With 11 million page views and counting since 2013, these super soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies are the most popular cookie recipe on my website. Melted butter, more brown sugar than white sugar, cornstarch, and an extra egg yolk guarantee the absolute chewiest chocolate chip cookie texture. And you don’t even need a mixer!
Reader Adrienne commented: “These are the best cookies I’ve ever had. Incredible. Don’t cut corners or you’ll miss out. Do everything she says and you’re in for the best cookies of your life. ★★★★★“
There are thousands of chocolate chip cookies recipes out there. Everyone has their favorite and this one is mine. Just a glance at the hundreds of reviews in the comments section tells me that this recipe is a favorite for many others too! In fact, if you asked me which recipe to keep in your apron pocket, my answer would be this one. (In addition to a classic cut-out sugar cookies and flaky pie crust, of course!) Just read the comments on a post in our Facebook group. These cookies are loved… and, warning: they disappear FAST.
The recipe is also included in two of my published cookbooks (in Sally’s Baking Addiction, I swap chocolate chips for M&Ms/chocolate chips combo).
Why Are These My BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies?
- The chewiest of chewy and the softest of soft.
- Extra thick just like my favorite peanut butter cookies!
- Bakery-style BIG.
- Exploding with chocolate.
Back in 2013, I tested this cookie recipe over and over again to make sure they’re absolutely perfect. I still have a big space in my heart (and stomach) for these Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies. Today’s recipe is similar, but I increased the chewiness factor.
Reader A.Phillips commented: “Look no further. This is it. This is the perfect cookie recipe. Follow her instructions exactly and the cookies will be chewy and amazing. … These are the most perfect cookies I’ve made and I’ve tried at least 20 different recipes. ★★★★★“
You can make them with chocolate chips or chocolate chunks.
Key Ingredients for Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
The cookie dough is made from your standard cookie ingredients: flour, leavener, salt, sugar, butter, egg, and vanilla. It’s the ratios and temperature of those ingredients that make this recipe stand out from the rest.
- Melted butter: Melted butter produces the chewiest cookies. It can, however, make your baked cookies greasy, so I made sure there is enough flour to counteract that. And using melted butter is also the reason you don’t need a mixer to make these cookies, just like these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and M&M cookie bars.
- More brown sugar than white sugar: More brown sugar than white sugar: The moisture in brown sugar promises an extra soft and chewy baked cookie. White granulated sugar is still necessary, though. It’s dry and helps the cookies spread. A little bit of spread is a good thing.
- Cornstarch: Why? Cornstarch gives the cookies that ultra soft consistency we all love. Plus, it helps keep the cookies beautifully thick. We use the same trick when making shortbread cookies.
- Egg yolk: Another way to promise a super chewy chocolate chip cookie is to use an extra egg yolk. The extra egg yolk adds richness, soft tenderness, and binds the dough. You will need 1 egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature. See the recipe Notes for how to bring your eggs to room temperature quickly.
The dough will be soft and the chocolate chips may not stick because of the melted butter. Just keep stirring it; I promise it will come together. Because of the melted butter and extra egg yolk, the slick dough doesn’t even look like normal cookie dough! Trust the process…
The most important step is next.
2 Major Success Tips
1. Chill the dough. Chilling the cookie dough is so important in this recipe! Unless you want the cookies to spread into a massive cookie puddle, chilling the dough is mandatory here. It allows the ingredients to settle together after the mixing stage but most importantly: cold dough results in thicker cookies. Cover the cookie dough and chill for at least 2–3 hours and even up to 3–4 days.
After chilling, the dough is quite solid, so let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes (to soften it up slightly) before shaping. (No time to chill? Make these soft & chewy chocolate chip cookie bars instead!)
