With 30 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!
I originally published this recipe in 2013 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more helpful success tips. This recipe is such a fan (and personal) favorite that I included it in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
One 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 beloved… and, a warning: they disappear FAST.
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.
I’ve 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.
One 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, pumpkin crumb cake 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, just like in these brown butter marshmallow crispy cookies. 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 or up to 3 days. I usually chill it overnight.
(No time to chill? Make these soft & chewy chocolate chip cookie bars, giant chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chip cookie cake, or crispy chocolate chip cookie bark 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.
Because of the melted butter in this dough, the dough is very soft and a little greasy before chilling, so it’s harder to shape the cookie dough balls. We recommend chilling first, then shaping. If after chilling the dough is very hard and difficult to scoop, let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes and then try again.
We typically do not recommend jumping right to the freezer without chilling the dough first. A quick freeze like that can cause the dough to chill unevenly and then spread unevenly during the baking process. For best results, we recommend following the recipe as written. If you don’t have time to wait for the dough to chill, try this recipe for 6 giant chocolate chip cookies instead, which doesn’t require dough chilling (see recipe Notes in that post for details on using the dough to make 24 regular-size cookies).
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 (with video tutorial).
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. Almost as thick as peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, or their gluten-free counterparts, flourless peanut butter oatmeal cookies 🙂
Q: Have you baked a batch before?
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours, 45 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. This recipe is also in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch*
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (170g/12 Tbsp) unsalted butter, melted & cooled for 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
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until no lumps remain. Whisk in the egg and egg yolk until combined, then whisk in the vanilla extract. The mixture will be thin. Pour into dry ingredients and mix together with a large spoon or spatula. The dough will be very soft, thick, and shiny. 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 refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 3 days. I highly recommend chilling the cookie dough overnight to prevent overspreading.
- Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. If the dough has chilled for longer than 2 hours, let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
- Using a cookie scoop or Tablespoon measuring spoon, scoop the chilled cookie dough, about 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, then use your fingers to shape the cookie dough so that it’s taller rather than wide—almost like a cylinder. This helps the cookies bake up thicker. Repeat with remaining dough. Arrange the cookies 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake the cookies for 13–14 minutes or until the edges are very lightly browned. The centers will look very soft, but the cookies will continue to set as they cool. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. While the cookies are still warm, I like to press a few more chocolate chips into the tops—this is optional and only for looks!
- Store tightly 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 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 in a bowl 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 to 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.
Reader Comments and Reviews
The cookies tasted good- but mine kept spreading like crazy! I even tried to do like the video said and stop them from spreading but it didn’t work. I couldn’t figure out what I did wrong. Good taste tho. Probably not do them again- maybe I put too much butter? I followed the recipe tho.
Hi Mona, spreading cookies can be caused my many things – here’s our post with tips for preventing cookies from spreading!
I love this recipe! Sally this time, my cookies actually didn’t spread enough and didn’t come out as moist! Is there anything I can do to fix the rest of the dough? Thank you!
Hi Viji, How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
They’re “okay”. More on the dry side for me. Not chewy as advertised. Followed the recipe to a tee. It’s my first Sally recipe that didn’t work out.
Can I make half a batch without any adjustments besides dividing by 2?
No adjustments needed to halve this cookie recipe, besides halving each ingredient amount. To halve an egg, you can crack it in a bowl, whisk to combine the yolk and white, measure it, then use half. Should be a couple Tbsp. You can also mix up the one yolk separately and then only use half.
Somehow this recipe was challenging to follow since its not straight forward like most recipes. It requires some preparing like melting the butter and setting aside for 5 mins. My cookies turned out dry, crumbly and hard
Maybe this isn’t the recipe for me
I agree that mine were crumbly so I tried them in a baking dish and they were okay. Not sure what I did but the batter never came together
Mine turned out super soft and chewy and like the bakery. Maybe you may have overmixed it?
To anyone that loves to bake, please please purchase a kitchen scale! They are lots of inexpensive options and they are a game changer for making sure you’re measuring properly. Especially key ingredients like flour which can be very easy to use too much and make the dough hard and crumbly.
I am confused. I don’t see any acid to react with the baking soda in this recipe. Is it necessary to use it? I wouldn’t want excess alkali to leave a strange taste.
Hi Tanya, They may have a different texture if you decrease or omit the baking soda. Usually when we can taste baking soda in baked goods it means the baking soda may not be fresh anymore.
I made these last night and I’m very disappointed. The texture is perfectly chewy but I find them woefully inadequate in flavour. They need more salt and more vanilla. I’m returning to my tried and true but still in search of the perfect chocolate chip cookie. The high ratings for this recipe surprise me.
Thanks for your feedback, Cathy. We all have different taste buds and this recipe has been a favorite for others. I find 1/2 teaspoon of salt for this many cookies/amount of flour quite typical. Did you use regular table salt or a coarser salt, by chance? Thanks for your feedback!
Love this recipe! I want to make an egg-less/vegan version. How much applesauce would I use to substitute the egg?
Hi Amy, We haven’t tested these with any vegan substitutes but let us know if you try anything!
I’ve made these a few times and loved them! I’ve also made 2 other chocolate chip cookie recipes you’ve published. All have been amazing (I especially love the flavor in the brown butter ones)! But now I have the recipes a little mixed up and can’t remember which I should use. I’m going for a texture where you get a crispy edge but soft/gooey middle. Which recipe do you think is best for that texture?Also, is it possible to use brown butter in all of them? I know you lose moisture when browning so my thought was that I could weigh the butter after browning and make up the difference in weight/moisture loss with regular butter. Would that work? Thank you so much! I use so many of your recipes and they’re all phenomenal. I’m a much better baker thanks to your recipes and instruction. 🙂
Hi Rene! These have just slightly crisp edges and a thick, soft center. You might find this post that reviews all our chocolate chip cookie recipes helpful to see the differences between each recipe. You can certainly brown the butter for any of the cookie recipes, but be sure to bring it back to a solid state if the recipe calls for room temperature butter and account for the loss of moisture as you mention (this post on brown butter will help with that, too). Or you might enjoy these brown butter chocolate chip cookies. Happy cookie baking!
