Classic Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Name: Classic Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep time: 28 min
Cook time: 24 min
Total time: 52 min
Yield: 24 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2¼ cups (280 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled; 1 tsp (5 g) baking soda; 1 tsp (6 g) fine sea salt; 1 cup (2 sticks) (227 g) unsalted butter, softened, at cool room temperature (about 65°F / 18°C); ¾ cup, firmly packed (165 g) light brown sugar; ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar; 1 whole (50 g) large egg, at room temperature; 1 yolk (18 g) large egg yolk, at room temperature (save the white for another use); 2 tsp (10 ml) pure vanilla extract; 1½ cups (255 g) semisweet chocolate chips; flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top, to taste (optional)

From the MyKitchenBank Kitchen

Bakery-style chocolate chip cookies with crisp, golden edges, soft chewy centers and pockets of melted chocolate. An extra egg yolk and a short chill give the best texture and flavor, with no mixer tricks needed.

Prep: 28 min
Cook: 24 min
Wait: 45 min
Total: 1 hr 37 min
Makes: 24 cookies (about 3 inches / 7.5 cm wide)

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Ingredients

24 servings

2¼ cups (280 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1 tsp (5 g) baking soda
1 tsp (6 g) fine sea salt
1 cup (2 sticks) (227 g) unsalted butter, softened, at cool room temperature (about 65°F / 18°C)
¾ cup, firmly packed (165 g) light brown sugar
½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1 whole (50 g) large egg, at room temperature
1 yolk (18 g) large egg yolk, at room temperature (save the white for another use)
2 tsp (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
1½ cups (255 g) semisweet chocolate chips
flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top, to taste (optional)

Equipment (9)

2 rimmed baking sheets, about 13×18 inches (33×46 cm)
Parchment paper or silicone baking mats
Large mixing bowl
Medium mixing bowl
Electric hand mixer or stand mixer (or a sturdy spatula and strong arm)
Rubber spatula
Medium cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoons) or tablespoon measure
Wire cooling rack
Kitchen scale (recommended)

Steps

Before you start

Take the butter, egg and egg yolk out of the fridge about 1 hour ahead. The butter should be soft enough to dent easily with a finger but still cool, not greasy or shiny.
Measure the flour by weight if you can. If you use cups, fluff the flour, spoon it into the cup and level it off. Scooping straight from the bag packs in too much flour and makes dry cookies.
The dough needs to chill for 30 minutes, so you can preheat the oven during that time. Total time is about 1 hour 40 minutes.
You will bake in two rounds (16 cookies, then 8), so have 2 baking sheets and parchment paper ready.

