Fudgy Chocolate Brownies
Dense, fudgy brownies made with melted butter and cocoa powder, with chocolate chips folded through and a soft centre.
- Measurements grams + cups
- Cuisine American
Why You'll Like This Recipe
- One bowl, melted butter, and a whisk — no mixer and no melting chocolate over a pan.
- Cocoa powder rather than melted chocolate is what makes them fudgy rather than cakey.
- The parchment sling lifts the whole slab out for clean cutting.
Recipe
Fudgy Chocolate Brownies
Dense, fudgy brownies with chocolate chips folded through.
Ingredients
Ingredients scaled. The method below still refers to the original quantities.
Instructions
- Step 1. Preheat the oven to 175°C / 350°F. Line an 8 × 8 inch / 20 × 20 cm pan with parchment paper.
- Step 2. Melt the 115 g butter and let it cool slightly.
- Step 3. Whisk together the melted butter, 200 g granulated sugar, and 100 g brown sugar.
- Step 4. Add the 2 eggs and 5 g vanilla. Whisk until smooth and slightly glossy.
- Step 5. Add the 65 g cocoa powder, 95 g flour, and 3 g salt.
- Step 6. Fold everything together just until no dry flour remains. Do not overmix.
- Step 7. Fold in the 100 g chocolate chips.
- Step 8. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
- Step 9. Bake for 25–30 minutes. The center should look set but still slightly soft, and a toothpick should come out with moist crumbs rather than completely clean.
- Step 10. Cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before cutting into 16 squares.
Notes
- Whisk the eggs and sugar until the mixture looks glossy. That step dissolves the sugar, and dissolved sugar is what forms the crackly top.
- A skewer should come out with moist crumbs, not clean. Clean means they have gone too far and will set firm rather than fudgy.
- Cool completely before cutting. Warm brownies tear rather than slice, and they firm up considerably as they cool.
Fudgy Chocolate Brownies — Simple Table Recipes · https://simpletablerecipes.com/recipes/fudgy-chocolate-brownies/
Ingredient Notes
- Cocoa powder
- Doing the work that melted chocolate would do in other recipes. Cocoa has very little fat, so the butter carries the richness and the result is dense and fudgy rather than light.
- Flour
- Only 95 g for a whole tray, and that low proportion is deliberate. More flour moves the brownies toward cake; this ratio keeps them fudgy.
- Granulated and brown sugar together
- The granulated sugar is what creates the thin, shiny, crackled top. Using only brown sugar gives a softer, duller surface.
Equipment
- 8 x 8 inch / 20 x 20 cm pan
- Parchment paper
Substitutions
- Chocolate chips
- Chopped chocolate, walnuts or pecans in the same quantity. Adding both makes a very rich brownie.
- 8 x 8 inch pan
- A 9 x 9 inch pan works with a shorter bake, around 22 to 25 minutes, and gives thinner brownies. A 9 x 13 pan needs a doubled recipe.
- Unsalted butter
- Salted butter works — leave out the added salt. A flaky salt scattered on top before baking is worth doing either way.
Storage & Freezing
Storing: Keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. They are firmer and arguably better on day two.
Freezing: Freeze cut squares for up to 3 months. They thaw at room temperature in about half an hour.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes brownies fudgy instead of cakey?
The ratio of fat to flour. Fudgy brownies use more butter and less flour, and no chemical leavening. Cakey brownies add more flour and often baking powder. This recipe has no leavening at all, which is deliberate.
How do you get a shiny crackly top on brownies?
Whisk the eggs and sugar together until the mixture is smooth and glossy before the dry ingredients go in. That dissolves the sugar, and the dissolved sugar rises to the surface during baking and sets into the thin crackled layer.
How do I know when brownies are done?
A skewer in the centre should come out with moist crumbs clinging to it, not clean batter and not completely clean. Brownies continue setting in the hot pan, so a clean skewer means they will end up dry.
Why are my brownies dry or cakey?
Usually overbaking, or too much flour. Weigh the flour rather than measuring by cup — a packed cup can be 20 percent heavier than it should be, which is enough to change the texture entirely.
How do I cut brownies cleanly?
Cool them completely, lift the slab out by the parchment, and use a long knife wiped clean between cuts. Chilling for 20 minutes first makes it easier again.
Can I use melted chocolate instead of cocoa powder?
Not as a direct swap — melted chocolate brings a lot of extra fat and sugar, so the whole recipe would need rebalancing. Cocoa powder is what makes this particular version work.
Did you make this?
Let other people know how it went. One tap, nothing to fill in.
Thanks — that helps.
