An easy fudge brownie from scratch recipe. Homemade brownies with chocolate and cocoa powder baked to fudge-y perfection. Learn how to get chewy fudge brownies with that seductive but elusive crackly shiny top. These brownies are rich and dense and perfect!
I feel we need to start this post off with a bold statement. This chewy, fudgy brownie recipe truly is the best recipe in the world. I've been pretty open about my self doubt in most areas of my life. My brownie game is not one of those places. I would gladly put this recipe up against anybody's and know that this dense, chewy, chocolatey brownie (with the shiny crinkly top!) would crush the competition. And you're getting the recipe and all the tips and tricks that make this brownie the best in the world!
We'll go through how to make the Fudge Brownie From Scratch step by step with all the tips and tricks listed for each step.
A note on gluten free: If you want to try making these gluten free then sub the flour for ground almonds. You will need to bake an extra 5-6 minutes. Or you can try this gluten free brownie recipe!
Fudge Brownie from scratch step by step:
Step 1.
Grab 3 bowls. Make sure one of them is the bowl for your Kitchenaid mixer. If you don't have a stand mixer you can still make these brownies with an electric hand whisk.
Measure your ingredients into the separate bowls. Bowl 1- eggs and sugar (mixer bowl) Bowl 2- Flour, cocoa powder and salt. Bowl 3- Chocolate and butter. It can sometimes feel a bit confusing to have instructions that are directing you to weigh ingredients into different bowls, but when it's laid out like this it makes it all nice and clear.
Tip 1: Measure all your ingredients before you start to actually whip, whisk or mix anything. It'll ensure that your less stressed and don't forget ingredients or make mistakes.
Step 2.
This next part is really easy... actually, the whole recipe is really easy. But for this part, you want to place your eggs and sugar on the mixer with the whisk and start to mix on medium - high. Melt the butter and chocolate over a pan of simmering water. This is called a bain-marie.
Trick 1: When melting the chocolate and butter over simmering water, make sure that they're all cut the same size so they melt at the same time.
Chef's Pro Tip: In order to whip the eggs to their full potential it's important to start them on the mixer at room temperature. In fact, unless stated otherwise, all ingredients in baking should be at room temperature before you begin.
I think it's important to not take yourself too seriously, but when it comes to those shiny crackly tops on my brownies, I don't joke. This is where it gets really important. The key to those tops is the whipped sugar and egg sabayon. Sabayon is a fancy word for whipped eggs. Normally, the eggs are whipped over a bain-marie, but for these brownies we're using a cold sabayon. So just whipped on a mixer. Super simple!
Can you see how thick those eggs need to be???? ↑ Thick! On a stand mixer it takes about 6 minutes to achieve this. If you are using an electric hand whisk, then it may take about 8 minutes on high. I'm sorry about your arm, but it'll be totally worth it!
When it comes to mixing the ingredients together this is the oder you want to go in:
- Melted chocolate and butter into the eggs and sugar.
- Whisk to incorporate the chocolate without knocking all the air out of the eggs.
- Fold the flour and cocoa powder into the eggs and chocolate.
A couple of notes: To fold everything together the best way is to use a whisk. I did this recipe on an Instagram Story that you can checkout right here. IG Story Brownie Tips
I've been using this recipe for years and did some research as to what other people attribute to the crackly top. I found a King Arthur Flour forum where they were thinking that it was adding chocolate chips to the batter before baking. I'm certain it's the eggs and whipping them.
Never added chocolate chips during baking and always get this gorgeous and seductive shiny top. If you follow the tips above I can guarantee you that yours will turn out the same way. That's how confident I am in this recipe!
If you want to play around with the texture and flavour of these brownies, then you can try using demerara sugar or part brown sugar. Check out the sugar guide to figure out how to pimp these brownies even further.
Thanks so much for being here! I'd love it if you left a rating and a comment letting me know how much you loved any of these recipes. Follow along on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook for the latest!
The Best Chewy Fudge Brownie (From Scratch) Recipe In The World!
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup dark chocolate chocolate
- ½ cup plus ⅓ cup butter
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 3 eggs
- 1 ¼ cup sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160c or 320f.
- Melt the butter and the chocolate together in a bowl set over a simmering pan of water.
- While the chocolate and butter are melting place the eggs and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on high until stiff and glossy.
- Sift the flour and cocoa powder together and whisk in the salt.
- Line a 9 x 9 square pan with some baking parchment or greaseproof paper.
