Super fudgy and dense cocoa brownies are gooey on the inside, have a crinkly top, and are made with just 6 ingredients in under 30 minutes! This easy recipe makes the BEST brownies and is the only brownie recipe you will ever need.

I’ve got a super-easy yet DELICIOUS fudgy brownie recipe for you today. Brownies can’t get any fudgier or easier to make than this folks!
These brownies are fudgy, dense, rich, and super chocolate and with just a few basic ingredients and 30 minutes of your time, you’ve got yourself a batch of brownies that is out of this world!
They’re so chocolaty and delicious my only worry is eating the whole batch right out of the oven…

The super fudgy interior along with the crispy crinkle top is a combo made in heaven and will become your new favorite brownies!

A few years back I was hooked on boxed brownie mix and to be honest I thought they were “alright”. I mainly used the mix because it’s very easy to use because the thought of making brownies from scratch terrified me. Turns out, it’s not hard at all!
It may take any extra step making it from scratch but I swear it tastes 1 billion times better and once you try it you will NEVER EVER go back to brownie mix again!

Like I said, these brownies are simple and easy to make. The entire brownie mixture will be made in the pot or bowl you decide to melt your butter.
To save yourself time and effort, melt the butter in the same bowl that you will be mixing the brownie mix in. I like to use a glass microwave-safe mixing bowl so I can go right in to add the rest of the ingredients after melting the butter.
After melting the butter add the sugar and cocoa and stir until fully combined. Then add the eggs, vanilla, flour, and salt; mix and you’re done!
If you like you can now add 1 cup of chocolate chips, nuts, m&m’s, marshmallows, Reese’s or whatever your heart desires!
TIP FOR MAKING THE BEST FUDGE BROWNIES
Don’t overmix the batter. Overmixing the batter will allow air to get trapped in the batter and will result in cakey brownies.
Don’t overbake the brownies. If you are looking for fudgy brownies then remove them from the oven when the sides have begun to shrink away from the sides of the pan but the center is still gooey.
Cool before cutting. As hard as it may be, resist the urge to cut the brownies right out of the oven. Instead, cool them to room temperature or place them in the fridge to cool for at least an hour before cutting into them. This extra step will result in perfect professional cuts.
If you’re like me and you love CHOCOLATE, then do yourself a favor and chop up 4 oz of baking chocolate and stir them into the batter. This will take the brownies (which are already AMAZING) to the next level and make them EVEN BETTER.
Easy One Bowl Fudgy Cocoa Brownies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup melted butter or 1 stick
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 1 cup sugar see note
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/4 tsp salt leave out if using salted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8x8 square pan or line with foil and set aside.
- In a medium bowl combine melted butter and cocoa and sugar stir until fully dissolved.
- Add eggs one at a time then vanilla and stir until well combined.
- Stir in flour and salt until the flour is fully combine. Be careful not to overmix mix.
- (optional) fold in 1 cup of nuts, raisins, chocolate chips or anything you desire.
- Spread in pan and bake for approximately 20-22 minutes or until the center is slightly set. Be careful not to over-bake!
- Cool completely then cut into 9 large squares or 16 small squares ( I cut mine into 16)
Video
Notes
Equipment
Nutrition
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Not sure what went wrong. Followed the recipe exactly. They were dry, crumbly and we could taste only the cocoa powder. We trashed the entire batch. Even my kids wouldn’t touch them.
These taste great but both times I’ve made them they’re very flat! Not thick at all, almost like they don’t rise.
Awesome!!! ❤️❤️ I’m not a Great Baker at all but these came out delicious. I followed the recipe to the T and it came out perfect. So perfect I’ve been making them every weekend, 😂
Greedy grandbabies!!
Hi, regarding These brownies, I would like to know which flour has been used in this receipe, it doesn’t say In the ingredients, it just says flour, so is it self raising or plain flour, thank you, mrs c loy
I have made these brownies at least 5 times in 3 months. They are so good and quick and EASY to make, especially for a non baker like me! FINALLY something I baked came out perfect and the way its supposed to be!! Ive tried the tips too, the extra chocolate, the nuts, and they keep getting better!!!! Do yourself a favor and make them. I can’t help but eat half the pan through the night!! I know its bad but I want no self control on these babies and I eat right just to justify a little of it. Lol Thank you for this awesome recipe!! 😍 😍
Question: I used 1 stick of butter and all the other ingredients and my batter was not like in the photo and it did’t cover the whole 8×8 pan? What did I do wrong? Thanks
These brownies are the best I ever tasted il never buy boxed brownie mix again my family can’t get enough of them think God they are so easy to make thank you
How long do i cook it if its in a glass baking pan?
The sugar wont dissolve ??
That was the easiest brownies I have ever made. They were delicious. I will make them over and over. Thank you.
Easy and I love them. Made them the first time in an 8×8 pan and underbaked perfectly. Experimented baking them in a 12 muffin tin so they would already be “cut” for easy grab and go… and curiosity… and to not have to wait for them to cool down 😉
Baked them 12 minutes and should have pulled them then for perfect fudginess I think. At 15 they are still delicious, but not as fudgy. Not a problem that a scoop of vanilla ice cream can’t fix! Thank you!
