I know what you're thinking... what makes these "the BEST brown butter chocolate chip cookies"? They are so chewy and have such rich depth of flavour, and it's all about proportions!
For chocolate chip cookies, I'm a purist. Really and truly, I prefer the classic chewy cookie with butter, brown sugar, really good vanilla and puddles of dark chocolate. With all of the browning and caramelization that happens with the brown sugar and the over-powering (yet DELICIOUS) taste of vanilla and dark chocolate chips, using brown butter is actually a bit of a waste of time...
I know, I know! Crazy right? But, everyone says brown butter makes things better?! It can... it's delicious stuff... but it needs to shine or it can just be over taken.
WHAT IS BROWN BUTTER?
Butter is made up of several components, namely milk fat, milk proteins and water with trace amounts of milk sugars (lactose). When heated to a certain degree, the milk proteins and milk sugars react in a process called "Maillard Browning" to create nutty and caramel-like flavour compounds as well as generate brown colour compounds.
This process occurs when there is no moisture present, which is why you need to cook butter until the water content is evaporated off in order to make brown butter.
It's Science!
HOW TO MAKE BROWN BUTTER
If you've never made brown butter, you MUST try it. It adds amazing complexity and richness in the form of nutty, caramel-like flavours that enhances many recipes.
- First melt your butter over medium heat in a small sauce pan.
- Once melted, let the butter come to a simmer. It will crackly as it boils. Stir the butter constantly as it melts to ensure it cooks evenly.
- As the moisture evaporates, the butter will start to foam. This is the point when the browning starts to happen. Keep stirring the butter. Keep a close eye on the butter and DO NOT WALK AWAY.
- Eventually the crackling will settle down and the foam on the surface will become very dense to the point that you cannot see the clear butterfat beneath it. The foam will turn golden and as you stir you should see little brown flecks coming up into the pan. This is the sign that you are done! The butter will turn a golden colour and you’ll know it’s done by the smell... it will have a toasted, nutty, caramelized aroma.
- Immediately pour it out into a clean bowl and let it cool before using it in the recipe.
HOW TO MAKE BROWN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Making brown butter is simple! The key is to not let it burn, but do let it get golden brown.
- First melt the butter over medium-low heat in a saucepan and make sure to use a stainless steel saucepan so you can see what's happening. If you use a dark pan it may be difficult to monitor the change in colour.
- Continue cooking, letting it boil gently and crackle. This is the sound of the approximate 15% water that is in butter evaporating out. Once all of the moisture boils off, a dense foam will begin to appear at the surface and it will start to smell nutty as the milk solids brown.
- Stir the butter constantly so the brown bits don't catch at the bottom and so that you can stir them up to the surface above the foam to watch the colour change. When the foam subsides and you see the golden brown bits, immediately pour it off into a clean bowl. You should be left with golden yellow liquid butter and lots of nutty brown flecks. Let it cool until firm and set.
- Place the firmed up brown butter into a mixing bowl with the sugars and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes until slightly pale and fluffy. Beat in the egg and milk.
- Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly. Add it to the butter mixture and fold it in until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 2-4 hours. Scoop up mounds of dough and roll into balls. Place them onto your lined baking sheets and bake until golden but still soft in the middle!
WHY IS THIS THE BEST CHEWY BROWN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE RECIPE?
As you learned above, brown butter has all of its moisture removed. So, if we just go on making cookies without taking this into account, they may be a bit more hard and crunchy rather than soft and chewy.
So... what can we do? We can simply replace the liquid! You could use water, but I use milk. Why? Milk contains protein and lactose (milk sugar) which will promote even more rich browning flavour reactions as the cookies bake, adding to the buttery, nutty flavour even more!
I’ve tested this recipe using another egg to replace the moisture, but then the egg flavour overpowers the taste of the brown butter, and well… frankly you might as well just make my Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies instead.
WHAT TYPE OF CHOCOLATE IS BEST FOR BROWN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES?
The best thing is to actually NOT use chocolate chips at all - for these Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, use CHUNKS.