- Pour the melted chocolate slowly into the egg mixture and fold in using a spatula.
- Once the chocolate is incorporated, add the cocoa powder and flour into the chocolate mixture pour into the tin.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes. Turn the pan around and bake for another 6-8 minutes.
The Novice says
These look absolutely perfect! I love that gooey, chocolatey centre.
Debs says
Thanks so much!
Tyrone says
Hi Debs,
This looks really lovely and can't wait to try it out! I'd just like to ask a question before I make it, I've noticed on the ingredients that you have split the butter up into two parts. Why is that?
Sorry for my ignorance 🙂
Debs says
Hi Tyrone. The only reason for splitting the butter up was because this recipes has been converted from metric to imperial. It didn't quite measure enough to be a whole cup and the butter and rather than round it up, it was better to adjust to 2 different measurements. I know it's not completely ideal, but this recipe is so beyond worth it. Hope you love these brownies!
Janene says
Can we have the metric measurements please. It is far easier to measure chocolate by weight than by the cup!
Debs says
Hi Janene. I've put the measurements here (rounded up to the nearest whole decimal) but the recipe card does have a conversion tab at the bottom of the measurements to convert between Imperial and metric. I'll work on making that more prominent. Hope this helps.
220g dark chocolate, 245g butter, 65g flour, 45g cocoa powder, tsp sea salt, 3 eggs, 200g sugar.
Natasha @ Salt & Lavender says
OMG. These look awesome! I guess as a former pastry chef, you know ALL the tricks. 🙂
Debs says
Thanks Natasha! I've got ALL the tips and tricks of the trade!
Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy says
First....these look divine. Chewy and chocolate is the best combination. I LOVE the fact they are NOT frosted. This is ALWAYS the debate in our house. I prefer unfrosted....everyone else wants frosting. Since I make them...they have to eat them the way I like. These would not last long in our house at all (even without frosting) since they sound so good.
Elaine @ Dishes Delish says
These brownies look like the best ever! Seriously, I haven't seen a better brownie that is both chewy, moist and delicious! I can't wait to make your brownies to see that they are indeed the best ever!! I'm sure they are!
Debbye says
I've never seen brownies so moist and decadent. Definitely a saver for me.
Patti @Patty Cake's Pantry says
I love scratch made brownies. When I was a child, my mother always made brownies from scratch. I remember her standing over the stove melting the chocolate and butter together. I was in my late teens before I ever realized that there was such a thing as boxed brownies. My children, however, rarely get to eat the good, homemade, ones. These look delicious. I will have to make some for my family.
dixya @food, pleasure, and health says
brownie is an absolutely fav of ours..we usually take shortcut with boxed one now you are tempting me to give homemade version a try.
Carrie | Clean Eating Kitchen says
I will never say no to a brownie! These look so divine, and thanks for the step by step instructions, I'll be giving these a go!
prasanna hede says
These looks so delicious,gooey and perfect!The pictures are making me have some today!
Anne Murphy says
Those do look delicious! And the top is beautiful. Thanks for the tips and trickcs - I ofen find myself wondering just how someone got a certain result!
Tamara Andersen says
Dense? Check. Chewy? Check. Chocolate-y? Check. That meets all my requirements. They probably are the best! 😉
Marisa Franca @ All Our Way says
This is the only way to make brownies -- chewy and chocolatey. I can see how rich and moist they are. Forget about dry as crackers brownies. People have a tendency to overcook brownies. That's not the way they should be. Yours are perfect. Great tips.
Ashley @ Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen says
These look insanely delicious! I love a good brownie (corner piece, please!) and I like to underbake mine just a bit so they're still soft on the insides. Love the tips here - I don't tend to make my pieces of chocolate all the same size, but now I know that's probably why it takes a while to melt for me.
Elena says
I'm making this for a party I was invited too. I have my "go to" brownie recipe but yours look so irresistibly fudgy! And I love the last shot - it looks like snow!
Tanya says
Gorgeous recipe. I made them just now! The corners are beautiful but the Middle is very very gooey, to the point it doesn’t keep shape.. any tips?
Debs says
Hey Tanya! So glad you love this recipe. I'd pop the tray in the fridge for 30 minutes to let it set up. The feedback I've gotten is that most people like these brownies warm, so I've added an extra 10 minutes cooking time so that when they're still warm they'll keep the shape, as well as have that divine crispy edge and crackly top. If you pop them in the fridge and let them set up they go almost like a chocolate fudge pate! Perfect for hot summer days! Hope that helps.
