These Classic Fudgy Brownies are made with BOTH cocoa powder and chocolate. Made right in the saucepan, you won’t believe how easy it is to make brownies from scratch with dense fudgy centers and shiny, crackly tops!
This is one of my Dessert recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
Is there anything better than sinking your teeth into a warm, gooey, fudgy brownie? That amazing intensely chocolatey flavor, crackly top, and fudgy center; I mean it’s practically one step removed from eating pure chocolate!
Brownies can be a bit polarizing though. Lots of decisions when it comes to brownies! Chewy, cakey, or fudgy? Middle or corner/edge? Nuts, or no nuts? Boxed mix, or from scratch?
Personally, I’m a fudgy, corner, with nuts, and from scratch kinda gal. My son is a brownie-holic, and I’ve made countless batches of brownies over the years. Every variety, some from a box, and most from scratch.
No knocking boxed mixes, they work well in a pinch; but I definitely prefer the flavor of from scratch brownies. Plus, I know exactly what’s in them!
If you’ve never made brownies from scratch before, you’ll be amazed at how easy it actually is! No mixer needed, made in just one bowl/saucepan, and they’re ready for the oven in about 10 minutes.
How to make fudgy brownies?
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Melt butter and chocolate. Once they’re melted, turn off the heat and remove the pan.
- Whisk in sugars. Whisking both the sugars in really well while the butter is still warm helps to get those crackly tops!
- Add eggs. Whisk them in one at a time, then add in vanilla.
- Stir in dry ingredients. The dry ingredients in this recipe are cocoa powder, flour, salt and espresso powder. A rubber spatula is the best tool for this.
- Stir in chopped chocolate. This gives you those little pockets of melted chocolate!
- Bake. Bake for 35-45 minutes.
- Let cool before slicing.
Helpful Tip!
All ovens cook differently, and even something as simple as the pan used can effect the amount of time brownies need to bake. In general, metal pans bake quicker than glass. Most brownie recipes, this one included, have a range for the baking times. My advice, is to check the brownies a couple of minutes before listed in the directions; when you smell a super chocolatey smell in your kitchen. You’d rather check a few times and have perfectly cooked brownies, than end up accidentally over-baking them.
Variations of this recipe
- Types of chocolate – I prefer using bittersweet or semi-sweet for this recipe, but milk or dark chocolate will work as well.
- Mixing bowl – if you’d prefer not to make the batter in your saucepan, you can melt the butter, and add it to a mixing bowl with the sugars. Then just continue as written.
- Larger pan – I totally get it; sometimes an 8×8″ pan just isn’t enough brownies! This recipe can easily be baked in a 9×13″ pan, for about 25-30 minutes.
- Nuts – nuts are a very common brownie addition! I love to add a generous handful of toasted chopped walnuts.
- Salted caramel – try drizzling some salted caramel sauce over the top of the baked brownies.
- Peanut butter cup – for a fun twist, sometimes I like to push some peanut butter cups down into the brownie batter before it’s baked.
- Oreos – do the same as above, but with Oreo cookies instead!
FAQ’s
That’s done by using a smaller amount of flour, larger amounts of butter, and using no leavening agents (like baking soda or baking powder).
Yes and no lol. They’re not intentionally under-baked to get that beautiful gooey, fudgy texture. But no one wants a brownie that’s been baked too long, so most people, myself included, go by the motto, “if you’re in doubt, go ahead and pull them out”.
Fudgy brownies can be a bit tough, since by nature, they’re supposed to be a bit gooey. Insert a toothpick in the center. If it comes out with wet batter, they’re not finished. If it comes out with moist crumbs, they’re done. If the toothpick is borderline, go ahead and pull them out, they’ll continue cooking a bit in the pan as they cool.
Making fudgy brownies ahead of time
These brownies can be made ahead of time, and will keep for around 2 days at room temperature. However, there’s just nothing better than a freshly baked, warm brownie, so we like them best when baked fresh.
Storage
These brownies should be kept covered tightly in an airtight container, and consumed within 3-4 days for best texture.
For longer storage, they can be refrigerated, but make sure they’re covered really tightly so they don’t dry out. They should last about a week when refrigerated.
I haven’t tested freezing these (honestly they never last long around here lol), but I’m sure they would freeze well.
Related Recipes:
My Favorite Brownie Pan!
I love the squared edges of this pan, how easy it is to clean, and it comes at a really affordable price point!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 4 oz semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate bar chopped
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp espresso powder optional but recommended
- 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate (or your favorite chocolate)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly spray an 8×8” baking dish with nonstick spray. Trim a piece of parchment so it covers the bottom of the dish, but is long so it goes up and over the sides of the dish. This creates a “sling”, and will help you remove the brownies from the pan very easily.
- In a large saucepan, add butter and melt over MED heat. Add 4 oz chopped chocolate and melt. Turn off the burner and remove pan. Whisk in brown sugar and granulated sugar, until smooth and creamy.
- Add in eggs, one at a time, making sure to whisk well after each addition. Add vanilla and stir until combined.
- At this point, you might want to switch to a rubber spatula. Add cocoa powder, flour, salt, and espresso powder, stirring until JUST combined and no flour or cocoa powder streaks remain. Gently stir in the chopped dark chocolate.
- Pour batter into prepared baking pan, using the rubber spatula to scrape all the batter out of the saucepan. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until center is set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Let pan cool on wire rack before trying to slice. Then slice into squares and enjoy!
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Chef Tips
- In general, metal pans bake quicker than glass. Most brownie recipes, this one included, have a range for the baking times.
- My advice, is to check the brownies a couple of minutes before listed in the directions; when you smell a super chocolatey smell in your kitchen. You’d rather check a few times and have perfectly cooked brownies, than end up accidentally over-baking them.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Sandra says
It turned out so perfect!! And it is so easy to make, too!
Erin | Dinners,Dishes and Dessert says
These Classic Fudgy Brownies are distinctive!
Beth says
These look out of this world delicious and yummy! My husband and daughter are going to love these! So excited to make these!
Cathy says
Fudgy brownies are the BEST brownies!
Beti | easyweeknightrecipes says
I am so excited to try these brownies!! They look so fudgy and delicious!! YUM!!
katerina @ diethood.com says
These brownies are amazing! Everyone LOVED them!
Erin | Dinners,Dishes and Dessert says
These Classic Fudgy Brownies are look so fun and tasty!
Vikki says
These brownies look so mouthwatering! Making ASAP