to play up the bitter tones, without messing with the chemistry of the recipe! Happy baking 🙂
Absolutely LOVE this recipe, I only make this recipe for special occasions. If not, I find myself devouring it all on my own. Thanks for posting!
Quick question, any recommendations on how to make it a touch sweeter? I was thinking of increasing sugar by a 1/4 cup, not sure if that’s a good idea.
Hi Michelle! I’m so glad you enjoy these brownies so much! We haven’t tried increasing the sugar of these brownies, but feel free to give it a try! It may take some experimenting, but it should be fun to figure out your preferred sweetness level! If you’re not up for experimentation right now, you can always swap in a sweeter chocolate chip (such as milk chocolate or even white chocolate chips) inside the brownies, and you can also add a frosting, icing or ganache to the top once they’ve cooled, if you’d like – that will definitely kick up the sweetness level, without having to experiment 🙂 Let us know how it goes! Happy baking 🙂
These are literally the best brownies I have ever eaten. Follow the recipe exactly and they will come out perfect!
I’ve been baking for a long time and this recipe is the best hands down. It gave the that chewy, fudgy taste I was looking for and let’s not forget, the crackly top.This recipe will definitely replace my old brownie recipe
How do these brownies hold up when baked in a silicone pan. I don’t have any metal nor glass baking dishes…
Hi Alexis! Unfortunately, silicone pans don’t conduct heat well, so they will often result in brownies with very dry edges and underdone middles. Of course, feel free to give it a try if that’s all you have, but I’d recommend following Tessa’s recommendations in this article about Metal vs Glass pans here (silicone will act similarly to glass in that it’s not a great conductor of heat). This is the pan Tessa recommends for baking brownies – or anything in an 8×8-inch pan! I hope that helps! 🙂
ABSOLUTEY GRAND !!! These are the best brownies EVER, thanks !
Literally the best brownie I’ve ever made, EVER!! I baked for 28 minutes and it was absolutely perfect! Not too sweet, but the perfect amount of sweet, chocolate and chewy!! 5 stars ALL THE WAY
Yay! So great to hear that, Laney!! 🙂
So chewy and delicious! I used Dark cocoa powder. Absolutely Devine!
Yay! So glad to hear that, Amber!!
In your reply to one question you stated that the brownies wouldn’t rise with Dutch processed cocoa powder because there wouldn’t be anything to react with the baking soda.
However, in the Chocolate section of the recipe explanation it states that the version prepared in the video used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. My understanding is that that is Dutch processed.
I used Dutch processed cocoa powder from King Arthur and my brownies definitely puffed up. Not as much as in the pictures, but that is probably due to the fact that I only had a 9×9 pan.
Hi Steven! At the time Tessa created this incredible recipe, Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa was not fully Dutched; it was a combination of natural and Dutched. Our understanding is that this has recently changed, and it is now a fully Dutched product. We are working to update this information across our entire site, now that the product is different. What I said to that reader about the baking soda is true, however, that particular reader was asking only if she should then skip the baking soda. There is very little baking soda in this recipe (just enough to give a little lift, without making the brownies cakey), so it’s not a huge deal if you do use Dutched cocoa – as you found out first-hand! I’m glad these brownies worked out well, and I hope you enjoyed them!
I just finished making this recipe. I added in a few other ingredients and used black cocoa powder. My oven is a little finicky, so I had to bake them about 5 additional minutes.
I made them for my friends Birthday. I added more chips and a secret ingredients. And don’t ask what it is cayse i can’t say what it is. Sorry Are Brownies were delious. He LOVED them!!! Thank you Keep all the recipes comming.
So glad you enjoyed these brownies!
Holly
Secret ingredient? Who cares! Was that really necessary to say? You must be a blast at parties.
Hands down best brownies ever!!!
What a compliment!
Made them this morning. Wonderful! Recipe is a keeper.☺
My husband’s favorite brownies!
These are the BEST brownies I have ever made! The only two things I did differently; I used a 9×9 metal pan and I added a pinch of cinnamon. You won’t regret making these – Delicious!
A while back I went on a quest for a brownie recipe that was better than box mix but similar in texture..crisp exterior but chewy and not cakey.. I found this winner. I make it a lot but always double or even sometimes quadruple it. I’m just not too crazy about the amount of eggs used because that’s a whole breakfast meal amount.
These are so delicious!! I made them
Twice in the last few days and didn’t get the shiny top though. I cooked them in a round cake pan but definitely used the right amount of corn starch so I’m not sure where I went wrong. These are definitely my go to brownies though!
