Even soft chocolate chip cookie lovers will reach for these crispy chocolate chip cookies. Crackly and buttery, you’ll love the satisfying crunch you get in every bite. They’re so irresistible that it’s almost impossible to eat just one.
Crispy vs. Chewy: The Different Types of Chocolate Chip Cookies
All chocolate chip cookies—whether they’re soft, chewy, or crispy—are made from the same ingredients. It is the ratio of ingredients and a few simple modifications that create the textural differences. Let’s take a look at some of our chocolate chip cookie recipes and how the proportion of ingredients can make or break your cookie. (Literally!)
- Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies: Creamed butter, cornstarch, and a higher ratio of brown sugar to white work together to achieve this cookie’s perfect melt-in-your-mouth softness.
- Chewy chocolate chip cookies: Melted butter, an extra egg yolk, and more brown sugar than white sugar will help you bake a supremely chewy cookie. The melted butter is the secret to this dense, indulgent treat.
- Crispy-edged chocolate chip cookies from Sally’s Cookie Addiction cookbook (page 26): Milk plus a higher ratio of white sugar to brown help create the spread needed for a crispier cookie. The creamed butter and sugar create a soft and light center. These are the perfect blend of soft, chewy, and crispy. Definitely a favorite around here.
If you love extra crispy cookies, you’ll want to try my chocolate chip cookie bark, too!
Tell Me About These Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Texture: For that pleasing buttery CRUNCH when you take a bite, let the cookies cool completely. The longer the cookies cool, the crispier they will be. I suggest using a cooling rack if you have one. It circulates air to the bottoms of cookies and, as a result, cools them quicker and more evenly.
- Flavor: Crispy chocolate chip cookie fans will love the rich, buttery flavor contrasted with sweet chocolate chips in every bite.
- Ease: This quick and easy recipe makes a lot of cookies in a short amount of time. Perfect for no-fuss bakers who want big flavor without a big mess.
- Time: Unlike many cookie doughs, chilling isn’t required (see Note), so this recipe comes together in minutes. Here are all of our cookie recipes without dough chilling.
Recipe Testing Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies: What Works & What Doesn’t
Chocolate chip cookies can turn out differently depending on a few different factors, particularly the proportion of ingredients. Every ingredient has a job to do. That’s cookie science! The good news is that as long as you know which type of cookie you want, you can learn how to make it successfully each and every time. Here are the secrets to making a crispy chocolate chip cookie:
- Melted butter. Creaming butter and sugar together, like you do for most cake recipes, aerates the cookie dough, creating a softer, fluffier cookie. Since we crave a crispy cookie here, we’re using melted butter instead. Melted butter = a chewy and dense center.
- Sugars. Since brown sugar is soft, we want to use more white sugar for a crispy cookie.
- Milk. Just like melted butter, milk helps the cookies spread in the oven which produces crispier edges.
- Honey. This natural sweetener crisps and melts in the oven, creating a crackly top on your cookie. If you don’t have honey, you can substitute light corn syrup instead.
- Egg yolk. One egg yolk adds richness and structure but leave out the egg white. Why? Egg whites fluff up when beaten or whisked. We want to avoid the fluff in this crispy cookie
- Smaller cookies, hotter oven. Roll the cookies smaller and bake at a higher temperature so the whole cookie crisps up perfectly.
To Chill or Not to Chill?
It’s entirely up to you—baker’s choice! The first time I made these cookies, I chilled the cookie dough for my usual 2 hours, and the cookies had a lovely crisp edge with a chewy center. They were delicious but tasted like my soft chocolate chip cookies. I wanted something different: a thinner cookie with an overall crunch so I continued testing the recipe. Here’s what I discovered:
- No chilling: For thin and mega-crispy cookies, skip chilling the dough entirely.
- Chill for 1 hour: For cookies that are a little thicker, have a little chew and a lot of crisp, chill the dough for 1 hour.
- Chill for 2+ hours: For thicker cookies with less crisp, chill the dough for 2 hours or longer.
I appreciate that this cookie recipe works all 3 ways.
More Cookie Recipes
- Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
- White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Crisp Molasses Cookies
- Sugar Cookies
For a gluten free cookie, try my flourless almond butter chocolate chip cookies or flourless peanut butter oatmeal cookies. The latter are chock full of chocolate chips, too!