Chocolate chips are designed to hold there shape and don't melt as easily as bar chocolate (also called tablets). Also, chips are smaller and uniform in size so it can give a rather boring look to cookies.
I always prefer to use my favourite eating chocolate or good quality dark chocolate block and chop it up. This creates shards of chocolate of all different sizes to give the cookies more interest. It will also melt nicely so that you get some layers of chocolate in the cookie and it creates little puddles.
In this recipe I used a mix of milk and dark chocolate since the creamy sweetness of milk chocolate pairs well with the brown butter, but you can use whatever you like!
TIPS FOR MAKING BROWN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
- Be patient making the brown butter. It can very quickly go from this light brown to burnt, so make sure you take it off the heat as soon as it turns golden.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes. It will help the flavour develop.
- Don't skimp on the salt. Salt really helps enhance the flavour of brown butter.
Here is the chocolate I recommend for making Chocolate Chip Cookies: bittersweet chocolate
Callebaut Belgian Dark Couverture Chocolate Semisweet Callets, 54.5% - 5.5 Lbs
SHOULD I USE SALTED OR UNSALTED BUTTER TO MAKE BROWN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES?
I like using salted butter for this recipe because it really adds richness in a way that just adding salt can't since it is blended and dissolved through the butter.
However you can absolutely use unsalted butter - just increase the added salt in the recipe to ½ teaspoon.
Ok, now stop everything and go make some Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!
If you love chocolate chip cookies, check out my BEST EVER Chocolate Chip Cookies:
THE BEST EVER Chocolate Chip Cookies – Bakery Style!
BEST Chewy Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups 250g all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup 150g salted butter, browned
- ¾ cup 165g packed dark brown sugar
- ½ cup 100g granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon 5ml pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon 15ml milk
- ½ cup 85g milk chocolate chips
- ⅔ cup 113g dark chocolate (I also love these bittersweet callets)
- ½ cup 70g chopped macadamia nuts (optional)
Instructions
- First make brown butter: place butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until completely melted. Allow butter to come to a boil and then continue to cook while stirring occasionally while it bubbles and crackles as the moisture boils off. Keep cooking with frequent stirring until it reaches a deep golden colour. It will progress from golden yellow to tan and finally, brown. The crackling noises will fade, the bubbles will subside and a dense foam will form at the surface as the last bit of water squeezes out. Stir constantly until you see brown flecks come up through the foam. This whole process takes around 8-10 minutes. Immediately pour it into a large mixing bowl, then place it in the freezer for about 10 minutes until cool and thick. It should be cool enough that it is opaque and firm, but not hard. If you freeze it for too long, just leave it at room temperature for 10-20 minutes until it softens up.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt.
- Beat butter with both sugars and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed for 2 minutes until creamy, lightened and a bit fluffy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl halfway through mixing. Beat in egg until well incorporated and creamy. Beat in milk. Add flour mixture and mix on low just until mostly combined then mix in chocolate chunks and nuts (if you’re using them). Refrigerate the dough for 1-2 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll 2 tablespoons of cookie dough into balls and place them onto prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Flatten them slightly with the palm of your hand and bake for 9-11 minutes until golden around the edges. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Nichole Whitney
These are really good! I haven't always been the best cookie baker. So I started your recipe without expecting much of a turn out. Not only are they beautiful they taste great. My Hubs will be taking some to share with the guys at work tmw. I'm certain I'll be making more next week.... So again thank you for a easy and tasty cookie recipe.
christina.marsigliese
Thanks so much Nichole!
Sang
I made these for my Christmas gathering yesterday and they were a real hit! And I slightly crisp on the outside and so chewy on the inside. Try is a keeper! Thank you Christina! I must say your recipes are very reliable. You give very good explanations and tips!
christina.marsigliese
Thank you so much Sang! I’m honoured to have my recipe as part of your family celebrations.
Anonymous
This recipe is one of the best recipes iv'e made with the best tasting cookies!
Sahar Abdellatif
As a home baker, it always frustrated me that I can successfully make macarons and complicated cakes, but can’t get a chocolate chip cookie to the level I want. I decided to give this recipe a try, and WOW! I loved it! I used chocolate chips because I only had them, yet, they were absolutely delicious. Everyone that had them thought I bought them from a nice bakery. Thank you for sharing this recipe!!
christina.marsigliese
Thank you so much Sahar! I'm so glad this recipe worked well for yoU!
