These chewy fudgy homemade brownies are made completely from scratch. You will never make a box mix again!
Everyone has a favorite brownie recipe and this is one is mine. No mixer, no strange ingredients, no box mix, just pure brownie love. And bonus! They’re made in 1 bowl.
Brownies Should Be 2 Things: Chewy and Fudgy
Chewy brownies have a dense structure, but still have a little crumb. Fudgy brownies are dense with a moist intensely chocolatey interior—somewhere between chocolate truffles and piece of fudge. I like my brownies so rich and dense that it tastes like frosting you can eat in bar form. How delicious does that sound?
How to Make 1 Bowl Homemade Brownies
Before making homemade brownies, it’s helpful to know the importance of each ingredient. I wasn’t able to develop this brownie recipe without a little practice and learning. There are 4 main ingredients in brownies—varying amounts of these ingredients will affect the texture of the finished product.
- Chocolate: Cocoa powder or solid chocolate are used in homemade brownies. If using all cocoa powder, you need more fat in the brownie batter because cocoa powder does not contain cocoa butter. My brownie recipe uses mostly solid chocolate with a little cocoa powder. Double the chocolate goodness! Semi-sweet chocolate is best, though milk chocolate would be great for a sweeter brownie. I don’t suggest using unsweetened or bittersweet chocolate unless you love deep, dark chocolate.
- Flour: Like I mention above, I prefer my brownies chewy and fudgy. The fudginess in this brownie recipe relates to the small amount of flour. More flour = a more cake-like brownie.
- Sugar: These homemade brownies use 3/4 cup of granulated sugar. I also add 1/4 cup of brown sugar, which enhances the moist texture. As long as you use 1 total cup of real sugar (no sugar substitutes!), then your brownies will turn out wonderfully. You can use 1 full cup of white granulated sugar instead. That version is just as fantastic and easier since you only need 1 type of sugar!
- Eggs: Eggs perform about 1 million functions in baking like binding, adding richness, tenderizing, providing structure and lift. My chewy fudgy brownies recipes uses 3 eggs, which give the brownies a tight crumb and melt-in-your-mouth texture.
If you’re an extreme chocolate lover (of course you are), add chocolate chips to the brownie batter and top the finished brownies with chocolate buttercream. Because… why not?
And if you want to take your homemade brownies a step further, try this brownie pie or caramel turtle brownie pie next!
More Homemade Recipes
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vanilla Cupcakes & Chocolate Cupcakes
- Strawberry Cake
- Rice Krispie Treats
- Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Tarts
Chewy Fudgy Homemade Brownies
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 16-20 brownies
- Category: Brownies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Chewy fudgy homemade brownies made completely from scratch. Try them with chocolate frosting and sprinkles on top! You will never make a box mix again, trust me.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (115g) salted or unsalted butter*
- two 4-ounce (226g) semi-sweet chocolate bars, coarsely chopped*
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons (79g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 Tablespoons (10g) unsweetened natural or dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (180g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- optional: chocolate buttercream
Instructions
- Melt the butter and chopped chocolate in a medium saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly. Or melt in a large microwave safe bowl in 20 second increments, stirring after each. Remove from the heat, pour in a large mixing bowl, then allow to slightly cool for 10 minutes.
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line the bottom and sides of a 9×9-inch square baking pan* with aluminum foil or parchment, leaving an overhang on all sides. Set aside.
- Whisk the granulated and brown sugars into the cooled chocolate/butter mixture. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking until smooth after each addition. Whisk in the vanilla. Gently whisk in the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Once combined, fold in the chocolate chips.
- Pour/spoon batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 35-36 minutes or until the brownies begin to pull away from the edges of the pan. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with only a few moist crumbs when the brownies are done. All ovens are different, so keep an eye on them after 30 minutes and use the toothpick test to see when yours are finished.