Print
Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours, 25 minutes
- Yield: 32-36 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Crispy chocolate chip cookies with a satisfying crunch. With their crackly tops, crisp buttery edges, and overflow of chocolate chips, I have a feeling even soft chocolate chip cookie fans will get a kick out of these.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 10 Tablespoons (142g) unsalted butter, melted + slightly cooled
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (43g) honey or light corn syrup
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/4 cups (225g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- See step 4. If not chilling the cookie dough, preheat oven to 375°F (191°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk the melted butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, honey, egg yolk, milk, and vanilla extract together until combined. Pour into dry ingredients and mix everything together until completely combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. (You can use a mixer for this step if needed.) Dough will be soft.
- For thin and crisp cookies, do not chill the cookie dough and proceed with step 5. For slightly thicker and crisp cookies, cover and chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour then preheat the oven. For slightly thicker cookies with soft centers and crisp edges, cover and chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator for 2 hours then preheat the oven.
- Roll cookie dough into balls, 1 scant Tablespoon of dough per cookie, and arrange 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 10-11 minutes or until browned on top and around the sides.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies crisp up as they cool.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Cookies stay fresh lightly covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Allow to come to room temperature, preheat the oven, then continue with step 5. Keep in mind that cookies are the thinnest and crispiest when baked right away. 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): Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
This is the perfect crispy chocolate chip for my grandson. I love the crispy outside and the tender inside… Riley however, is thrilled that I finally made a cookie that he likes.
I must say they have a very different taste from what Im used to… i believe its the bit of honey.
I’ve FINALLY found a great crispy chocolate chip cookie recipe!! This is it!! No more having to overbake my cookies to get them crispy only for them to go soft again the next day.
Terrible recipe. Cookies cooked very fast before the time range noted. So brown (very darK) on the bottom. I did the refrigerate for more than an hr process. As far as taste, they are mediocre. Will be going back to a previous chocolate chip recipe.
Hi Sally, I used Monk Fruit Sugar (Substitute caster sugar) and Coconut Flower sugar (Substitute light brown sugar). The cookies come out by chewy instead of crispy. Please help. How to bake total crispy classic cookies? Hope to hear from you.
Happy New Year!
Hi Joe, Happy New Year to you as well. I haven’t tried this recipe with the substitutions you noted, so I’m unsure. The cookies have a nice crisp to them when following the recipe as written.
Hi There, can I add in a tablespoon or 2 of unsweetened cocoa powder to make this a double chocolate chip cookie?
Hi Kim, here’s our double chocolate chip cookies recipe – enjoy!
I made this recipe and they were AWESOME!! This will be my chocolate chip recipe of choice from now on!
Hi Sally, this recipe is perfect for the crispy cookies I’ve dreamed of. I made 42 cookies from it. I baked them for 11 mins at 190C. It’s very brown. As.I live in the tropics, perhaps I’ll bake it for 9 mins the next time round. It’s dangerously addictive….so easy to go through a dozen of them in one sitting.
Thank you so much for sharing your expertise.
The cookies are delicious but they aren’t crispy. I followed the recipe exactly too. I wonder why?
Hi Sally! I’m about to make this recipe and I was wondering, do I have to flatten out the cookies before putting them in the oven? Or will they flatten out in the oven? Thank you!
Hi Francesca! The cookies will spread in the oven. We will always instruct you to flatten cookies if it is a needed step!
Hi Sally! I love your recipes a lot and they NEVER go wrong. Thank you very much(I’d rate you and this recipe 10 stars if I could)
Hi Sally! I would like to make a half recipe – what is the best way to halve the egg yolk?
Hi Miriam! You can beat the yolk, then measure half. Enjoy!
I made this recipe on August 17, 2022. I added some chopped walnuts but everything else was the same. The cookies did not come out “crispy” at all. I rolled them into balls per the directions and they pretty much stayed that way. The second batch, I flattened them prior to baking hoping for the crispy edges. Third batch I used the convection at 375 degrees. They browned better but they are still not “Tate’s” like. Of course they taste fine. I mean, butter, sugar, flour, egg yolk, real vanilla can’t be bad. I wanted “crispy” but did not have that result. I did not chill the batter. What went wrong? I use real Irish butter, organic flour, a bit of coconut sugar for the brown sugar and Lokanto Monk Fruit Sugar for the sweetener. Thanks for you comments. Patricia, Scottsdale.
Hi Patricia, thank you for giving this recipe a try! Baking with sugar substitutes like monk fruit sugar will change the texture of baked goods – we recommend sticking with this recipe as written or finding a recipe specifically formulated for monk fruit sugar. Also, 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.