Anonymous
These were so good. Thank u!
christina.marsigliese
Thank you! I’m happy you enjoyed them.
christina.marsigliese
You're welcome!
Annie
Hi! I love this recipe and Ive made them a dozen times now. However, once they come to room temp they lose out on that crispy outer edge. Is it possible to retain that crunchiness or are they only that way when warm and fresh out the oven?
Jenny
I made these for the first time a few weeks ago and now my kids won't stop asking for them! They are really good.
Nur
I've never actually had much luck with cookies as I do with other pastries despite using many different recipes. But after following this recipe step by step (using grams) it turned out perfect! Before popping them in the oven, I rolled the dough into balls and froze them overnight and baked in the oven the next morning. It turned out golden, crunchy on the outside and chewy inside it was insane!!!!! Made around 20 medium sized 🍪
Andy P
Awesome recipe! These turned out great. Great flavor and texture, will definitely be making again!
christina.marsigliese
Woohoo! Thanks Andy!
Luke M.
Wow! That’s all.
christina.marsigliese
Thank you!
Sabrina
For sure this is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe out there! If you like chewy then you will love these.
christina.marsigliese
Thanks so much Sabrina!
Linda
Absolute perfection!
christina.marsigliese
Thank you Linda 🙂
Tori
These have got to be the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever tasted! They are so flavorful and chewy. After a long search, this is my go-to recipe!!
christina.marsigliese
Thanks so much Tori!
Terry
So so chewy and absolutely perfect!
Mariella
After years of searching I’ve found my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe! Thank you!
Anya
Hi there! I just tried your recipe and the cookies taste great. However, they turned out to be so dark in color compared to your photos, looking almost like double choco chip cookies. I wonder if it’s due to using dark brown sugar? Should I switch for the light one instead? Also, baking them for 10 mins didn’t quite seem to let the cookies bake thoroughly, even after preheating the oven, so I had to bake them for 20 mins in total. I wonder if I did anything wrong?
christina.marsigliese
Hi there, it sounds like your oven temperature is not accurate. You can try getting an oven thermometer to test it’s accuracy.
Jean
Hey christina. May i know whats the weight in gram of 2 tbsp cookies please just to make sure all the cookies bake evenly 😬
christina.marsigliese
Hi Jean, I would say it's about 42-56 grams.
Elaine
I’d love to make this recipe but would just like to know which brand of all purpose flour you used and what was its protein content if I need to use a different brand- I’m writing from Malaysia and different brands of all purpose vary enormously in protein level. Thanks in advance
christina.marsigliese
Hi! Use an all-purpose flour that has 11-12% protein content.
Elaine
Thank you! I look forward to making them
Elena
Thank you so much for posting this. The cookies taste great. This recipe is now my go-to recipe for chocolate chip cookies.
christina.marsigliese
Thanks Elena! I'm so glad you enjoy them!
Nicole
I weighed everything by mass and the dough came out very dry 🙁 baked cookies are crubking apart. Not sure what happened here!
christina.marsigliese
Hi there! If you weighed everything exactly then the dough should not be dry. It could be the type of flour you used, or your egg is too small.
Cindy
I'm an avid baker and this recipe didnt turn out for me. The dough was extremely crumbly and I followed the recipe to a T. I added milk to fix the dryness, but thoughts on what went wrong?
christina.marsigliese
Hi Cindy, that's unfortunate. So many people have great results and you're the first to say it didn't work. You will need to weight your flour because it sounds like you're using too much. Also, the type of flour you use could make a difference. Make sure to use 1 large egg (57g) and the appropriate amount of milk. Good luck next time!
Sherri
These cookies taste great but mine came out flat. What am I doing wrong?!
christina.marsigliese
Hi! It could be that your oven temperature is running low, not enough flour or the liquid wasn't measured correctly. Also it is important to refrigerate the dough before baking.
