Soft and Chewy Chocolate Cookies
These soft and chewy chocolate cookies have an intense chocolate flavor and almost brownie-like texture. They’re one of my all-time faves!
Our family has been making these cookies for as long as I can remember. We use them to make ice cream sandwiches, sometimes they’re topped with marshmallows and melted chocolate, but most often they’re enjoyed just as you see here— with a simple sprinkling of salt or sugar.
Not only are they soft and chewy, but they’re also dense and intensely chocolaty. These cookies will satisfy that chocolate craving, and then some! We love them so much, and I promise they’ll become one of your favorites too.
Ingredients you’ll need
You probably already have all of the ingredients in your kitchen!
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla
- All-purpose flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Flaky salt or coarse sugar, for sprinkling
So easy to make, no chilling required!
These soft and chewy chocolate cookies are just your basic drop cookies—
- Cream butter and sugar
- Add eggs and vanilla
- Add dry ingredients
- Portion and bake
And there’s no need to chill the dough before baking, so you can have fresh baked cookies in as little as 20 minutes!
My best cookie tips
- Butter should be soft enough that a pressed finger will leave an indent, but not soft enough that your finger can press all the way through. If it’s shiny or melty at all, the butter is too warm and your cookies may spread.
- Be sure to measure flour correctly! All of my recipes are tested using the spoon and level method (more info through that link).
- These pre-cut parchment sheets are perfect for cookie baking.
- I like to use a cookie scoop for portion out dough so that all cookies will be the same size. I like to use either a medium #40 (1.5 Tbsp) or large #20 (3 Tbsp) scoops. Baking time will need to be adjusted if you use the larger scoop.
- If cookies come out slightly misshapen, use a spatula to press them back into a circle right after they come out of the oven. See more of my tips for how to bake pretty cookies.
- Cookie dough freezes really well. I like to keep a stash in the freezer for fresh-baked cookies on demand.
- These cookies will keep at room temperature for about a week, but are best within a few days of baking.
More chocolate cookies to try
- Spicy Chili Chocolate Cookies
- Chocolate Hugs Cookies
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies
Recipe was originally published in 2014.
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Cookies recipe
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Cookies
Soft and chewy chocolate cookies are dense and intensely chocolaty.
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (170 grams) salted or unsalted butter , at room temperature
- 1 ½ cup (300 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour (see Notes about measuring correctly)
- ⅔ cup (60 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder (see Notes)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Coarse sugar or salt , for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium high speed until light and creamy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Add the vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the mixer and mix until just combined. Scrape down the bowl as needed to make sure it's mixed evenly.
- Scoop by the rounded tablespoon (I use a medium #40 1.5 Tbsp cookie scoop) onto the prepared sheet pan.
- Bake until edges are crisp and the tops just barely appear set (no longer wet), about 9 minutes. Baking times may vary based on your oven and cookie size!
- Immediately sprinkle with coarse sugar or salt while cookies are still hot. If they're misshapen, use a spatula to push them back into a circle. Let them cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Repeat with remaining cookie dough. Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for several days (if they last that long!).
Video
Notes
- Measure flour correctly! Several readers have had issues with the cookies not spreading, being too thick, or needing to add a little water to the dough to get it to come together. This is most likely an issue with adding TOO MUCH FLOUR because of not measuring it correctly. If possible, use a kitchen scale, or use the “spoon and level” method when using measuring cups (more info through that link).
- If using Dutch-process cocoa powder, change 1 tsp baking soda to 1 tsp baking powder. (Traditional unsweetened natural cocoa powder is acidic and will react with the baking soda, but Dutch-process cocoa powder is not acidic and so you will need to use baking powder instead to get the same rise.)
Calories: 192kcal, Carbohydrates: 26g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 29mg, Sodium: 102mg, Potassium: 97mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 15g, Vitamin A: 201IU, Calcium: 13mg, Iron: 1mg
Have you tried this recipe?I’d love to hear about it! Leave a rating and review below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram @completelydelicious with #completelydelicious.
These are fantastic! Simple ingredients. I also made them 2 different times with white chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Both turned out great
These were the bomb added Carmel drizzle .OMG ! Thanks for sharing.
Can I use brown sugar
These were awesome! My new favorite cookie to make. I measured everything by weight and had no problems with batter consistency. I did add in a teaspoon of expresso powder as a personal touch, but other than that these are awesome just the way they are. I love them!
These were absolutely delicious! Mine didn’t stay as “puffy” but again they were sooooo yummy!!
Amazing recipe and it only takes 20 minutes! These cookies tasted so good
A lovely recipe that is cheap and cheerful, such a crowd pleaser and just takes things you almost certainly already have on hand! One note — the first two or three times I made this recipe, the cookies were never actually puffy, but always flat and really spread out (even a little crispy). Today, I had to take a break in the middle of preparing the cookies (hadn’t yet mixed the wet and dry ingredients), so I put the mixed wet ingredients into the fridge. Then, about an hour later, I took the wet ingredients back out of the fridge, gave them a few seconds in the microwave so the butter would again be just soft enough for my mixer, and mixed the dry and wet ingredients. This time, my cookies came out *perfectly* puffy and beautiful! For whatever it’s worth, the temperature of the butter before the cookies go into the oven really does seem to make a big difference for the texture and shape.
I did make a change in that I substituted Sweet and Low for 1/3 of the sugar
These are delicious! Just what we were looking for — soft centers and crisp edges. I did make a change in that I substituted Sweet and Low for 1/3 of the sugar. We are trying to reduce our sugar intake. They turned out great, and I know I’ll be making them again soon. I did use my scale when measuring ingredients and everything went well. Thank you for a great recipe!