Best Ever Chewy Brownies

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These Chewy Brownies are my go-to recipe when I need a quick, easy, crowd-pleasing dessert.

I have shared a whole lot of brownie recipes over the years – over 50, in fact! I have brownie recipes to please everyone. My Ultimate Brownies are rich, dense, and fudgy. My Brown Butter Brownies have the most stunning crackly crust. And my Toffee Brownies are full of super fun mix-ins and flavors. 

But these brownies are special. They take the chewy texture of boxed mix brownies and add in so much more flavor, but are made just as quickly and easily!

Check out just one of the 1000+ 5-star reviews for these best homemade brownies:

The Kitchn actually tested this Chewy Brownie recipe, with author Grace Elkus raving about how quick and easy this recipe is! She says the brownies “form a shiny, crackly top as promised. Each square is thick and decadent, with melty chocolate chips studded throughout.” Thanks so much to Grace Elkus and The Kitchn team for trying this recipe.

Bon Appétit also used this Chewy Brownie recipe as part of their research in their quest to create the perfect brownie. Thanks so much to Chris Morocco and the Bon Appétit team for including us!

Perfect for 4th of July and summer cookouts, birthdays, potlucks, and even Christmas, these Best Ever Chewy Brownies are sure to become your go-to recipe!

How to Make Chewy Brownies

Brownie Substitutions

This Chewy Brownie recipe is written exactly as it is to yield a perfect chewy brownie. 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 or any other mix-ins you like (more on this below). 

If you can’t use one of the ingredients listed, check out my extensive brownie recipe index for tons of other brownie options (including coconut oil brownies).  

Tips for The BEST Chewy Brownies:

1. Measure correctly. Too much flour or cocoa powder will yield dry, tough brownies that are not chewy. I recommend using a digital kitchen scale to avoid this.
2. If you don’t have a scale, use the spoon-and-level method to measure your flour and cocoa. 
3. Use a light-colored metal pan. More on this below.
4. Do not overbake. At the end of the baking time, a tester should have moist crumbs attached. Carry-over cooking (the residual heat of the oven and pan) will continue to cook the brownies, so err on the side of underbaking if you like fudgy brownies. 
5. Check your oven temperature with an oven thermometer. Many home ovens run cold (especially when they say they’ve just preheated), and some even run hot (which can dry out your brownies). 
6. Allow brownies to cool before slicing and serving. Check out my How to Cut Brownies Cleanly in 5 Steps article for all my tips on slicing brownies perfectly. A plastic picnic knife also works brilliantly for cutting clean slices. The brownies will be perfectly chewy only when cooled. Warm brownies will be more gooey and will taste sweeter. 
7. Chill: If you love a chewy, fudgy brownie, or your brownies are a little gooier than you’d prefer, try chilling your brownies in an airtight container. This allows the brownies to solidify more for a super chewy, fudgy texture.

What Type of Cocoa Powder for Chewy Brownies? 

• These Chewy Brownies rely on cocoa powder for a rich chocolate flavor and chewy texture. Cocoa powder typically contributes more chocolate flavor than melted chocolate!
• You can use Dutch-processed OR natural unsweetened cocoa powder, but I HIGHLY recommend sticking with Dutch-processed cocoa powder. 
• Dutch-processed cocoa creates a deeper chocolate flavor and richer, fudgier texture. It has a higher cocoa fat percentage than most grocery store natural cocoa powders, so it’ll offer more moisture and flavor. Learn more about the fat content of cocoa powder here.
• Natural cocoa powder will offer a milder and nostalgic chocolate flavor and a slightly drier but chewier texture. 
• My favorite cocoa powder for brownies is Penzey’s high-fat Dutch-process cocoa powder or Guittard.  
• Learn more about the differences between Dutch-process cocoa powder and natural cocoa powder here.

What Type of Chocolate Chips for Chewy Brownies?

I prefer semi-sweet chocolate chips in Chewy Brownies, but feel free to use any chocolate chips you like – just note that this will alter the overall sweetness of the brownies. Whatever you do, don’t skip the chocolate chips! They help to develop that shiny crust on top of brownies.