These were very easy and satisfied a craving for chocolate. I used coconut oil, cacao powder, half sugar and half maple syrup (since I ran out of sugar), and white bread flour. I haven’t let it cooled completely yet but couldn’t resist a bite! They’re very moist and chocolatey. I want to add walnuts next time
I’m not a baker and I thought it was a mistake but did it anyway. I don’t think you meant to have 1/2 CUP of cocoa powder… my fault for not checking another recipe or going with my gut… but they were horrid!
I’ll try again soon, after the taste leaves my mouth. Haha jk. Totally just giving you a hard time, I’ll edit or make another review when I do.
Yup, 1/2 cup works perfectly. Made these last night and they were devoured by a group of children.
I’ve made this several times. I’ve substituted maple syrup or coconut sugar one to one. I’ve also used orange zest and added bittersweet chocolate chips and severed it with a good vanilla bean ice cream. Other times lots of walnuts and dark chocolate chips. When time allows, homemade caramel sauce. Compliments every time.
Easy and quick elegant dessert every time.
Can you use margarine or half butter half margarine?
meow
Love the recipe made mine with self rising flour and added instant coffee and chocolate chips. Yum
Certainly easy to make. However, these brownies are very mediocre. I realized after making them that it has no leavening at all. Flavor is okay and mine were probably overbaked even though I only baked for 20 minutes. (I typically have to bake longer in my oven because it runs cool.) I recommend you keep looking for another recipe. Sorry…
Leavening is used to make things rise. You would not want that in a Gooey Brownie Recipe… Using a leavening agent would cause the brownie to be cake like. Maybe try googling a regular brownie recipe and instead of calling something mediocre because it was not the exact thing you was wanting to find. I have a better idea create your own brownie recipe, post it for the world to see and try and see how many people find yours mediocre. Sometimes it isn’t the recipe that is mediocre it’s the one trying to make the recipe… No this isn’t mine, just find your comment ignorant considering your googling a basic brownie recipe, than calling it mediocre when it clearly wasn’t what you’re idea of a brownie is.
This is a fantastic recipe. I double and use the same sized pan cause well……I need bigger brownies lmao. Super easy to make even for a beginner.
I have never made a review for a recipe before.
But,
Because I use this o.ne all the time, I felt like I should.
These are the best brownies I’ve ever made.
They are super simple and I always seem to have the ingredients on hand.
These brownies are definitely the best recipe I’ve found on the internet.
the brownies turned out great even though i substituted a lot! used coconut oil, cacao powder, and vanilla paste instead and came out so good 🤲💕 also can i say the responses to negative comments on here made me laugh so damn hard
These are fabulous! I’ve made them quite a few times.. sometimes I do add a lil baking powder. I’m actually making them right now but it’s the first time I’ve doubled the recipe for a 9×13 batch. My family cannot be trusted with these .. mostly me lol . I add a lil espresso powder as well . I always add somae to any baked good with chocolate in it. Do not overbake.. take them out when the center still has a lil wiggle and let fully cool.
All my friend’s think they are the best brownies. I vanilla from OliveNation. Huge game changer!
I used my oven-safe 12 in saute pan to melt the butter while the oven was preheating and then mixed up the brownies right in the pan. Came out beautifully! Cooked an extra 5 minutes as they were still not quite done at 22. But my oven is unreliable so use your judgement.
delicious and really quick and easy! i used kosher salt & added 1 cup of dark chocolate chunks. they came out so good
Horrible! Too much butter.
I’ve tried many brownie recipes and they’re always too cakey or bitter. This one was perfect!!! Fudgey and simple.
Whoops despite the warning I still cooked them too long for them to be fudge-y. I also did not have a whole stick of butter, but I tried adding oil to compensate. While it has a crumb like cake (I am so used to baking cake that everything I make ends up more cake like than anything else) the flavor is still good and it satisfies my craving for chocolate. Added some cool whip and we are GOOD! It doesn’t need baking powder. If you want it to rise, don’t pick the recipe for gooey brownies…..
Truly and genuinely- the best recipe for brownies I’ve ever used! Super moist, decadent, and baked up. I love them! These get the high honour of being copied into my recipe tin. 💕
Hello,
On the ingredients it says 1 cup of butter or 1 stick. 2 sticks equals 1 cup, whereas 1 stick is only 1/2 cup. If you could clarify this for me or if anyone else who may know the answer.
Thank you,
Amy
Sorry I didn’t clarify, it is when I changed the servings from 17 to 32 for a double batch.
Although delicious, they did not cut well even after cooling to room temp. Ended up eating them and buying something else for a bday party.
Works out fine. I used salted caramel cocoa powder so lowered sugar to 3/4 cup and skipped salt. I added in half cup of dark chocolate morsels and a sprinkle of powder sugar on top of brownies half way cooled.