- Allow the brownies to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack. Once cooled, lift the foil out of the pan using the overhang on the sides. Frost with chocolate buttercream, if desired. Cut into squares. For neat squares, I use a very sharp knife and wipe it clean with a paper towel after each cut.
- Unfrosted brownies stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 week. Frosted brownies stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: For longer storage, these brownies (both frosted and unfrosted) freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Medium Saucepan | 9×9-Inch Square Baking Pan | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Butter: I love to use salted butter in these brownies! If using unsalted, no need to increase the salt in the recipe. The flavor difference between using salted vs unsalted butter in this recipe is very slight.
- Chocolate: Use real, quality chocolate. You can find the 4 ounce baking bars in the baking aisle. I like using Ghirardelli or Baker’s brand.
- Baking Pan: You can use an 11×7-inch baking pan instead. The bake time is about the same.
Keywords: homemade brownies, chewy brownies, fudgy brownies
Sally sally sally! YOU ARE THE BEST! This is the best brownie recipe ever! It turned out great. I just love all your desserts and I am trying them one by one! Always a hit!
Super yummy! Baked this last night and the fam loved it! So fudgy and chocolatey! I’ll definitely make this again with dark chocolate next time.
I made these brownies for our family Christmas dinner and they are fantastic! I used a cup of chopped nuts instead of the chocolate chips and just used confectioners sugar and a little milk for the icing. Your instructions are so complete that I didn’t mess up at all(usually I don’t understand part of the recipe-I am not much of a baker.) Thanks to you, I now make the best brownies my bunch has ever eaten!
Hi Sally,
I made these yesterday and they came out very well!
I think I cut it up too soon. Like 30-45 minutes after they came out of the oven and they were all sticky and gooey and a bit bitter too!
After sitting in the fridge overnight, they are not gooey and taste great!
Off to try out more recipes of yours.
FWIW, this is my first time baking a brownie! And my second baking experiment ever when I baked a killer triple chocolate layer cake that my friend gave me. Thrilled with myself 🙂 Thanks again.
Let me just say I had been looking for the perfect brownie recipe for ages, and I have baked dozens of brownie recipes with great disappointment. Thank you, Sally, my search for the perfect brownie has finally ended. These were the best ever; crispy texture on the outside and fudgy inside. My family loved them, and I will make them again and again!!
Made these this morning. Fantastic recipe! They really are fudgy and absolutely delicious. Thank you!
Hi! I made these this evening and they turned out great 🙂 I can imagine they taste even better tomorrow! A bit more “fudge” would be nice though, but I didn’t use frosting or something special in them, maybe I’ll put some caramelsweets in next time.
I’ll share these with my classmates tomorrow, since every single one of them are superfond of chocolate I bet it will be a success!
Thanks for this recipe!
I made this yesterday and they are absolutely fab! Even with no frosting, it still looked and tasted delicious! The insides are moist and chewy and the top was shiny and crusty. I love it! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
This is a pretty good brownie recipe. The texture is perfect. The brownies had a stronger dark chocolate taste than I had expected. Will definitely make them again but next time I’ll put about a tsp less of cocoa powder.
Thanks so much for the recipe!!! Usually when I bake everything turns out awful- things get burnt, cookies come out rock-hard…but this recipe was AMAZING! My sisters were shocked that I created such lovely, rich brownies that they couldn’t believe I made it. Thank you once again!
Just tried these. They were delicious! This is actually my first time making HOMEMADE brownies and it was awesome. Thank you! 🙂
These are to die for! I doubled the recipe for a tailgate last weekend and everyone loved them! Mine were perfectly cooked after 45 min. in a 9×13 in. pan.
Hi, Sally!!
I plan on making these in the morning and I’m wondering – are choc chips and chopped up chocolate bar interchangeable? I have a bazillion bags of Trader Joe’s choc chips (absolutely the best ever…and I don’t have one near me so I have to stock up when I visit my sister!) and only a bar of dark chocolate. Don’t think I’ve ever tried subbing the chips. Same thing??
Thanks! Your recipes rock!