The Fat in Chewy Brownies

• 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 box mix brownies, the combination of saturated (solid) fats and unsaturated (liquid) fats creates that chewy texture. According to Cook’s Illustrated, boxed brownies have the saturated fat component covered, which is why you add oil (unsaturated fat) to the mix. 
• In these Chewy Brownies, 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. You can also use avocado oil or any other neutral-flavored oil.
• I do not recommend using olive oil or any other strongly flavored oils, as these will alter the flavor of the brownies. 
• When possible, use unsalted butter so you can fully control the level of saltiness. Learn more about Salted vs. Unsalted Butter in baking here.
• Check out my Butter vs. Oil in Baking article for more on the differences between these two fats and how they affect the flavor and texture of your baked goods.

The Sugar in Brownies

Don’t reduce the sugar in these brownies! Sugar does so much beyond providing sweetness. Reduced sugar brownies will become dry, crumbly, and will stale faster. Learn more about the many functions of sugar in brownies here.

The Eggs in Chewy Brownies

These Chewy Brownies use two whole eggs plus an additional egg yolk. The protein and fat in the egg yolk help create extra chewiness and richness. Unlike many recipes, we use cold eggs instead of room temperature to prevent the brownies from doming and to increase moisture with a tighter crumb texture. Plus, it saves time!

The Flour in Chewy Brownies

• We’re using all-purpose flour in these Chewy Brownies.
• Cake flour makes these brownies too tender and light, and the recipe as written provides plenty of chewiness without the need for bread flour.
• To make chewy AND fudgy brownies, we only need to use a little bit of flour. Too much flour will create brownies that are dry, cakey, or lose their chewiness.
• I highly recommend using a digital kitchen scale to prevent accidental overmeasuring.
• Note: If you live in a very humid environment or dislike any kind of greasiness, feel free to add an extra 2 tablespoons of flour to your brownie batter.

Leavener in Brownies

I prefer little to no chemical leavener (baking soda or baking powder) in brownies because I prefer rich, dense brownies that are not even remotely cakey. Since leaveners lift and give a lighter, airier texture to baked goods, we’re only using 1/8 teaspoon baking soda, for just enough leavening to get a nice thick texture. Feel free to omit the baking soda if using Dutch-processed cocoa powder.

Why is There Cornstarch in These Brownies? 

• Cornstarch is the secret ingredient that mimics the texture of box mix brownies. Don’t skip it!
• 1 tablespoon of cornstarch makes brownies thicker and chewier and improves the crust on top. 
• When shooting the photos for my article on How to Make Brownies with a Shiny, Thin Crust, we captured the shocking differences between a batch of brownies made with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and brownies made with an accidental amount of 1 teaspoon of cornstarch. The bottom brownies also had no chocolate chips. Take a look:

Can I Add Nuts to Chewy Brownies?

Yes! Feel free to add 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (or any other mix-in you like) 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 baking tray at 350°F for about 6 to 8 minutes, stirring once. Cool before folding into your brownie batter.

The Best Pan for Baking Brownies

• This brownie recipe uses an 8 by 8-inch metal baking pan. I HIGHLY recommend using a light-colored metal pan. 
• This is my favorite pan for baking brownies. 
• Dark metal pans will dry out the edges, often before the center can cook through.
• I have not tried these brownies in a 9-inch pan. If that’s all you have, note that your bake time will be shorter, and it may change the texture of your brownies.
• Do NOT use a glass pan! Glass or ceramic baking pans will take much longer to bake through, often causing the edges to dry out before the middle has a chance to bake through. The texture may become dry, gummy, or the brownies may not bake through properly. 
• Learn more about the differences between Glass vs. Metal Baking Pans here.

Can I Double this Chewy Brownies Recipe?

Yes! Double all ingredients and bake in a 9 by 13-inch light-colored metal baking pan and add a few minutes to the baking time.

How to Store Brownies

Store Chewy Brownies 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! 

Can You Freeze Brownies?

Yes, these Chewy Brownies freeze beautifully! Wrap the cooled whole slab or individual slices of brownies in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container in the freezer for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, or for a couple hours at room temperature, before serving.

Tessa’s Favorite Tools for This Recipe:

• A metal baking pan (not glass) to avoid under-baking
• Digital kitchen scale to ensure your brownies don’t end up dry, dense, or cakey
• An oven thermometer is a game-changer as many non-commercial ovens run colder than the gauge displays

More Brownies Recipes You’ll Love:

• Toffee Brownies
• Peanut Butter Stuffed Brownies
• Brown Butter Brownies
• Copycat Cosmic Brownies

This recipe was originally published in 2017 and has been updated with additional baking tips and new photos. Recipe photos by Joanie Simon and Baking Science photos by Ashley McLaughlin.