This recipe is for the best chewy chocolate chip cookies. They have chewy centers, crisp edges, pockets of dark chocolate and a sprinkle of flaky salt.
Chocolate chip cookies are very personal and I know everyone has their favorite way of making them. Even though this is a pretty simple dessert it’s been one that I’ve been a little intimidated writing about because of how controversial chocolate chip cookies can be. Some like them cakey, some like them chewy, and still others like them crispy! I personally fall in the camp of chewy. I’ve worked hard to create in my opinion the best version of chocolate chip cookies I could come up with. They are chewy, have chunks of dark chocolate, and are topped with a lot of sea salt. I’m planning to adapt these in the future as well and do some add ins, but for now I present you with my best version of chocolate chip cookies. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!
Recipe Video
Why These Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies are the Best:
We are using a bar of dark chocolate, chopped in large chunks. This will create large pockets of gooey chocolate. I personally use nothing less than 60 percent dark chocolate just because I love the contrast between the sweet and salty dough, and the rich dark chocolate. You can use whatever percent your heart desires though!
We are using mostly brown sugar. This will make the cookie chewy in the most satisfying way. The more a cookie calls for white sugar, the crispier it tends to be. So, we are using almost all brown sugar to create a very chewy centered cookie.
We are using egg yolks only. This makes the cookie richer in flavor than using the whole egg. We are going for the richest version of a chocolate chip cookie if you haven’t noticed yet!
We are using a lot of butter. These are a buttery cookie so yes there will be some butter on the bottom of the cookie and the parchment paper after they're baked. I like buttery cookies but I know others do not like when they're extra buttery and that's again another reason why chocolate chip cookies are so personal lol!
We are using lots of sea salt on top. I am a huge fan of the salty/sweet thing. I don’t like chocolate chip cookies that are exclusively sweet, so this recipe calls for sea salt on top of the cookies right after they bake. The coarser/ flakier the better!
One last note about these cookies. If you can resist and chill the dough overnight the cookies will taste better. Think about meat marinating overnight in the fridge, or how good spaghetti is the next day. The ingredients in the chocolate chip cookie dough have time to marinate and get real close to each other. The flavor profile just expands! (You can also bake them the same day if you would rather not chill the dough).
Okay without further ado I present you the best chocolate chip cookie!
Ingredients for the Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies:
- Flour-good old fashioned all purpose flour is used for these cookies
- Sugar- mostly brown sugar and some granulated sugar are used in these cookies
- Eggs- two egg yolks are needed
- Baking soda and baking powder- helps the cookies rise slightly
- Dark chocolate bar- 6 oz of dark chocolate gets coarsely chopped and added to the batter (I recommend nothing less than 60%)
- Butter- we're using salted and make sure it's softened
- Salt- to help bring out all the flavors in the cookies
- Vanilla- I recommend vanilla bean paste for the best flavor
- Flaky sea salt- for sprinkling after the cookies are baked
Step by Step Instructions:
STEP ONE: Add ¾ cup of softened, salted butter, ¾ cup of light brown sugar, and ¼ cup granulated sugar to a large bowl. Cream the butter and sugars with an electric mixer for two minutes, or until light and fluffy.
STEP TWO: Add in two egg yolks and 1 tablespoon of vanilla and mix on medium speed for two minutes, or until the mixture is pale in color and fluffy.
STEP THREE: Add in 1 ¾ cups of flour, ½ teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of baking powder and ½ baking soda. Mix until combined.
STEP FOUR: Chop 6 oz. of dark chocolate in large chunks, then add to the cookie dough. Mix just until incorporated.
STEP FIVE: Scoop the dough into 20 balls. Place the dough balls on a baking sheet. Cover them with cling wrap and let them chill over night for the best flavor. (Additionally, you can just scoop them onto a baking sheet and bake right away).
If chilling the dough, let it come to room temperature before baking.
STEP SIX: Preheat oven to 350 degrees and arrange the dough two inches apart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake the cookies for 10-11 minutes just until you see the edges getting golden brown.
STEP SEVEN: Remove the cookies from the oven and sprinkle them with flaky sea salt. Transfer to a cooling rack after a few minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes and then dig in!
FAQs
Why didn't my cookies come out chewy? You used too much flour. Be very accurate when measuring your flour. See my pro tips and recipe notes on this.
Do I have to chill the dough? No! You can bake them right away. The cookies do taste best when the dough is chilled, but I've made them both ways and both are excellent!
Do I have to use a chopped dark chocolate bar? No, you can use chocolate chips of any kind you would like! I just think a chopped dark chocolate bar tastes the best and gives you the best pools of melty chocolate.
Pro Tips:
Measure your flour properly. This is always my #1 baking tip. Do not ever scoop a measuring cup into your flour. This will always lead to using too much flour. Instead, sprinkle spoonfuls of flour into your measuring cup and swipe excess flour off with the back of a knife. Or better yet, weigh your flour. 1 cup of flour equals 125 grams.