This is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I have tried in my 20+ years of making them. This is my new go-to cookie recipe. Scrumptious.
Can I double (or even triple) this recipe or would you recommend that I just make different batches? Thanks!
Hi Jay, You can double the recipe so long as your mixer can handle the added volume. Much more than that, and we’d recommend separate batches for best results.
You can double and even triple. I have done that and it worked just fine
I made my dough yesterday and refrigerated overnight. I got it out this morning and it has already sat out for 20 minutes and it’s still really hard. Is this normal? I feel as though I won’t be able to scoot it out. Help please.
That’s completely fine. Scoop what you can, little by little, and use your hands to help warm the dough to shape it.
Oh they’re perfect. I can’t believe how chewy and delicious these turned out and I live at an apartment with a kind of inconsistent oven so I was worried they wouldn’t turn out correctly, but everything was perfect. I weighed everything and I think that was the best way to do this for me personally. Thank you for this great recipe.
How would I modify the recipe if I wanted to make it chocolate?
Hi Debi, we recommend these double chocolate chip cookies instead — same great chewy texture!
My cookies did not melt at all, instead they puffed up like as if they were biscuits. I don’t know what happened. I followed your recipe exactly as written. Could it be I did not add enough sugar? I wanted my cookies to be less sweet so I did not add the 1/2 of white sugar. Could this be it? I think it was.
Hi Jennifer, sugar plays an important role in the texture and structure of a cookie (in addition to taste), so the reduction could certainly be the cause of the results. We recommend following the recipe as written for best results!
I accidentally added too much flour but they still turned out great
The dough was very hard after taking out of the fridge but I saved it by adding a little avocado oil and putting in the microwave for a few seconds so I could incorporate. I love a chewy, large cookie, and I like that you don’t have to use a mixer. I’ll be making this again. Thank you!
This is my new favorite recipe. Love these cookies. Everything thing I have made has been fantastic …
I made one massive sheet pan of these cookies and then froze the rest in pre-rolled balls. Now, whenever I want one I can pop one in the oven for a little treat!
I used guittard chocolate chips and these came out exactly like Crumbl chocolate chip cookies! Very yummy.
These cookies are great, it works amazing with other toppings. I added some toasted pecans and they. are. so. good. Follow every step , read the notes, I swear they will be perfect. Family is wowed with the cookies, these want to make me cry with joy.
Don’t look as great as pictured but really good if you follow ALL the directions.
I am 68 years old and have made tons of chocolate chip cookies over the years but was never thrilled with the consistency. They were always flat and crunchy. I have been searching for this cookie my whole life. I made them yesterday after leaving in the frig overnight. I followed the recipe exactly except for adding a cup of chopped pecans. OMG! They are still soft a day later. I will never use another recipe again. THANK YOU!
I did not love this receipe! THE COOKIES PUFFED UP AND LOOKED MORE LIKE A MEXICAN WEDDING COOKIE! I SMASHED THEM DOWN WITH A FORK AND BAKED THEM A COUPLE MINUTES MORE. THEY JUST DIDN’T TASTE VERY GOOD EITHER-LUCKY i WAS OUT OF CORN STARCH OR THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN EVEN DRIER! I BELIEVE THERE WAS NOT ENOUGH BUTTER IN THIS RECEIPE. VERY DISSAPPOINTED.
I love all the cookie recipes I’ve tried thus far. I would like to know how I can safely double the recipes?
Hi Jen, Thank you for trying these recipes! You can double the recipe so long as your mixer can handle the added volume. Much more than that, and we’d recommend separate batches for best results.
My dough turned out dry and crumbly. I added a 1/4 cup of Christmas M&M’s and reduced the chocolate chips to 1 cup. I chilled it for about 3 hours. I’m wondering if I let the melted bitter cool too long. I timed it for 5 minutes. I was still able to work with the dough, and the first batch is baking now. Hopefully they turn out okay. .
Hi Courtney, We wonder if your butter solidified too much after melting. If so, the dough will be crumbly. Make sure it’s still melted. And how did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
Wonderful recipe! Didn’t change a thing. The best batch I’ve ever made, thank you!
Can I use salted butter as that’s all I have on hand . We are in the middle of a snow blizzard ..
Also, my combined ingredients are very thick unlike your video… am I doing something wrong
Hi Amy, if using salted butter, reduce the added salt to 1/8 teaspoon. How did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level or use a scale so that the flour isn’t over measured. That can make the batter thicker/drier than intended.
Hi sally, my cookies turned out delicious.
They were not flat and pretty like yours tho mine stayed really thick which is ok they tasted great but I’m just curious if you know why they may not have flattened out.
Hi Leah, When cookies don’t spread it’s often because there is too much flour in the dough soaking up the wet ingredients. How did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level or use a food scale for the most accurate measurements.
Sally, Sally, SALLY!!!!!! This recipe is outstanding! For me, a cookie no only has to taste great, but has to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye once baked. This cookie recipe meets all of my required criteria. Absolutely amazing. I tried it for the first time this week and I was overwhelmed with the results. BRAVA to you and thank you!
Best recipe. I make these all the time and everyone loves them!
I just made them and they are so delicious!! Thank you!
How would I do it if I want to use a cookie cutter?
Hi Victoria! This dough wouldn’t work well for cookie cutters. You could add mini chocolate chips to our favorite roll out sugar cookie dough, though!