1
Whisk dry ingredients
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour (280 g), baking soda and fine sea salt for about 30 seconds so the soda and salt are evenly spread.
- Set aside.
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Ready when: No streaks or clumps of baking soda remain in the flour.
2
Cream butter and sugars
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar with a hand mixer on medium speed for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Stop once to scrape down the bowl with a spatula.
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Ready when: The mixture looks paler, thick and fluffy, like wet sand turned into frosting, with no visible lumps of butter.
Tip: If the butter is too warm and greasy, the cookies will spread thin. Chill the bowl for 10 minutes before continuing.
3
Beat in eggs and vanilla
- Add the whole egg, the egg yolk and the vanilla.
- Beat on medium speed for about 1 minute, then scrape the bowl.
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Ready when: The mixture is smooth, glossy and uniform, with no streaks of egg.
Tip: Cold eggs can make the butter turn lumpy. Soak them in warm tap water for 5 minutes if you forgot to take them out early.
4
Mix in flour
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients.
- Mix on the lowest speed, or by hand with a spatula, for 20 to 30 seconds, just until the last streaks of flour disappear.
- The dough will be soft and thick.
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Ready when: No dry flour is visible, and the dough pulls away from the beaters in thick clumps.
Tip: Stop as soon as the flour is combined. Overmixing builds gluten and makes tough cookies.
5
Fold in chocolate chips
- Add the chocolate chips (255 g) and fold with a rubber spatula 8 to 10 times, until the chips are spread evenly through the dough.
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Ready when: Chips are evenly distributed, with no pockets of plain dough.
6
Chill the doughOven 350°F / 175°C
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes (up to 72 hours).
- Near the end of this time, position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F (175°C).
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
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Ready when: The dough is firm enough to scoop and hold its shape, and the oven has reached 350°F (175°C).
Tip: Use an oven thermometer if you can. Many home ovens run 15–25°F off.
7
Scoop the dough
- Scoop the dough into 24 balls of about 2 tablespoons (45 g) each.
- Place 8 balls on each of the 2 lined sheets, spaced about 3 inches (7.5 cm) apart.
- Keep the remaining 8 balls in the fridge for the second round.
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Ready when: Balls are roughly equal in size, about the size of a golf ball.
Tip: For bakery-style looks, press a few extra chips onto the tops of the dough balls.
8
Bake first roundOven 350°F / 175°C
- Sprinkle each ball with a pinch of flaky salt if using.
- Bake both sheets at 350°F (175°C) for 11 to 13 minutes.
- Swap the pans between racks and rotate them front to back at the 6-minute mark.
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Ready when: Edges are set and golden brown, and the centers look soft and slightly puffy and underdone.
Tip: Pull the cookies when the centers still look a little soft. They keep cooking on the hot pan and will set as they cool.
9
Rest then transfer
- Let the cookies sit on the baking sheets for 5 minutes.
- Use a spatula to move them to a wire rack.
- Slide the parchment off each sheet and let the hot pans cool for a few minutes before the next batch.
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Ready when: Cookies hold together when lifted with a spatula.
Tip: Never put dough on a hot pan. It melts the butter and the cookies will spread too thin.
10
Bake second roundOven 350°F / 175°C
- Place the remaining 8 dough balls on one fresh parchment-lined, cooled baking sheet.
- Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 11 to 13 minutes, rotating the pan once at the 6-minute mark.
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Ready when: Edges are golden brown and set, and the centers look soft and slightly puffy.
11
Cool and serve
- Rest the second round on the pan for 5 minutes, move to the wire rack, and cool all cookies for at least 10 minutes before eating.
- The chocolate will be melty at first and then set as they cool.
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Ready when: Cookies feel firm on the edges and are just warm to the touch.

Good to know

Tips

Weigh your ingredients. Too much flour is the most common reason cookies turn out dry or puffy.
For even baking, bake one sheet at a time on the center rack if your oven runs hot, adding 1 to 2 minutes.
For wide, crinkly cookies, give the pan a firm bang on the counter once as soon as it comes out of the oven to deflate the centers.
If your cookies spread too much, chill the dough an extra 30 minutes and check that the butter wasn't too soft.

Make ahead

"Dough can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 72 hours (the flavor gets deeper). Let it sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes if it's too hard to scoop. You can also scoop the dough balls and freeze them on a tray until solid, then bag them for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen at 350°F (175°C) for 13 to 15 minutes."

Storage & reheating

"Room temperature: airtight container for up to 4 days (add a slice of bread to keep them soft). Freezer: baked cookies, layered with parchment in a freezer bag, keep up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for 30 minutes, or reheat on a baking sheet at 300°F (150°C) for 4 to 5 minutes, or microwave one cookie for 8 to 10 seconds to bring back the warm, gooey center. Not recommended: refrigerating baked cookies, which dries them out."

Substitutions

semisweet chocolate chips → chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate bar (255 g). Chopped bars melt into layers and puddles instead of staying in chip shapes. Use 60–70% cacao for a less sweet result.
light brown sugar → dark brown sugar. Gives a deeper molasses flavor and a slightly chewier cookie. Use the same amount.
unsalted butter → salted butter. Use the same amount and reduce the fine sea salt to ½ teaspoon (3 g).
large egg yolk → one additional whole large egg. Cookies will be a bit cakier and less chewy, but still good.