Laura B
Really enjoyed making these biscuits! I have never tried using burnt butter but I think I will from now on, it really does add a depth of flavour. I didnt have chunks only choc bits and I used dark and white, but they still came out tasting delicious. Thank you for the recipe!
christina.marsigliese
Hi Laura! Thanks for your feedback. I'm happy you enjoyed the taste of brown butter 🙂
Dita Mertani
I have tried more than 10 recipes, and this is so far (and by far) the best! Thank you for sharing the recipe😊
christina.marsigliese
Hi Dita! Yay! Thanks so much!
Merle
Being an avid baker of anything with brown butter, i was really intrigued by your comments regarding your disappointment with other recipes, so that got me really curious. Well. I tried your recipe tonight. I chilled the dough for just over an hour. I shaped 4 cookies and baked them in my airfryer - i like doing this so that i can have freshly baked cookies multiple times from the same batch - and WOW! Loved the deep toffee notes, the textural difference between the crisp edges and the chewy centre! Seriously good. Thank you!
christina.marsigliese
Hi Merle! Thank you so much for your comment - I'm so glad that this recipe lived up to your expectations! The brown butter really shines 🙂
Amari
Never thought of using my air fryer for cookies! 🥳🥳🥳
Simonne
I make this and leave the dough chilled overnight
The next day the cookies dough is kinda dry (i let thaw for 2 hours) and it like never wanna form a ball. Anyway i’m baking them now in oven and they looks more like a muffin
christina.marsigliese
Hi Simonne, it definitely sounds like you used far too much flour. I would recommend using a scale if you do not know the method for measuring accurately. Good luck!
Erica
I found my new best chocolate chip cookie recipe! Thank you Christina! I can always trust your recipes.
christina.marsigliese
Thanks so much Erica! I'm so glad this recipe works well for you.
Kelly
OMG! These cookies are too good. So chewy and dangerous to have around the house.
christina.marsigliese
Right?! They're addictive! Thanks Kelly.
Taylor
I made these yesterday after bookmarking the recipe the day you posted it. They were incredible! Thick and chewy like you said and the brown butter flavor made them extra special. Thanks for another great recipe.
kathy
Hello Christina, just to confirm, the butter weighs less than 150g after it has been browned. Do I need to add more butter to bring it back to 150g, or just use what is remaining as the correct amount? It varies from time to time. Thank you!
christina.marsigliese
I Kathy, yes that's correct. Start with 150g butter, brown it and then use what is remaining. There is no need to add additional butter to bring the total back up to 150g.
Maggie
Is there anything by any chance that can replace the egg in this recipe? And the outcome be more or less similar.
christina.marsigliese
Hi Maggie, I have not tested this recipe without eggs. You can research egg substitutions and test it out. Let me know how that turns out!
Amber
I made these cookies today: they are absolutely delicious. Chewy, crisp at the edges, soft in the centre, tasting brown-buttery and chocolatey with toffee coming through in every bite.
The only issue I have is that my cookies flattened out and baked up thin. I don’t get it. I am an experienced baker and followed the recipe exactly, including the chilling of the dough before baking. I can’t get why they flattened out and didn’t emerge puffy like yours. It’s happened before. I always research why and try to avoid the usual pitfalls but....!!!
christina.marsigliese
Hi Amber! If you are baking on a silicone mat, then I suggest using parchment. Cookies spread more on silicone. Also, it could be the type of flour you are using. Do you weigh your ingredients?
[email protected]
Great cookie everything you said chewy
goodies
Barbara
These turned out nothing short of AMAZING! I used a chopped chocolate bar.
I’m an avid baker and recipe collector; these will go near the top of my list.
christina.marsigliese
Hi Barbara! Thank you so much for the feedback. I'm so glad that this recipe worked out well for you!
Allison Johnson
Incredible, easy to make cookies! Love the buttery flavour.
christina.marsigliese
Thanks Allison! I'm so glad you enjoyed them.
Mansidak
Should I measure out 150g butter before browning it? Or after it is browned and set once again? I didn’t really understand this point😅
christina.marsigliese
Hi! You start with 150g butter and then brown it.