- Further reading: How to Prevent Cookies from Spreading
2. Roll the cookie dough balls extra tall. After the dough has chilled, scoop out a ball of dough that’s 3 Tablespoons for XL cookies or about 2 heaping Tablespoons (1.75 ounces or 50g) for medium/large cookies. I usually use this medium cookie scoop and make it a heaping scoop. But making the cookie dough balls tall and textured, rather than wide and smooth, is my tried-and-true trick that results in thick and textured-looking cookies. We’re talking thick bakery-style cookies with wrinkly, textured tops. Your cookie dough should look less like balls and more like, well, lumpy columns, LOL.
Watch the video below to see how I shape them. I also demonstrate how I use a spoon to reshape them during baking if I see they’re spreading too much.
Another Success Tip: When you remove the cookie dough from the refrigerator, the dough may be slightly crumbly. Scooping and then shaping it with warm hands keeps it intact.
Tools I Recommend for This Recipe
I’ve tested many baking tools and these are the exact products I use, trust, and recommend to readers. You’ll need most of these tools when making sugar cookies and snickerdoodles, too!
- Baking Sheets
- Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Sheets
- Medium Cookie Scoop
- Cooling Racks
- See More: Best Cookie Baking Tools and 8 Best Baking Pans
Can I Freeze This Cookie Dough?
Yes, absolutely. After chilling, sometimes I roll the cookie dough into balls and freeze them in a large zipped-top bag. Then I bake them straight from the freezer, keeping them in the oven for an extra minute. This way you can bake just a couple of cookies whenever the craving hits. (The chewy chocolate chip cookie craving is a hard one to ignore.)
If you’re curious about freezing cookie dough, here’s my How to Freeze Cookie Dough page.
Facebook member Leigh commented: These are the only CC cookies I’ve made for years (and this recipe is how I came to be such a fan of SBA!) This recipe worked great when I lived in Denver and had issues with baking at altitude, and it’s still our favorite now that we’re back at sea level. I usually make 4x-6x batches and freeze tons of cookie balls to bake later.
In Short, Here Are the Secrets to Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies:
- Cornstarch helps product soft and thick cookies.
- Using more brown sugar than white sugar results in a moister, softer cookie.
- An extra egg yolk increases chewiness.
- Rolling the cookie dough balls to be tall and lumpy instead of wide and smooth gives the cookies a bakery-style textured thickness. It’s a trick we use for cake batter chocolate chip cookies, too.
- Using melted butter (and slightly more flour to counteract the liquid) increases chewiness.
- Chilling the dough results in a thicker cookie.
Q: Have you baked a batch before?
Print
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 22 minutes
- Yield: 16 XL cookies or 20 medium/large cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These super soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies are the most popular cookie recipe on my website for good reason. Melted butter, more brown sugar than white sugar, cornstarch, and an extra egg yolk guarantee the absolute chewiest chocolate chip cookie texture. The cookie dough is slick and requires chilling prior to shaping the cookies. Review recipe notes before beginning.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/4 cups (280g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch*
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter, melted & cooled 5 minutes*
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/4 cups (225g) semi-sweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until no brown sugar lumps remain. Whisk in the egg and egg yolk. Finally, whisk in the vanilla extract. The mixture will be thin. Pour into dry ingredients and mix together with a large spoon or rubber spatula. The dough will be very soft, thick, and appear greasy. Fold in the chocolate chips. The chocolate chips may not stick to the dough because of the melted butter, but do your best to combine them.
- Cover the dough tightly and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2–3 hours or up to 3 days. I highly recommend chilling the cookie dough overnight for less spreading.
- Take the dough out of the refrigerator and allow it to slightly soften at room temperature for 10 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Using a cookie scoop or Tablespoon measuring spoon, measure 3 scant Tablespoons (about 2 ounces, or 60g) of dough for XL cookies or 2 heaping Tablespoons (about 1.75 ounces, or 50g) of dough for medium/large cookies. Roll into a ball, making sure the shape is taller rather than wide—almost like a cylinder. This helps the cookies bake up thicker. Repeat with remaining dough. Place 8–9 balls of dough onto each cookie sheet.
