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This rich, buttery brown butter chocolate chip cookie has a chewy center and crisp edges and highlights the nutty richness of browned butter. The caramel-like flavor perfectly complements pockets of melted, gooey chocolate. These browned butter chocolate chip cookies are the ultimate upgrade to the classic chocolate chip cookie.
Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
I am obsessed with brown butter chocolate chip cookies. A simple step of melting and browning the butter on a stove will transform your chocolate chip cookies. It is a game-changing trick to create toffee-flavored, rich buttery cookies by just elevating one ingredient. It is truly remarkable! These are the best chocolate chip cookies!
I have been making brown butter chocolate chip cookies for at least 15 years and they have become one of my signature cookies. I shared my MJ’s Top Secret Chocolate Chip Cookies, all made in one saucepan, which is one of my go-to cookie recipes.
Since I am always playing in the kitchen with different ingredients and methods, I wanted to work on melting and browning the butter until it is a perfectly warm amber color and letting it chill in the refrigerator before creaming the butter and sugars in a mixer. Since some of the liquids can evaporate when browning the butter, I needed to compensate for that. I decided to add one egg yolk, which adds both liquid and fat.
Ingredients:
- Butter (melted until an amber color with browned bits on the bottom of pan)
- Dark Brown Sugar (may use golden brown sugar)
- Sugar
- Eggs + Egg Yolk
- Vanilla Extract
- Flour
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Chocolate Chips or Chocolate Chunks
What type of chocolate should I use?
Use high-quality chocolate chips or chunks for the best flavor. Semi-sweet or milk chocolate complements the richness of the browned butter. I like to use a mix of semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips. My favorite brands are Guittard and Ghirardelli.
How to Brown Butter:
This is an important step. The butter will go through different phases. It will begin to melt and bubble. Take a wooden spoon or spatula and stir often and around the sides of the pan. Let the butter melt and watch for it to begin changing colors from a creamy yellow to a deep amber yellow.
The butter will begin to foam and this is why it is important to stir often so you can see what is going on below the foam. Small brown bits will begin to form and that will be a signal that the butter is officially browned. Butter can burn quickly so watch carefully. It is better to pull off of the heat a little early instead of browning too long and risk burning it.
Since you want the butter to chill quickly, pour it into a large bowl and place in the refrigerator. Use a spatula to get every bit of butter out of the pan. Every bit of butter matters! Let it chill in the refrigerator for at least 40 minutes.
Creaming the Brown Butter and Sugars:
This is an integral step as it creates a smooth and creamy dough and gets rid of the graininess from the sugars. It needs to be creamed for at least 4-5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl often. The eggs and egg yolk can be added one at a time, mixing for 30 seconds after each addition.
Why is chilling the cookie dough important?
If time is on your side, an easy way to make chocolate chip cookies even BETTER is to chill the cookie dough. The chilling process is important because it helps the ingredients marry together and you end up with a richer chocolate chip cookie. Chilling the dough allows the fats to solidify, which means your cookies will spread less and have a thicker, chewier texture. It also enhances the flavor and texture of the cookies.
The dough doesn’t spread as much in the oven so you end up with a chewier cookie with crisp edges. Trust me on this one, chilling the dough is worth the sacrifice!
How to make Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies:
- Place butter in large pot or deep skillet. Melt butter over medium-low heat. The butter will go through different phases. It will begin to melt and bubble. Take a wooden spoon or spatula and stir often and around the sides of the pan. Let the butter melt and watch for it to begin changing colors from a creamy yellow to a deep amber yellow.The butter will begin to foam and this is why it is important to stir often so you can see what is going on below the foam. Small brown bits will begin to form and that will be a signal that the butter is officially browned. Butter can burn quickly so watch carefully. It is better to pull off of the heat a little early instead of browning too long and risk burning it.Since you want the butter to chill quickly, pour it into a large bowl and place in the refrigerator. Use a spatula to get every bit of butter out of the pan. Let it chill in the refrigerator for about 40-60 minutes.
- Pour chilled butter into mixing bowl. Add brown sugar and sugar and cream for 4-5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl often.
- Add eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, beating for 30 seconds after each addition. Stir in vanilla.
- Add flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir just until combined, avoid overmixing. Stir in chocolate chips.
- If time allows, wrap cookie dough tightly and let chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour. If time allows, chill for 24-48 hours.
- Preheat oven to 385 degrees. Place parchment paper liners or Silpat liners on baking sheets. Roll balls of cookie dough and place on cookie sheet. Bake for 9-10 minutes or until edges starts to become a light golden color.
FAQ’s:
Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. If you want to keep them longer, freeze the baked cookies or freeze the dough. You can freeze the cookie dough for up to 3 months. Scoop the dough into balls, freeze them on a baking sheet, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag. You can also freeze baked cookies and reheat them in a low oven for a few minutes. To enjoy frozen cookies, let them thaw at room temperature or warm them in the oven.
The cookies are done when the edges are set and golden brown, but the centers are still soft and slightly underbaked. They will continue to firm up as they cool on the baking sheet. If you prefer crispier cookies, bake them until the entire surface is golden.
