I have a few tricks that make these the best soft chocolate chip cookies that you’ll ever try. With hundreds of positive reviews from bakers around the world, I’m confident you’ll fall in love with this chocolate chip cookie recipe too. Chilling the cookie dough is imperative and cornstarch makes them extra soft and thick!
Chocolate chip cookies are a household favorite, a timeless classic, an unparalleled snack… warm, cold, dunked in milk, in dough form, or in baked form. No one can resist the comfort of a chocolate chip cookie and everyone has their favorite recipe, whether it’s on the back of the yellow chocolate chips bag or scribbled in your grandmother’s recipe book.
Heck, I even have separate recipes for crispy chocolate chip cookies and chewy chocolate chip cookies!
Like many of you, I’ve searched far and wide for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe: the best chocolate chip cookies, a recipe I can bake again and again for years. I’ve lost sleep, I’ve burnt dough, I’ve tested and retested and retested… and retested, countless times. And I’m so happy to report that I finally found a chocolate chip cookie recipe that I’ll treasure for years. And I know you’ll enjoy these cookies too!
How to Make Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Start With Butter: Use room temperature butter. You can soften butter quickly with this trick or set the butter out 1–2 hours before you begin.
- Use a Mix of Sugars: Cream the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together. This process aerates the butter, which promises soft chocolate chip cookies. Brown sugar yields soft chocolate chip cookies, and white sugar helps the cookies spread. For chewier and more flavorful cookies, use more brown sugar than white sugar.
- Dark Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar and dark brown sugar are interchangeable in most recipes. Though either works in this chocolate chip cookie recipe, I love using dark brown sugar for extra flavor because it contains more molasses.
- Add Egg & Vanilla Extract: Eggs provide structure and richness, while vanilla adds flavor.
- Use Cornstarch in Dry Ingredients: Cornstarch, a thickening ingredient, is the secret weapon in this cookie recipe, just like in shortbread cookies. 2 teaspoons give the cookies extra lift and leave them extra soft. You can’t taste it! You also need all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Add Dry Ingredients to Wet Ingredients: Combine all the ingredients, then add the chocolate chips.
- Chill the Cookie Dough: For extra thick chocolate chip cookies, chill the cookie dough for at least 1 hour. Chilling cookie dough will make or break the recipe! The colder the cookie dough, the less the cookies will over-spread. If you’re interested, here are 10 tips on how to prevent cookies from spreading.
- Extra Chocolate Chips: This is optional, but as soon as the cookies come out of the oven, press a few chocolate chips on top. They’ll melt right down into the cookie, making them extra pretty. And melted chocolate is never a bad thing! I recommend doing the same with double chocolate chip cookies.
Room temperature butter is cool to touch and about 65°F (18°C), which may be cooler than your kitchen. To test it, poke it with your finger. Your finger should make an indent without sinking into the butter. The butter should not be shiny or greasy. You can’t cream cold butter and you can’t cream partially melted butter, either. Room temperature butter is imperative to the outcome of these cookies! You need 3/4 cup, which is 1.5 sticks, 12 Tablespoons, or 170g.
Don’t Have Time to Chill Cookie Dough?
If you don’t have time to chill the chocolate chip cookie dough, try my crispy chocolate chip cookies, giant chocolate chip cookies, or Nutella chocolate chip cookies. Or even these soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie bars or cookie dough frosted cookie cups, which don’t require individual cookie rolling, either!
I also have an entire section of no-chill cookie recipes. 🙂 Snickerdoodles and shortbread are two more favorites!
How to Freeze Cookie Dough
Freezing chocolate chip cookie dough is really easy. I have a whole post dedicated to how to freeze cookie dough, but here’s a recap:
- After the cookie dough has chilled in the refrigerator, roll the cookie dough into balls. Chill the cookie dough balls in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Place the solid and cold cookie dough balls into a plastic zipped-top freezer bag.
- Label the bag with the month and the baking temperature, and place the bag in the freezer.
- Freeze cookie dough for up to 3 months. The date will help you determine when the cookie dough is fresh, and the temperature is written for obvious reasons. Really, you can write whatever is helpful to you. The date, temperature, time, recipe name, etc.
- When it’s time to bake the cookies, remove them from the freezer. Preheat the oven according to the recipe’s instructions.
- Bake the cookies for a minute or 2 longer, since the dough is frozen.
Bake the frozen cookie dough balls whenever that chocolate chip cookie craving hits, or when you need a big batch of fresh-baked cookies. I do it all the time!
Sometimes the simplest recipes are what stick. I really don’t need to convince you—it’s a chocolate chip cookie. THE chocolate chip cookie!
Print
The Best Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 dozen
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
I have a few tricks that make these the best soft chocolate chip cookies that you’ll ever try. With hundreds of positive reviews from bakers around the world, I’m confident you’ll fall in love with this chocolate chip cookie recipe too. Chilling the cookie dough is imperative and cornstarch makes them extra soft and thick!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/4 cup (225g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and sugar together on medium speed until combined and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- In a separate bowl, whisk flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt together. Add into the wet ingredients, then beat on low speed until combined. The cookie dough will be slightly thick. On low speed, beat in the chocolate chips.