Hi Brian! I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed these brownies! That shiny beautiful crust can be a difficult thing to achieve. Tessa has a whole article about this, filled with tips and tricks to achieve that perfect shiny crust – check it out here! Happy baking 🙂
I have my brownies in the oven (as I type this), but it is probably the 50th time I have made these wonderful brownies! This recipe is THE BEST I have ever made. In fact, I always check this site before baking as I am ALWAYS steered in the right direction! 22 more minutes …
The chewiness of these were perfect upon cooling but they were WAAAAAYYYYY too sweet. I had to toss the initial batch away and make a new batch with less sugar. Could hardly taste the slight bitterness of the chocolate from this recipe. Was really hoping for the natural bitter sweet flavors of the chocolate to come through. Not sure if it was the organic sugar I used or if these brownies are supposed to be this sweet.
Hi Han! Hmm, it sounds like something may have gone wrong in the process of your first batch, as these brownies should be a little sweet, but not extremely sweet. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure sugar and other ingredients, and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe – or end up with something too sweet. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! I’m glad you enjoyed the chewiness of the brownies, and hope you’ll try them again sometime! 🙂
These were delicious. I had to bake them 40 minutes to get them done but it was worth it!
I tried the recipe unfortunately it was an epic fail for me. I did something wrong. The brownie became hard. But the taste is good though.
Hi Cherry! I’m sorry to hear these brownies didn’t go as planned! I’d love to help you figure out what went wrong, so you can try again and enjoy these delicious, thick, chewy, decadent brownies!! Firstly, how do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! I also wonder what type of pan you’re baking the brownies in? Glass vs metal pans can make a big difference on the baked result, as Tessa shows in this article here. Your oven also might be running a little hot. Do you have an oven thermometer to check that? Check out Tessa’s article here about ovens, full of tips!! I hope something here helped, and I hope you give these brownies another try sometime – they really are incredible!! Check out the pink tip box, above the recipe, for ever more tips and so much terrific information! Happy baking!
I love chewy brownies and can’t wait to try making this. By chance I was wondering if at the end I can mix in a couple of raspberry couli swirls to the brownie batter?
Thank you!
Hi Ren! We haven’t tried that, but it should work just fine! Alternatively, Tessa also has a delicious recipe for Raspberry Brownies you could try!! Happy baking 🙂
Hey there!
Thank you for the recipe!
How much is 1/3 cup of vegetable oil?
Hi Julie! We typically don’t write our liquid measurements in grams because standard liquid measuring cups are easier for measuring liquid accurately, and liquids don’t contain air, so there’s far less room for error, compared to measuring dry ingredients. That being said, according to King Arthur (a source we trust and respect), 1/3 cup of vegetable oil should weigh approximately 66 grams. I hope that helps! Happy baking! 🙂
These were incredible! I made them yesterday and the whole batch is already gone. Do you happen to know how many calories there are per serving?
Hi Gina! So happy to hear that you enjoyed these brownies!! Here at Handle the Heat, we believe that desserts should be an indulgence, and should never be punished, so we therefore don’t count calories! You should be able to find a nutrition calculator online to assist with this, though, if you wish 🙂
If you lined a glass pan with foil, would that act in a similar way to a metal pan? I don’t have metal pans.
hi Lindsey! No, unfortunately, that won’t work the same way. Here is a link to Tessa’s favorite 8×8-inch metal pan, which she uses for this recipe. Happy baking 🙂
The brownies are chewy and have a great almost crust on the top. But I needed to bake it twice as long as stated on the receipt. I was still quite liquid until about 45 minutes. I wonder if anyone had that issue and did you just move to a 9 x 13 pan? Overall a great brownie receipt though.
Hi Brenda! I’m glad that you enjoyed these brownies, but it definitely sounds like something went wrong in the process here! These brownies should definitely only take 30 minutes or so to bake in an 8×8-inch light-colored metal pan. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! Also, your oven might be running a little cold. Do you have an oven thermometer to check that? Check out Tessa’s article here about ovens, full of tips!! Lastly, I just want to check that you did bake these in a light-colored metal pan? Using a glass pan, as Tessa mentions in the pink tip box above the recipe, will take much longer to bake, as glass doesn’t conduct heat well. I hope something here helped! Feel free to reach back out to us if you would like to troubleshoot any further – we’re always happy to help! 🙂
How long would you recommend keeping these in the oven if you double up on the recipe? I think my pan is rather large for the ingredient list – so they come out a little thin (but taste amazing)
Hi JayJay! To double this recipe, use a 9×13 pan and bake for the same amount of time. You may need to add a few minutes to the bake time if your oven runs a little cold, or depending on the pan you’re using. Happy baking!
I made these yesterday at my Mom’s house (she’s 82). They were so quick and easy. The brownies turned out tall with a beautiful shiny top and smelled wonderful. It was rainy all day due to hurricane Ian. When we finally lost electricity, we had these perfect brownies to enjoy by candlelight as Ian raged outside. Thank you for a great recipe.
I’m so glad you and your mom enjoyed these brownies, Gail! I hope you were able to stay safe and well during the storm!!