I make brownie batter cookies out of this! I make a double batch and use a small ice cream scoop to plop them on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet. I bake mine for 13 minutes in a preheated 350° electric oven. They come out great.
I also go half chocolate chip cookie and half brownie batter to make crownies.
My church looks forward to seeing them on the coffee hour table!!!
I tried this and it was a hit with the fam. I added walnuts as I have a nutty fam. Thank you, this recipe is a keeper!
Yess go sofa! Glad you had fun with those nuts!
Baking powder is not on the ingredients list. Ruined the brownies :(((
I followed this recipe to a t except I cooked them on 175 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes and they are absolutely horrid. I can’t even describe the texture but they are not fudgy or anything like a brownie should be.
no one asked you OLGA
baking powder is not used because they are not supposed to be cakey. they are supposed to be gooey.
Have mine in the oven right now, added an extra 5mins, when that timer went off they are still not done in the middle… so I out an extra 5. Had set timer for 21mins originally. Hopefully they don’t burn.
OH MY GOD these brownies are SO good. cannot get enough of these. thank you for sharing seriously it’s so so good. if you make these correctly they are so fudgy and perfect.
YES CHARLIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE YOU ARE SUCH A SWEATTYYY! WISHING YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Thanks for this! May I also ask what kind of sugar and flour you used? Im from the UK and this was the best recipe I could find! Please respond soon, I need this recipe for 27th September!
Those who complained about this brownie recipe obviously didn’t measure correctly,follow the recipe or need to calibrate their oven! These were fabulous! Brownies don’t rise like a cake does but you could add 3/4 teaspoon baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt if you’d like them to. Perfect brownies, taste phenomenal, thanks!!!
Absolutely yummy 😋. Now put this in a tall glass, dump vanilla bean ice cream on it, then chocolate syrup, top with crumbled oreo cookies and maraschino cherries and finish with a LARGE SPOON. IN YOUR FACE. 😁
FOR THE HATERS: dig a hole. Jump in it. Stay there for 3 hours and reflect on why you needed to be mean about a brownie recipe.
You are a very decadent person…
Amen Barb. Brownies are not cake. Fudgy, gooey etc. Using higher quality cocoa powder/chocolate definitely makes all brownies better.
Easy & quick recipe
Perfect every time! Moist and tasty
Great fudgy brownie! Added chocolate chips and walnuts. Came out great. If you like your brownies more cake like than add 1/2 cup more flour and 2 tsps baking powder.
Did you forget baking soda/powder?
I’ve made this brownie recipe so many times and they always come out so good! The ONLY thing missing is baking powder and that’s what makes the brownies rise unless you’re using self rising flour. If you’re using all purpose than just use 1-2 teaspoons of baking powder, depending on how high you want your brownies to rise. Fudgie, gooey and delicious!! I’ve tried so many brownie recipes and THIS is the recipe that is THE CLASSIC brownie you NEED. Follow this recipe to the T and you will NOT be disappointed. Soooooooo good!!!!!
Nope, no baking powder needed. Not fond of the metallic baking powder aftertaste. Just fine as is. Fudgy brownies don’t need to rise. These were child tested and passed with flying colors. I added a bit more sugar, per the notes, and that was for hubby.
this brownies tasted like ass and didn’t rise
Your attitude is like ass and all you have to do is add 1-2 teaspoons of baking powder.
YES ASHLEY! YOUR SUCH A BEAUTIFUL GORGEOUS QUEEN!
I have a question, do I use all purpose flour or self rising?
The choice is yours HOWEVER, if you use self rising then you don’t need to do anything but if you use all purpose flour then just add 1-2 teaspoons of baking powder to make the brownies rise.
Agreed!!! These are some of the best brownies that I have ever had and they are so easy to make… Thank you!! 😀😋
Best Brownies I have EVER had…. seriously. I’ve literally memorized the recipe because I make it so often.
I agree I NEVER leave comments but this recipe was sooo much easier than having to use a double boiler very tasty and quick I luv this your amazing
*keep doing what you do this recipe is genius
This Recipe was DELICIOUS, it was super fast and easy! Its the perfect sweet treat for a relaxing day or a fun party snack!
keep doing what you this recipe is genius.
– two 10 yrs
I am usually low carb, but I was craving sweets so badly. I remembered brownies only had half a cup of flour and found this recipe, so I made these with Swerve sweeteners, some brown, some white granulated with a few tiny dots of pure stevia and a couple packs of sweet-n-low – that’s how I roll! I also added a small amount of baking soda and powder to puff them up a bit and cinnamon, as I love cinnamon in chocolate. And tea and coffee and more!
They did puff a lot in the middle but sloped down to the sides so I’ll leave that out next time, but they are very good and saved me and my diabetes from sugary cookies. Mine were set in 15 minutes, so I think some people complaining about the dryness probably didn’t check on them and their ovens run hot and they were in too long for their particular oven.
I am horrified by some of the comments on here. I think one demanded “Do better!” UGH! So sorry about that. This basic recipe is good, and so easy with only one bowl to clean if you line your pan with nonstick foil. Thank you!