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
- Strawberry Cake
- Chocolate Cupcakes
- 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
Hi, Sally! Since this recipe has neither baking soda nor baking powder, would it be okay to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder? Thanks!
Either works! Use your favorite.
I am looking to create a go-to homemade brownie mix. Could I mix all the dry ingredients together and store them for when I ant to make a batch?
You sure can. Then just add the wet ingredients when ready.
Oh dear god were these ever amazing!! I made these into brownie bites using mini muffin pan and baked for about 24 min and got 34 brownies. My guests ate almost the whole batch!!
Oh my god. These are UNREAL. I’m horrible at baking brownies and these are fudgy and flaky and chocolatey and amazing. I almost ate the entire lot of them and blamed it on my pregnancy but then decided against it and shared with my coworkers. Great work lady, amazing recipe!
Hi Sally! I recently got brownie baking pans. The pan holds 12 individual 2½” x 2½” x 1″ wells and is 16″ x 11″ overall. How much should I adjust the baking time, if any at all?
My guess is the baking time will be slightly less. Keep your eye on them!
I made these today in a nonstick pan, AMAZING. So fudge and deliciously chocolate. But I made changes, I didn’t use white sugar, I just used 1/2 cup brown sugar. All I had available! Thanks!
These are seriously the best brownies EVER! I love boxed brownie mix but seriously, nothing compares to these brownies! SO YUMMY!!! 🙂
Just made these with the kiddos. FYI I could not find a good brownie recipe. They always ended up so hard and just not good to be honest. These are THE BEST brownies I have ever had!! Thanks so much for the recipe. Definitely a keeper!!
Made these today and they were sooo good!!
I just made these and they were delicious! I used a 10-inch cast-iron skillet instead of a baking pan and the bake time was closer to 30 minutes, but they turned out amazingly chocolaty and fudgy! Thank you so much for this recipe, I will definitely be making these again!
These are sooooo good! My husband I are chocolate freaks and couldn’t wait for these to cool and they are yummy and fudgy. Will definitely save these to make again. A mix is most certainly cheaper but these taste so much better!!
Made this today! Added some walnuts! Turned out lovely! I baked it for 25minutes next time I think I might leave it in the oven for 20minutes! just wanted to say your blog is fantastic! Thanks for all the wonderful recipes!!
Hi, Sally! I’ve been wanting to make these brownies since a long time and I finally did so this evening.
THEY ARE AMAZING. I’m obsessed with chocolates and brownies are my favourite so I’ve eaten a lot of them, which is why I wanted to let you know that these are probably the best ones I have ever had. I love the taste, THEY COULD NOT BE BETTER.
I’m in love. Thank you so, so much for sharing this.
OMG!!!… These brownies are amazing!!, I made them for work and I cannot stop eating them from my co-workers!!. I made these brownies at around 2 pm and it is now going on 11:30 pm, they are still soft, fudgy and delicious!.. This recipe is my go-to brownie recipe. Thank you so much!
Made these tonight for the kids as it is so cold here in Melbourne (Australia) right now. And the kids and hubby ate half of the batch! Will make this my regular brownie recipe – thank you!
Hi Sally,
Can’t wait to try this recipe!! Just wondering, I read a comment about using the “mini brownie pan”, that’s what I was going to use. It would be pretty difficult to foil or parchment pan this little squares, can I just use a Pam spray instead?
Thanks, Patti
Yep! Pam spray would work!
I tried these brownies yesterday and they turned out SO AMAZING!!!!!!! The recipe is so exact and produces the exact quantity of batter. Only thing was that the bottom of the brownies got stuck to the foil. But they taste simply FAB. Perfect gooey fudgy texture and so rich and yummy!!!
Fantastic! Thank you, they were delicious!!
I made this today and they were divine! take note of the word “were”. It was gone that fast!!! thanks for this recipe!
I rarely leave comments on any website, but I just made these brownies and couldn’t resist..the brownies or the opportunity to say thank you! These remind me of the delicious brownies at Starbucks that are my occasional treat. I’m concerned that I have a whole pan of these to myself until tomorrow when they will most definitely disappear at the potluck they are going to (and I had to try them because you can’t take something somewhere without making sure …right?!). Oh wow…this is my new brownie recipe!!!!
These brownies are PHENOMENAL ! BY FAR the BEST brownies I have ever made. I can’t emphasize this enough. I used milk Chocolate chips not semi sweet because thats what I happened to have in the house at the time. I omitted the cocoa powder and added extra chocolate. I also used only a tiny bit of brown sugar since the milk chocolate chips are already so sweet. I baked them in an 11×7 pan. They were so beautifully moist. Thank you so much for this recipe lol I have made home made brownies before but they did not turn out as REAL as these.
If they didn’t turn out as wonderfully for you then you do not know what you are doing in the kitchen although these have many good reviews I can’t see these ever not turning out for someone!
I doubled the recipe and found them very easy to make. They pulled away from the foil with ease after 30 minutes (used 2 different sized pans). Quite delicious and just the right amount of sweetness without frosting. I think I overcooked them just a bit since they were slightly on the “cakey” side. Can’t wait to try making them again!! Thank you for the easy to follow recipe. My first time making brownies from scratch and I’ll never go back to the box!
I had a go at these for a friend’s birthday and they were an absolute delight! Everyone loved them and they were the rich fudgy brownie they were promised to be. They weren’t overly sweet and the recipe was very easy to follow. Thank you so much for the recipe!
So I will add to the sea of comments that gains this post popularity. This is a very good brownie recipe. Very simple and results are yummy. But if I had to choose between this recipe and her death by chocolate brownies in her cookbook I would pick the latter. The ones in the book are far richer in flavor…tbh those are the best homemade brownies I have ever sunk my teeth into. For those who dont have a copy of her book (please buy it) this is a treat worthy recipe. 🙂
Just made these. Hands down best brownies ever! Thanks SO much for sharing!!! 🙂
I made these brownies for the first time and they were great. This was my first time making brownies from scratch, so I didn’t know what to expect. I often make the cookie recipes from this site and they too always come out wonderfully. The brownies were so indulgent and decadent. I added chunks to the batter instead of chips so that they were more gooey when cut into.My husband has already requested I make these again!
I followed the recipe exactly as written. These were the worst brownies I have ever tasted. I didn’t know there could be such a thing as a bad brownie. They didn’t look anything like the picture, or even taste good! The frosting was delicious but unfortunately I had to dump the brownies. What a waste of expensive organic eggs, and two bars of ghirardelli chocolate.
This is THE. BEST. BROWNIE. RECIPE. EVER. I made them over the summer and then I lost the recipe. I finally found it again and I’m never going to lose it again. I will never try another brownie recipe again.
Hi Sally, I made this recipe, left off the frosting, and substituted the chocolate chips for PEANUT BUTTER chips and they came out AMAZING!!! They were a hit in my house and I’ll definitely keep this as my go to brownie recipe. Thanks!
I love chocolate and make brownies that always end up being like cake instead of fudge like I want. This recipe was PERFECT. I did leave out the extra chocolate chips to cut just a couple calories, and they were still soft, moist and FUDGY. Finally! Loved it!