Alyssa
Hi Alyssa, chocolate chips and pure chocolate are not interchangeable in this instance. Chocolate chips contain stabilizers, which make them incredibly difficult to melt into a smooth, rich texture like pure chocolate. Pure chocolate also tastes 99% better and therefore, your brownies will taste 99% better. I usually use pure chocolate chopped up to replace chocolate chips, but not the other way around. Hope this helps.
This is a great recipe! Usually, My brownies turn out hard and dry, no matter what recipe I try, but this one was so yummy! 5 stars, definetly.
I never knew making brownies from scratch was soo easy! These brownies are the best I have ever had and I made them.. WOW! They are deliciously decadent I am going to make these regularly. I will forever have the ingredients for this recipe in the cabinets and I can’t wait to share! I will NEVER buy a box of brownie mix again! Thank you soo much for the recipe!
These are the best and easiest scratch brownies I have ever made. The icing was a perfect addition. Made them for tailgating this past weekend and will be making them again this week. I didn’t get to eat as many as I wanted, had to share!
I am really really picky about my brownies. They have to be crusty around the edges, fudgy in the middle and not overly sweet. These brownies are all of that and so much more!!!! Thanks for creating such an indulgent and tasty homemade brownie. I may never go back to boxed mixes again!! P.s. I didn’t even put the frosting on because they were so good all by themselves.
Can only say oh my gosh these are the best ! I bake often and this was a simple and easy to follow treat . Came out great . Thanks .
Kathy
I just tried baking these brownies from scratch yesterday and those came out beautifully. I was always using brownies cake mix before i found this recipe but now don’t have to use them anymore. Thanks for the recipe!!!
These are the BEST brownies ever. Mine akways take a little longer to bake but I just keep an eagle eye on them. Between these and your flourless nut butter cookies, I hardly bake anything else anymore….oh, except for your peanut butter caramel popcorn…but that’s not really baking… 🙂 Thanks Sally…I am now extremely popular!!
I usually don’t make comments on sites, but have to for this one. LOVE< LOVE, LOVE your brownie recipe. Have already made it twice in 1 week! The best ever!!! Looking forward to trying some of your other recipes listed… Thank you!
Loved this recipe! For the first time in my life, the brownies came out exactly the way I love them. I followed your recipe to the ‘t’/’tee’ except, I didn’t measure the chocolate. I put every bar of chocolate I had been given that I didn’t particularly like and had kept in the freezer and threw them all in. Some had wafers, some mint but the brownies still came out divine and chewy. Thank you!
Great recipe! I added in some of those Reese’s minis. A little on the rich side but delicious!
Hi Sally,
Just tried these brownies today to impress the family and it turned out to be just amazing. Probably the best brownies that I have ever made!! thank you for the recipe 🙂
I will NEVER make a box mix again. OMG, best brownies EVER, and so easy to make. I took to a July 4th cookout. My family said they were like a piece of fudge with a brownie crust. Thanks again Sally!
Made these tonight with mint chips…. oh so good! Thanks for the recipe.
Made this brownies today!! It is so far the best brownies I made. Loved it so much. Thank you for this wonderful recipe, will be looking forward to use more of your recipes in my future baking. 🙂 PS. I’m your fan from Thailand.
Love this recipe! Made it once in a 9×9, and then the second time I doubled the recipe and used a 9.5×13 inch foil pan. Both times = AMAZING! I used semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of solid bakers chocolate, and I don’t have a scale so I just estimated the amount (used about 2/3 of a 12oz bag of chips) and it turned out wonderful. I love the fudgy texture and the crispy top layer. Hands down my favorite brownie recipe. 🙂 thanks for sharing.
These brownies are amazing! I’ve always been scared to try to make a brownie from scratch since I don’t like cakey ones, but these were perfect, as all of your recipes are. Thanks so much for all these great recipes!
I made these the other day, and made salted caramel following your recipe and added it to the top of the brownies, they were amazing!