- Cover dough tightly and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to 3–4 days. Chilling is imperative for this cookie dough.
- Remove cookie dough from the refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Once chilled, the dough will be slightly crumbly, but will come together when you work the dough with your hands. Roll cookie dough, about a heaping 1.5 Tablespoons of dough per cookie (I use this medium-size cookie scoop), and place 3 inches apart on baking sheets.
- Bake for 11–12 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges. The cookies will look extremely soft when you remove them from the oven. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet. If the cookies are too puffy, try gently pressing down on them with the back of a spoon. They will slightly deflate as you let them cool. If desired, while the cookies are still warm, press a few extra chocolate chips into the tops. This is optional, just for looks.
- Transfer cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely. Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days. Allow to come to room temperature, then continue with preheating the oven in step 4. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
- Adapted from Anna Olson
Delicious cookies that are wonderfully soft, but with some structure. These are also the most round cookies I have ever made. Thanks for the recipe!
I made these last night, doubling the recipe all in one and just followed the other steps. They were fabulous! Slightly crispy on the outside with soft middles, good butter flavor, and tons of chocolate chips. I baked a dozen and froze about 40 balls for later! Thank you Sally – family approved! This recipe is definitely going into the rotation!
This one right here… this is it chief . Thank you Sally!
Cornstarch is the secret! These are the bes tchocolate chip cookies we’ve ever had. They didn’t even last 1 day!
Can we stuff these cookies with a scoop of Nutella or Peanut butter? Or will they not bake properly if stuffed?
That shouldn’t be a problem. Let me know how they turn out!
These are exactly what the name suggests, the best soft chocolate chip cookies! I don’t think I have ever eaten (let alone baked) soft cookies as these! My four year old who can really tell the difference between a good cookie and bad one gobbled up 2 of these puppies as soon as they were out of the oven! Thanks Sally, your recipes are the best! 🙂
My new recipe. Started following you a couple months ago. Everything I have made has been great so far.
I made these yesterday (after refrigerating the dough overnight). They are perfect. I used Mini chocolate chips and added walnuts; otherwise followed the recipe exactly. The soft cookies are perfect and I had an extra small batch so baked them an extra couple of minutes to get more crunchy cookies and they are great too!
Hi Sally!
I’m hoping to make your chocolate chip cookie recipe for my friend who is dairy free. I can sub the chocolate chips for the “enjoy life” chips. But what about the butter?
Thanks!
Leah
Hi Leah! I recommend dairy-free or vegan butter sticks.
Thank you for another new favorite recipe, Sally! These have great flavor and stay soft for days! And they’re simple enough to make with the kiddos. You’re a household name around our house—lots of excitement when I try a new recipe from Sally!
One question… is it okay if I replace brown sugar with granulated sugar?
I don’t recommend it. Brown sugar gives the cookies a soft chewy texture as well as the classic chocolate chip cookie flavor!
These were the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made! Love them. They’re perfect. Thank you!
These cookies are hands down the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever eaten! So easy to make and so incredibly delicious. Make these today!
Great recipe, thank you! What changes could I make to make these cookies a little bit crispier in the edges? Longer bake time?
Bake for an extra 2 minutes.
I literally cannot praise these cookies enough. BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES EVER! 😀 everybody over here just loves them and they baked up perfectly!!!!
These. Are. Amazing!!! Seriously, The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies ever!!
I love the corn starch trick. I think that is magic in these. My husband absolutely loves them! I bake cookies every week with my 4 and 2 year old daughters, and this recipe was very simple, which is key for cooking with kids. Love it!!! Thank you!!!
(I’ve now made 3 of your cookie reviles with my girls, and each has been a major hit!)
Can i use cornflour instead of cornstarch?
Same thing! Cornstarch is referred to as corn flour outside the US.
Can I bake these into bars? If so, what size pan should I use and how long should I bake them for?
Definitely! About 30 minutes bake time for a 8×8 or 9×9 square pan. Same oven temperature.
These are SO delicious. They came out just like your photos! The texture is perfect!! Thank you for creating and sharing such a great recipe!
I made these yesterday and I have to say that these are HANDS DOWN the best chocolate chip cookie I have ever tried, and I will definitely be keeping this recipe for future endeavors!!! You’re a genius! I never would have thought to use cornstarch.
Just made these for my family using white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate chips. They were the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever eaten. I love this recipe! Thanks!
Sally, oh my gosh. I promised a family member a batch of cookies, and I am having so much trouble giving these away, they are so delicious!!! Even on day two they are just as soft and thick and chewy and amazing… I see me making these again to keep very very soon. THE best chocolate chip cookie ever. Thank you!!!
Sarah, I prefer these cookies on day 2! I think they’re even more tasty than on day 1. Happy you love them so much! I always share these cookies with others when I make them, but trust me – they’re certainly hard to give away!
Made these tonight and they were amazing! My cookies didn’t spread out into thin crusty cookies for the first time ever. I used the melted butter trick from your Chewie Chocolate Chunk cookies because I really hate creaming butter. Worked like a charm! Thanks for the great recipe.
I made your cookies. Followed the recipe exactly as written. These are the best Chocolate Chip Cookies I have ever eaten in my life, and my family agreed! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes. Am going bake some more for a bake sale.