Hi Sally! I love your recipes! I was wondering if I can use oil in this recipe instead of butter?
Hi Miriam, we don’t recommend it. You want to use a fat that is solid at room temperature. Some readers have tried with melted coconut oil, but we have not personally tried it and are unsure of the results.
Thanks so much Lexi! I love authentic cookies minus gooey… this recipe seems perfect for my liking… have never baked crispy cookies till now… Gonna try it soon!
Hi! The recipe looks great! One query though… can I scale it down? & up? TIA
Hi Zenith, you halve this recipe for fewer cookies, or double it for more. Hope you enjoy them!
I would love to half the recipe – what is the best way to halve the egg yolk?
Hi Miriam, our general rule for halving an egg is to crack it open, beat the yolk and white together with a fork (or just the yolk in this case), measure the volume (should be a few Tbsp), then use half.
Can i replace the honey or corn syrup with golden syrup?
Hi Ayesha! We haven’t tested it but let us know how it goes if you do!
I loved this recipe. Would definitely make again. This recipe is fairly easy to make and is totally the best cookie recipe i’ve found so far
I loved how crispy these cookies came out but I lightly covered them with saran wrap and the next day they weren’t crispy. What can I do to keep them that way? Thank you SO MUCH for inspiring me to bake more. P.S. Your scones are awesome!
Hi Trisha, for crispier cookies, you can typically bake them a minute or two longer than stated in the recipe. Cookies will tend to lose their crisp over a few days, but keep them tightly covered in an air-tight container — we also like to put a slice of bread in there to help soak up any excess moisture!
This is by far the best recipe I’ve found. I love the blog and all the tips and details you provide to make this cookie great. Thank you!!!!
can you crush the cookies up for an ice cream party easily?
Sure can!
Hi Sally I am going to bake this tomorrow it looks really good but I had 1 small doubt
I do not have chocolate chips last minute so can I use small chocolate chunks
Thanks!!!
Hi Shruti, chocolate chunks will work, too!
I substituted Heath toffee chips and they were absolutely amazing. I love this recipe. My husband only likes crispy cookies, and this is the best recipe I’ve found. Thanks so much for posting it!
Hi. Can I add nuts to this recipe? Thanks!
Absolutely! Just keep the total amount of chips plus nuts to around 1 and 1/4 cups.
These were easy and quick to make. They are a crispy mouthful of delicious buttery yummyness. Thanks for another fantastic recipe!
My son and I tried this as he wanted a crunchy cookie rather than chewy. We love how the cookies turned out. Easy to follow recipe for novices such as us. What is the recommended sugar level for less sweet cookies without losing the lovely taste? Thank you.
Hi Joscelin, we’re so glad you enjoyed these cookies! You can certainly try reducing the sugar — but since it plays an important role in taste and texture, the outcome will be different depending on how much you reduce the sugar. If you do decide to experiment, let us know how it goes!
These are addicting!! The honey gives them such a good flavor!
Oh I thought there was a different one that was crispy edged and soft middle it says it’s in page 26 in the cook book up above. Is that this recipe? Sorry! These are so amazing!!
Hi Marta – sorry for misunderstanding! You can find that recipe in Sally’s printed cookbook Sally’s Cookie Addiction.
Looking for the crispy edged recipe. Can’t find it anywhere! Thanks!
Hi Marta! You’re found our crispy chocolate chip cookie recipe here – could you be thinking of our chewy chocolate chip cookies?
Can i replace with egg with flex seeds.
Hi Padmini, We have not tested this recipe with any egg substitutes but let us know if you try it.
I’m from India. I tried this recipe several times and the whole family enjoy them. Thanks Sally for this great recipe!
Great recipe! Chilled the cookies for just under an hour, and their texture is perfect! Nice and crispy on the outside, but chewy in the middle
i really liked this recipe it wasn’t to hard to make. i put it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes because i wanted a little bit chewy and mostly crunchy and it really worked. but i only put them in the over for 7 minutes because they were already very brown. but good recipe 🙂
I want to make a cookie of half chocolate chip and half red velvet. I like this chocolate chip recipe and your chocolate chip red velvet cookie recipe. The only problem is the baking temp. Do you have any suggestions how I can make this work?
Hi Janelle, you can bake both doughs at 350 – the higher temp in this recipe helps get the cookies crisp, but 350 will work just fine!
It tastes good but I needed to bake it for 20 mins instead 10 for it to be cooked all the way through