Made these brownies. Amazing! I’ve been looking for a chewy brownie and have tried many recipes. This is the best. I use processed cocoa and it taste great and it was easy to make. I used my scale to measure flour and cooked an additional 4 minutes. My new go to brownie recipe. Love this recipe as it gave many ideas in the highlighted areas as well. Great source of information.
Hi Mary Ann! Thanks so much for your wonderful review! We are SO happy to hear that you enjoyed these brownies so much, and so glad that you found Tessa’s tips and information helpful, too!! Thanks again, and happy baking 🙂
Delicious and decadent dessert! My family loved these pop brownies
These brownies really do live up to their name! Best ever indeed. I will make this recipe again and again, they’re so easy to whip up in under an hour. I will never use box mix again!
Yay!! Love to hear that, Laura! 🙂
The best brownies!
I swapped the flour to almond flour and used 1 cup coconut sugar and 1/4 cup powdered sugar instead of regular. I also just put in the full 3 eggs.
Anyways. So many modifications but somehow it worked out.
Will be sticking with this recipe for sure!
These brownies were absolutely amazing and they were eaten so quick! My new go to brownie recipe!
I baked them in a metal pan, but I still had to add on 8 extra minutes for the knife to not come out with wet batter on it.
I made this recipe without the cornstarch. 8 of them to be exact. It was a hit at my job. They were gone within an hour. Thank you for sharing.
This took way more cooking time then what it calls for. I’m really not sure what is going on but after an hour it’s still not done.
Hi Jazmyn! Oh no, it definitely sounds like something went wrong if these brownies are taking that long to bake fully! Are you using a metal pan to bake your brownies, or are you using a glass pan? Glass can take much, much longer to bake compared to metal. Read more about why, and which pans bake best, in Tessa’s article here! Another thing could be your ingredients. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! Your oven also could be running too cold. Ovens are almost always lying to us about their real temperature! We recommend using an oven thermometer, to ensure accuracy, and make sure your baked goods are baking correctly! Tessa talks about the importance of oven temperature accuracy and using an oven thermometer, in this article here! I hope you give these brownies another try sometime; they really are so delicious!
Caved in, couldn’t get done in the middle. I tried 2 different batches, both terrible. Tried a different recipe and it was great. Sorry. I won’t use this one again.
Hi Bev! It definitely sounds like something was going wrong when trying to make these brownies! I’m glad you found a different recipe that worked for you, but just in case you wished to troubleshoot, here are a couple of thoughts. How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure flour/sugar/etc and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! Also, I wonder if you’re baking in a glass pan? We never recommend using a glass pan for baking brownies (or most things, really), as glass pans don’t conduct heat well, so the middle is often left gummy and raw. We recommend using a light-colored metal pan – you can read more about that here! I hope something here helped 🙂 Happy baking!
These turned out so wonderfully for my boyfriend’s birthday!
I had to make a few tweaks based on what I had available in my pantry (I only had bread flour instead of A.P. and about 3/4c of granulated sugar so I subbed brown sugar for the remaining 1/2c.) and it turned out splendidly. It’s an excellent base recipe! I also added 1.5tsp of instant espresso powder in with the cocoa powder and topped the finished, cooling brownies with flaky salt and truly they are DIVINE.
Really quick and easy, EXCELLENT effort to payoff ratio.
Moist, chewy chocolate deliciousness. Better than box, just as easy to make.
Yassss. I’ve been searching for years for an actual chewy brownie, that is as good as box mix. This is better, and really easy!
And obviously perfectly chewy! Absolutely love it, thank you so much.
I needed to use a slightly wider pan, and they were perfect after 26 mins for me.
I’m in the UK and sometimes find US recipes don’t seem to work as well as described (even with conversions), but this recipe was brilliant for me!
One note – cornstarch is ‘cornflour’ in the UK.
Thanks!!!!
Tessa, I like these but I like Cake-like brownies better. Do you have a good recipe for Cake-like brownies ? How could I modify this recipe if you don’t. I make the Ultimate Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies all the time and I love them.
Thanks, Scott
Hi Scott! Unfortunately, we don’t have a cakey brownie recipe, basically because Tessa doesn’t prefer cakey brownies! In order to modify these chewy brownies into cakier brownies, it will definitely take some playing around and experimenting. You will want to start by eliminating the extra egg yolk and cornstarch from this recipe, as they are both there to encourage chewiness. I would then recommend experimenting with creaming together the butter and sugar, as you would do for a cake, rather than melting them together as the recipe states. You will also want to play with the amount of flour (more flour = cakier brownies). I would also recommend adding more baking soda, to give the brownies lift and more of a cakey texture. Again, this will take some experimenting for you to find the process and ratios of ingredients to meet your desired outcome! Good luck and happy baking 🙂