Thick and Fudgy One-Bowl Homemade Chocolate Brownies

Choosing brown sugar instead of white makes these Thick and Fudgy One-Bowl Homemade Chocolate Brownies particularly damp and chewy. The combination of melted chocolate chips and a very small portion of flour keeps the crumb tightly packed and dense. You can stir the entire batter manually in just one dish, sending it directly into a 350°F (180°C) oven to bake.

The ingredients

You can easily interchange volume and weight measurements to make this batter, with the exception of bakers in Japan who must use weights. Selecting brown sugar over white sugar gives the crumb a damper, chewier bite. We also use a very minimal amount of plain flour to ensure the batter stays barely set, which prevents the squares from drying out.

The chocolate base

A mix of melted chocolate chips and cocoa powder provides the deep chocolate flavor. You need cooking chocolate chips from the baking aisle for the batter base. These chips melt smoothly. Avoid eating chocolate for the melted batter base. Eating chocolate does not melt into a smooth consistency.

You melt the unsalted butter and dark chocolate chips in a heatproof glass bowl. Warm the ingredients in the microwave in short 30-second blasts. Stir the mixture after each burst until the chocolate melts entirely. The recipe uses butter instead of oil to provide a richer taste.

Stir the melted mixture with a spatula until it looks uniform and smooth.

Mixing the batter

Mix the brown sugar and vanilla extract into the smooth chocolate bowl. Add the lightly beaten eggs and mix well. The batter will turn uniform and molten.

Add the plain flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Stir the dry ingredients in just until the batter looks smooth.

You can mix an optional chopped 6 oz (180 g) dark chocolate block or roughly chopped walnuts into the batter. The chocolate chunks create gooey pockets that meld into the crumb during baking. Cooking chocolate bars work best for these add-in chunks. They melt into a smooth texture. You can chop up regular eating chocolate for the chunks. It might not melt as smoothly as the cooking versions.

Baking times

Coat an 8-inch (20 cm) square baking pan with cooking oil spray. Press a sheet of parchment paper into the pan. Let the extra length hang over the sides. The overhanging parchment paper allows you to easily remove the baked slab later.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and push it to the corners. Your total time in the oven depends on the texture you prefer. Reduce your chosen baking time by two minutes if you omitted the extra chopped chocolate. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the pan. Hold the toothpick in place for two seconds and pull it out.

• Bake for 24 minutes for a super gooey center. The toothpick will show a significant batter smear.
• Bake for 28 minutes for a dense texture that stays quite damp. The toothpick will show a brown stain and a slight smear.
• Bake for 32 minutes to achieve a moist, cakey texture. The toothpick will emerge clean aside from some loose bits of cake.

Resting and storage

Do not slice the block immediately after baking. The slab needs time to set. Rest the pan undisturbed for 10 minutes. Grab the parchment edges and lift the bake out of the pan. Cool the slab on a wire rack for a minimum of 20 minutes prior to slicing. The squares hold their shape much better after this cooling period.

Bring these brownies to the table on the day they are baked, ideally while the pieces retain a faint touch of heat.

Pack the sliced squares into an airtight container and leave them at room temperature. They keep well up to four days. You only need to refrigerate the pieces if your ambient temperature is very hot. To save the brownies longer, place the sealed container in the freezer where they stay good up to three months.