Tanya says
Thank you Deb! After I let them set for a while they turned out a little more solid which is perfect. I love this recipe thank you 🙂
James says
FYI, a Bain-Marie is a warm water bath such as is used when baking custards in ramekins. The word, Bain, literally means Bath. What you refer to here is a double boiler. Easy way to remember : over simmering water is a double boiler. In simmering water (bath) is a Bain-Marie.
Debs says
Hey James. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. You may be new to the blog (if you are, welcome!) so you may have missed my bio. I’m a Cordon Bleu grad with 10 years under my belt in Michelin star kitchens. And those places don’t scrimp on French terminology, so I’m pretty up to speed on what a bain-marie is.
A quick Google would have informed you that a bain-marie is a process of cooking whereby the temperature of anything is either increased or maintained using water and steam.
So, yes you are correct in that a bain-marie is used for placing custards and pots de creme and cheesecakes and what have you in a pan immersed (although not submerged) in water.
However, where you are mistaken is where you state that the process of melting the chocolate and butter together in a bowl over simmering water is not a bain-marie.
I can assure you it is exactly a bain-marie.
What you speak of “a double boiler” is, in fact, the type of pan that you would use for this process.
A double boiler is a piece of equipment, not a cooking process.
My goal for Salted Mint is to empower people in the kitchen and encourage people to use techniques and styles of cooking that they may not be familiar with while having me walk them through it step by step.
But there is a lot of misinformation out there regarding techniques and equipment, as you have so kindly highlighted.
Thank you for bringing it to my attention. I thought about creating an index of culinary terms and definitions but thought that it wouldn’t be necessary with Google so readily at our disposal. My mistake. I’ll start working on this resource in the coming weeks.
Until then if you have any other questions regarding cooking terminology or techniques feel free to drop another comment or send me an email. I’m always happy to help.
David Brigman says
Great information being shared here, thank you! My batch of brownies just came out of my oven a few minutes ago and they look amazing. I’m a new fan of yours and look forward to many more great bakes. And here’s what I learned today: (and congrats, you both are correct): bain-marie (plural bains-marie) In cooking, a large pan containing hot water, into which other smaller pans are set in order to cook food slowly, or to keep food warm.
Synonym: double boiler
Debs says
Thanks so much David. It's so lovely to have you here. Thrilled that you're loving the brownie recipe. It's on a non-stop rotation in our house! Enjoy them!
Www.Talkhelper.Com says
This is truly helpful, thanks.
Nicolle Pegot-Ogier says
The BEST brownies I've ever tasted. However, they are a little dense, do you know how can I make them a little lighter?
Debs says
Hey Nicolle! So glad you love these brownies! If you want a brownie that is a little lighter, try reducing the butter to 1/2 cup, and add a teaspoon of baking powder to give it some lift and should make them lighter. Let me know what you think of the lighter version!
Amanda says
I made these but the amount of time doesnt seem like enough. The inside was so gooey we had to eat it with forks. The top got hard and shiney but didnt crack. Tastes really good, but I'll have to try to cook them longer next time. Also I dont see anywhere on the recipe where you put the salt.
Debs says
Hi Amanda. These brownies are meant to be quite gooey, although not quite so gooey that you need to use forks. If you want to cook them longer, then, by all means, add another 5-10 minutes on the cooking time, or, you can pop them in the fridge for about an hour once they've cooled. In the fridge, the chocolate sets up and the brownies stay really fudgey, although not overly gooey. And the salt gets added to the flour and cocoa powder. Sorry I missed that. Most brownies are also very lovely with a sprinkle of sea salt over top, right before baking. Enjoy!
Amanda says
They needed more time because you could still kind of taste raw sugar. I added a little salt but I used salted butter , it's what I had, so i wasnt worried. But I will definitely make this recipe again but cook it longer. Because what we did eat was very tasty 🙂
Catherine says
Hello, thank you for sharing this beautiful recipe. Just want to check if you're using a fan over or a conventional one. Sorry if you've already mentioned this information elsewhere.
Debs says
Hi Catherine. This recipe was done in a fan oven. If you've got a conventional oven then you can up the temperature by about 10-15 degrees and leave the brownies in for an extra couple of minutes. Hope you love these!
sophie hannevig says
The Nicest brownies I’ve ever made in my life! sensational really! ?