- Bake the cookies for 12–13 minutes or until the edges are very lightly browned. (XL cookies can take closer to 14 minutes.) The centers will look very soft, but the cookies will continue to set as they cool. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, press a few extra chocolate chips into the tops of the warm cookies. This is optional and only for looks. After 10 minutes of cooling on the baking sheets, transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 2–3 days. Allow to come to room temperature then continue with step 5. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Wooden Spoon or Rubber Spatula | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack
- Cornstarch: If you don’t have cornstarch, you can leave it out. The cookies are still very soft.
- Egg & Egg Yolk: Room temperature egg + egg yolk are best. Typically, if a recipe calls for room temperature or melted butter, it’s good practice to use room temperature eggs as well. To bring eggs to room temperature quickly, simply place the whole eggs into a glass of warm water for 5 minutes.
- Can I add nuts or different add-ins? Yes, absolutely. As long as the total amount of add-ins is around 1 – 1 and 1/4 cups, you can add anything including chopped nuts, M&Ms, white chocolate chips, dried cranberries, chopped peanut butter cups, etc. I love them with 3/4 cup (135g) butterscotch morsels and 1/2 cup (100g) Reese’s Pieces. You could even add 1/2 cup (80g) sprinkles to make a sprinkle chocolate chip cookie.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking success tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Keywords: chocolate chip cookies
I have made TONS of chocolate chip cookie recipes, but have never been really happy with any of them. This recipe just may be the one I’ve been looking for! First, the details in the instructions are spot on. And shaping in a cylinder instead of a ball is brilliant! I made the recipe today, using the med scoop and weighing them to be around 1.75 oz each and made 18. I baked at 325, yes 325 was just fine for a golden color, for around 12 minutes. I did let the dough sit out for around an hour as it was too solid to scoop at 10 min (after chilling overnight). I added a couple of chips on top after baking and the look was exactly what I wanted: roundish, crinkly, golden brown, semi thick, med-large (around 3″ ), very tasty chocolate chip cookies. I wasn’t looking for “cookie cutter round”, but more “rustic”, and these delivered. Thank you Sally!!!
★★★★★
Very good. I wanted some crispy and I got it. I used convection bake and it took a lot longer than in recipe. I kept watch after 10 mins. First in took over 15 mins. 325 is low but I followed the recipe. Even the extra yoke. 2 1/2 doz or more. I made them high as says. I wanted larger but wasn’t sure how many. Went with smaller cookies. Chilled overnight till next night. Used parchment.
★★★★★
I’m not allowed to bring anything to family functions except iced tea. Yes I’m that bad a cook. These came out exceptionally well. My husband was very happy. If I can do this successfully anyone can!! They stay soft (?). Is that the right word? My new go to recipe for cookies!! Maybe I’ll bake some for my next family function,
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed them, Kim!
Definitely an awesome recipe but I followed all the steps and my cookies are still sitting high up and look nothing like yours do. I have no idea what im doing wrong
★★★
Hi Alli, we’re happy to help troubleshoot. How did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure the flour isn’t over measured. That can cause it to soak up too much of the wet ingredients and prevent the cookies from properly spreading. An easy fix for next time!
Best cookies ever!!!
I have tried a ton of different recipes, this is one of the best. I was able to use crud I instead and doubled the recipe exactly as called for. I also mix all my dry ingredients first and combine my wet ingredients then add those in and bring everything together by hand so it creates a crumbly textured mix. Then I scoop it and squeeze each ball together and place on my cookie sheet and they bake perfectly.
Held shape. Soft and chewy. I baked mine 1-2 minutes less. But I make them small. 🙂
Thank you so much!
★★★★★
Delicious and totally upgradeable!
I used this recipe as my base recipe for cookie monster cookies. (I dyed the dough blue) also added white chocolate chips, oreo bits, and chips ahoy bits. They turned out so soft and chewy and perfect! Thanks Sally for another great recipe!
★★★★★
Sally, can I double the recipe?
Hi Bonnie, yes, this recipe doubles well. Enjoy!