When the cookies are straight out of the oven, scoot a circular cookie cutter around them to make them perfectly round!
If you make these cookies, please leave a star rating! Tag me on Instagram @inbloombakery_ so I can see your bakes, and follow me on Pinterest for more dessert ideas! Happy baking!
Other Recipes to Try
Brown Butter Spiced Oatmeal Cookies
Chewy Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups (219 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled please see notes
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¾ cup (168 g) salted butter, softened
- ¾ cup (165 g) light brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 2 egg yolks, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 6 oz (170 g) dark chocolate bars, chopped 60% cacao
- flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Instructions
For the Dough:
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Then set aside.1 ¾ cups (219 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Add the softened, salted butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar to a large bowl. Cream the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer on high speed for two minutes, or until light and fluffy.¾ cup (168 g) salted butter, softened, ¾ cup (165 g) light brown sugar, ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- Next, add in the egg yolks and vanilla and mix on medium speed for two minutes, or until the mixture is pale in color and fluffy.2 egg yolks, at room temperature, 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- Add in the dry ingredients and mix on low speed just until combined.
- Add the chopped dark chocolate in and mix just until incorporated.6 oz (170 g) dark chocolate bars, chopped
Baking the Cookies:
- Scoop the dough into 20 balls. Cover them with cling wrap and let them chill over night for the best flavor. (Additionally, you can just scoop them onto a baking sheet and bake right away).
- If chilling the dough, let it come to room temperature before baking.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and arrange the dough three inches apart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies for 10-11 minutes, just until you see the edges getting light golden brown.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and sprinkle them with flaky sea salt. Transfer to a cooling rack after 5 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes and then dig in!flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Made these cookies for the first time today, and they are fantastic!!
Delicious cookies that I will absolutely make again along with share the recipe! I did make some adjustment to utilize what I had on hand. I substituted 1 teaspoon vanilla for the vanilla bean paste and used packaged chocolate chips that were 60% cacao. I don't have a cookie dough scoop so I used a table's spoon making 36 cookies total which required 12 minutes baking time. I also used coarse sea salt to very lightly sprinkle on top as I didn't have flakes.
Hi Victoria! I'm so glad you enjoyed! And yes, those are all great substitutes! (The vanilla bean paste and flaky sea salt are really just a preferences, but not necessary.) Thank you for your kind review!
These were the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever made and I’m sitting here missing them right now since I made them all!! They are the perfect chocolate chip cookie! (Even better than Joanna Gaines, for real) make them today!!😭🥰
Hi Ginny, massive thank you 🙏, for sharing your incredible recipe,definitely i will try tomorrow and i will tag you.xxx
I struggled to find a good chocolate chip cookie recipe until I found this one. It’s my go to recipe now, I’ve made it a few times and it’s always a hit!
These cookies are to die for. So rich and chewy. Just so so yummy!! Make them!
Did you change the recipe by any chance? I used a recipe back in February that only called for 1 and a 1/4 cups flour + 2 tbsp. Can you confirm? Thanks!
Hey Lauren! I don't know if you follow me on Insta or not but I did a whole story about how to properly measure flour which resulted from me realizing I have been measuring flour incorrectly my whole life! (If you do follow me on Insta I would highly recommend watching the highlight titled "FLOUR") The recipe is the exact same, but with the proper measurements of flour. If you read the recipe notes I go over how to properly measure flour. The old recipe's flour measurements were completely off if you are measuring flour correctly. Instead of scooping a measuring cup into your flour, sprinkle spoonfuls into your measuring cup, then swipe excess off with a back of a knife. That will give you the precise amount of flour needed! Hope this helps!
Everyone’s favorite of the holiday cookies I baked. Definitely will make again.
Amazing! Where do you reccomend buying vanilla bean paste? I haven’t found one in stores yet 🙁
Hey Jasmine! Amazon (of course haha) or the Fresh Market carries it usually! 🙂
The best freaking chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever eaten. Make these!!!
Hi, please can you provide the recipes in grams by any chance???? Could help a lot. Thanks
Hi, can you provide the recipe is grams. Could help a lot. Thanks
Can’t wait to try these! If I don’t have the paste do I use 1 tbs vanilla extract? I read the comment earlier from someone saying they used 1 tsp. Thank you!
Hi Kristina! Use 1 tbsp whether you're using vanilla bean paste or extract 🙂
I haven't tried this yet but can I use this recipe in an air fryer instead if an oven? Can I use the same temp and cooking time? Thank you!
Hi Niki! I have never tried baking them in an air fryer so I'm not sure!
This recipe came out exactly as I hoped. I like that you said how many cookies to make. I ended up making my balls of cookie dough slightly bigger than I normally would to get 20. They came out perfect! So delicious and chewy.
Hey, could you put in grams please
Updated! 🙂
I've made this recipe twice already and it's one of my favorites. I was wondering if you could possibly add double/triple the recipe buttons on this? I want to make more but I have no idea how to double recipes correctly.