Debs says
Ah!!! You've made my day with this comment! So glad you love this recipe. Hopefully, it becomes your new go-to brownie recipe! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. It means the world to me!
Krysten @freshfitkitchen says
Debs! These were amazing ! The best brownie recipe I’ve ever made !
Debs says
Thanks so much Lovely! Soooo happy you love them!
rowe says
Hi there, the pictures look fabulous! Just want to check if your metric conversion for the butter is accurate cos half cup + 1/3 cup butter is not 245g, is it?
Debs says
It's 190g of butter. Just took a look and realized that when you hit the metric conversion, it still includes the 1/3 cup of butter, plus the weight for 1/2 cup. Sorry about that.
If you just weight out 190g of butter, that will be perfect. Thanks so much for pointing that out.
Enjoy the brownies!
Pauline says
So I’ve made these brownies twice and they were burnt twice...! I guess the oven temperature is wrong. First time, they burnt in 8’ at 150*C. Burnt. Like a thick black crust on top. I could try them with a spoon inside and that seemed like a great brownie (if cooked properly). I tried again today with a 120*C oven and this time, they only burnt in 7’.... I’m in France, I don’t know if the ovens are different in the US but there’s definitely something very wrong with the cooking instructions. A hundred degrees Celsius cooking is VERY hot. It’s pizza hot oven... are you sure that’s correct ? I guess, after this experience I’ll try a 80*C and just sit in front of the oven to check it all along. I’d love to try the recipe correctly because these look absolutely fantastic but honestly I’m tired of ruining ingredients over nothing... it’s just wasted.
Debs says
Hi Pauline,
I'd love to help you troubleshoot this recipe and what's going wrong. I'm UK based so also bake in Celsius. I know that the recipe is solid as I bake it about 4 times a week for the bakery I work in and follow the exact instructions as I've written them. Not sure what's going on. Do you have an oven thermometer to check the temperature of your oven? Is it a gas oven or an electric convection oven? 100 celsius is actually a very low temperature. A pizza oven would be about 200-220 Celsius. So it sounds like the temps of your oven may not be matching up with the temps that the recipe is written in. It wouldn't be possible to burn this recipe in 8 minutes in a 150 oven. It simply wouldn't be hot enough.
If you could let me know 1. What kind of oven you're using 2. what size tin you're using and if you are substituting any of the ingredients. This is really puzzling to me, but I really would like to help get this right for you as it is a really really awesome brownie recipe.
Pauline says
Hi Debs, thank you for your reply. This is very helpful ! So the Celsius conversion should not be the problem. That’s out. As for the technology, I have a rotative heat gaz oven by Indesit. It’s always been quite powerful but not to the point of burning food (until now). Maybe the oven is losing it ! . I didn’t sub anything: I followed your instructions wisely 🙂 You’re the cook ! I’m just trying to make chewy brownies ! I’ll try again with a very low temperature indicator and maybe check the actual heat of the oven : I’m suspecting a malfunction in the heat notification at this point...
Debs says
Hi Pauline, Just had a quick Google for your oven. Then had a thought. Is it at all possible that when you set the temperature it could have somehow turned on your grill at the same time? That would definitely explain the burning the top so quickly. Before you try the recipe again, it may be worth getting an oven thermometer from Amazon (about 10 eur), just to make sure that the temp is accurate. I'd hate for you to keep trying the recipe and not having the result that you want. It's so frustrating. Keep me posted I'd love to have you make this recipe and love it as much as everyone else. Everyone deserves an amazing brownie!
Jesica says
What do you think about adding walnuts and caramel? I'm trying to find the perfect brownie recipe for my niece to send her for christmas! And yours by far looks like best YUM!!! And how would you recommend packaging these to be shipped??
Debs says
Hey Jessica! Yes. Walnuts and caramel would be awesome in these brownies. You can also use pecans which are to die for. If you're going to package them to be shipped I wrap mine in plastic wrap then some tissue paper to make it look nice. Send them in a box that has enough filling to make sure that the brownies don't get tossed around in the box. They should be good to go. I've shipped these brownies all over the world and that's the exact method that I use and it has always worked perfectly. Enjoy!
Stephanie says
These brownies are killer! The recipe just calls for "butter", I used salted butter, because I believe that is what belongs in brownies. I baked them about 3 minutes too long, and they were still fabulous! Splurge for high quality cocoa powder and dark chocolate. You will not be disappointed. Treat yourself with a little bourbon sidecar. Heaven.