Hello, this is my absolute favourite cookie recipe! I’m wondering if they can be altered for a gluten free alternative? Would a 1-1 ratio of gluten free flour work in replace of the all purpose flour?
Thank you 🙂
Hi May, many readers have used a GF flour blend instead of all-purpose flour here. I have not personally tested it though.
I was needing to know if whole wheat flour could be used in this recipe. If so, how much and what other ingredients would need to be altered. . Thanks so much!
Hi Jennifer, we recommend sticking with all purpose flour for these cookies.
Omg. I have finally found THE chocolate cookie recipe that I will be making from now on. I don’t know why but I have always struggled at making a good chocolate chip cookie. The ones I make are alright, but not ones that anyone would remember. These are so good! They are thick, chewy, and look great. I did chill mine in the freezer overnight. I did have to cook mine for an extra few minutes to get the correct golden brown look (my oven never cooks things long enough).
This recipe for Chocolate Chip cookies is the BEST I have ever made. I probably have 40 – 50 recipes for some but this is by far our favorite.
Can I freeze the baked cookies?
HI Sayla, Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months.
I made these yesterday after an overnight chill in the frig. The dough was rock hard but as Sally said, as you work with it, it softens. I weighed each cookie dough and it was perfect for consistency. I’ve had to hide them from my ‘cookie monster’ son, they’re THAT good.
I was wondering about adding broken chocolate pieces instead of chips? Thanks for this recipe. Nancy
★★★★★
These cookies are amazing! I followed the recipe exactly and ended up with 37 2 1/2 cookies. They are chewy and perfectly sweet, not too sweet. I did keep the dough in the refrigerator overnight but 10 minutes was not enough to soften the dough to make it easy to work with. I will definately make this recipe again but will take the dough out of the refrigerator for about 30 minuters before shaping. Also they were perfectly done after 13 minutes.
★★★★★
This is the best recipe, I get so many compliments! I’d love to try making it as a giant cookie bake (in a brownie tray). How best to adjust the baking time?
★★★★★
Hi Lauren, This recipe is great for a 9×9 inch square baking pan or try this chocolate chip cookie bars recipe. For a 9×13 inch pan using this exact recipe, we recommend 1.5x the recipe. The bake time will be longer for cookie bars. Same temperature.
These look great! my issue is that i put them in for the required baking time but the middle of the cookies seem a bit raw/ mushy- is it supposed to be that way?
★★★★
Hi Shirley! Do they still seem too raw after cooling? The centers will look very soft, but the cookies will continue to set as they cool. If they aren’t set after they cool you can try adding a couple more minutes of bake time 🙂
Oh my goodness, this is like the PERFECT Chocolate Chip Cookie, it’s soft and chewy but has those yummy crispy edges, and it’s just the right thickness, this will be my go to from now on.
★★★★★
I am going to make your Death by chocolate cookies…the recipe calls for 1 cup of flour. Is that correct? Been baking your chewy choc chip and that calls for 2 and 1/4 cup flour. Please tell me which ratio is correct. Thank you and my grandkids say thank you
★★★★★
Hi Stephanie, that is correct for the death by chocolate peanut butter cookies. They are different recipes, and the use of cocoa powder takes the place of some of the flour that would normally be in a cookie recipe. Hope you enjoy those just as much!
Rather than chilling the whole cookie dough bowl, I generally scoop/shake cookies and chill the dough balls, then bake. Does this have the same effect as your method? My way seems a bit easier, but I’m curious your thoughts on the outcome. Otherwise this recipe looks great and I plan to bake it this weekend! Thanks!
Hi Karen, the dough is rather soft once mixed, so we find it easier to work with and roll into balls once chilled. But feel free to use your method if you prefer! As long as the cookie dough balls have the mandatory chilling time, you can do either way. Hope you enjoy the cookies!
Love this recipe so much. I always bake a few and then freeze the rest of the unbaked dough so I can bake just a few at a time
★★★★★