Substitutions:
Can I use regular butter instead of browned butter?
Yes, but browned butter adds a deep, nutty flavor that elevates the cookies. If you use regular butter, the cookies will still be delicious but have less toffee flavor.
Can I use light, golden brown sugar instead of dark brown sugar?
Absolutely! The dark brown sugar creates a chewier cookie but both brown sugars work well in this recipe.
Here are some of my favorite baking tools:
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If you love chocolate chip cookies, check out these other popular recipes:
- MJ’s Top Secret Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Charmina’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
More Popular Cookie Recipes:
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Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter (melted until an amber color with browned bits on the bottom of pan)
- 1 cup Dark Brown Sugar (may use golden brown sugar)
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 2 large Eggs
- 1 large Egg Yolk
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 2 1/4 cup Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 cups Chocolate Chips (may use more and a combination of chopped up chocolate bars and chips)
Instructions
To Brown Butter:
- Place butter in large pot or deep skillet. Melt butter over medium-low heat. The butter will go through different phases. It will begin to melt and bubble. Take a wooden spoon or spatula and stir often and around the sides of the pan. Let the butter melt and watch for it to begin changing colors from a creamy yellow to a deep amber yellow.The butter will begin to foam and this is why it is important to stir often so you can see what is going on below the foam. Small brown bits will begin to form and that will be a signal that the butter is officially browned. Butter can burn quickly so watch carefully. It is better to pull off of the heat a little early instead of browning too long and risk burning it.Since you want the butter to chill quickly, pour it into a large bowl and place in the refrigerator. Use a spatula to get every bit of butter out of the pan. Let it chill in the refrigerator for about 40-60 minutes.
- Pour chilled butter into mixing bowl. Add brown sugar and sugar and cream for 4-5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl often.
- Add eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, beating for 30 seconds after each addition. Stir in vanilla.
- Add flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir just until combined, avoid overmixing. Stir in chocolate chips.
- If time allows, wrap cookie dough tightly and let chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour. If time allows, chill for 24-48 hours.
- Preheat oven to 385 degrees. Place parchment paper liners or Silpat liners on baking sheets. Roll balls of cookie dough and place on cookie sheet. Bake for 9-10 minutes or until edges starts to become a light golden color.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Happy Baking, my friends! Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter below. Thank you for following along!
Recently made these for the first time, they turned out PERFECT! I’m no expert when it comes to the kitchen and am honestly still learning. My mom thought it was a lot of steps, and has never really been one to chill her chocolate chip cookie dough. More of a mix, bake, eat kinda lady. Lol However after tasting your recipe I made, she changed her mind. These cookies were a huge hit with everyone, which sadly meant I didn’t get as many as I would’ve liked. So I’m definitely going to be making some more! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
oh man these are good! the brown butter batter itself is so delicious so i put less chocolate chips to really enjoy it. i also smushed the dough balls down before baking since i prefer a thinner, crispier cookie. my husband are i are obsessed!
How imperative is it to let the dough chill for an hour? Can you bake it straight away after mixing the dough?
The cookies will spread a lot and turn out thin and crispy if not refrigerated to set. The longer they are refrigerated the deeper the flavor and the chewier they become
Hi, can we scoop the dough into cookie balls, and then chill them on the pan in that shape, instead of chilling the dough and trying to form the balls with the cold dough? I find the cold dough hard to work with. Also, should we use salted or unsalted butter? Thank you.
Have you tried using cornstarch like in other recipes if not is it a good idea to try?
…I also used chopped milk chocolate with the semi-sweet chips. Lots of Choc!
What kind of Chocolate Chips did you use? Semi-Sweet? Milk? Both?
I made these yesterday and was very pleased with the dough. Also made a lot of cookies. After the butter had chilled, I avoided the brown bits on the bottom of the chilled bowl, using just the amber solidified butter. I toasted the pecans in a skillet with a bit of olive oil. Small pieces toasted too long on some but used them anyway. Though very good, I’m still out on all the toasted flavors as a base. I agree with another, the dough taste better than the cookie.
So excited to try these!
I have few questions:
1) Can I make brown butter ahead & keep in the fridge?
2) Can I freeze the dough?
Thank you so much! Hoping to hear back from you.
I was disappointed. While the raw dough had an incredible flavor, once baked it tasted like the original toll house cookie recipe I use regularly. The chilled dough was harder to work with, as well.
Perhaps because I always (including this time) put in a cup of toasted pecans? Could that overpower the brown butter flavor?
I used salted butter, Guittard semisweet chips and golden brown sugar.
The dough was so delicious I am inspired to try other brown butter recipes.
Did you use light or dark brown sugar? I found the flavor more favorable with dark brown sugar.
So excited to try this yummy recipe. My daughter is turning 23 next week and chose this recipe instead of cake…I hope I don’t disappoint. Do you use a particular chocolate chip? Also, the picture looks like you might have used milk chocolate, also? Would love to know your preferred brands and flavors. Thanks so much!
Angela