Perfect Chocolate Brownies Recipe - Food.com (2024)

FAQs

What is better for brownies butter or oil? ›

Oil Brownies: These were chewier with crunchier edges and a crunchier topping. They were more matte on top with a far less crinkly shiny brownie 'skin. ' They tasted more like box mix brownies. Butter Brownies: These were much fudgier, softer, and had a melt-in-your-mouth texture.

One change is to use milk or heavy cream instead of water. This change will make brownies more moist and gooey since milk is more fatty and flavorful than water. A second change is to use butter instead of oil. For similar reasons to using milk, butter adds a rich and more decadent quality to the batter.

Vanilla extract – Pure vanilla extract adds rich flavor to brownies. Eggs – Most brownie mixes call for one whole egg. Adding one large egg plus an extra egg yolk gives brownies an ultra fudgy texture. Chocolate Chips – Even if your brownie mix contains chocolate, plan to add chocolate chips.

Breakthrough #3: Whipping/Beating

I found this information from Brownie Chronicles: “Whether brownies have a crust on top depends on how much you beat the batter after the eggs are added. The more you beat, the more crust you get. If you beat vigorously with a mixer, you can get a dramatic crust.

When the back-of-box instructions call for water, try some instant espresso or strong-brewed coffee for roasty, toasty notes that pair impeccably with chocolate. Or use milk or half-and-half for even more richness. And for cakey instead of fudgy brownies, add an extra egg for more lift and spring.

The reason we melt butter in brownie recipes instead of beating room temperature butter with sugar is because that helps give a rich, chewy, fudgy texture. Beating butter incorporates air and gives a more light, airy, cakey texture, which we don't want in a brownie. Well, you might want that, but I don't!

If you opt to add more eggs, say double the amount, something interesting happens. Even though you are adding more moisture, the air bubbles that you catch in the extra eggs add volume, which decreases the density of your final product. This makes your brownies rise and gives them a much more cake-like texture.

Most brownie recipes call for some kind of oil — usually vegetable oil or canola oil. This oil acts as the primary fat in brownie batter, giving it that delicious, fudgy texture we all know and love.

Replacing Oil with Butter

It couldn't be easier to substitute butter for oil using a 1:1 ratio. This should work with olive, canola, vegetable, and coconut oils. Simply melt and cool the butter to room temperature, then continue with your recipe. (If the recipe calls for ½ cup oil, use ½ cup melted and cooled butter.)

Using airtight wrappings (including using plastic wrap right against the brownies) is key to keeping your brownies fresh, whether you're keeping them at room temperature for short-term storage, or planning to freeze them so you can have a fresh brownie ready whenever you need it.

What makes brownies fall apart? ›

Various causes include overbaking, underbaking, cutting the brownies too quickly, and lacking oil and fluid contents in the recipe. Underbaked and overbaked brownies turn out to be crumbly. When cut sooner before cooling down can make the brownies crumb.

In addition to keeping your brownie mix fresh, refrigerating brownie batter can also help boost the overall texture and flavor of the treat. Refrigerating helps improve the gloss and crustiness of brownies while simultaneously blending the flavors—the result? — brownie that tastes much richer and chewier.

Cookbook author and food stylist Jerrelle Guy might have given away the secret: In an article for The Kitchn, Guy suggests the secret to a "glossy" and lifted brownie — like the ones you see in bakeries and restaurants — is to beat the eggs and the sugar together for 10 minutes before adding additional ingredients.

Nothing drastic will happen, but your brownies won't be as cakey. Fudgy brownies don't use leavening. You could probably pour the batter into a pan, cover it, and stick it in the fridge for several hours, and end up with the same results.

As the team at Betty Crocker explains, you can substitute butter for oil in brownies by using the same measurements. Simply melt the butter down and let it cool slightly before adding it to the mix. Because of butter's taste and texture, it might even improve the recipe.

What about substituting oil for butter? Depending on the type of oil, it can add complex flavor and welcome moisture to your baked goods. A good rule of thumb is to replace about 3/4 of the butter in a recipe with olive, canola, or vegetable oil. (If the recipe calls for 1 cup butter, use ¾ cup oil.)

Unsalted melted butter – Most box brownie recipes call for vegetable oil, but swapping it out with with melted butter helps create chewy, fudgy texture with rich bakery-style flavor.

Most cake mixes call for oil, but butter will bring in amazing flavor. To substitute butter for oil in baking just melt the butter, measure it, let it cool, and add it as you would the oil. Compared to oil, butter will create a cake with a firmer, cakeier texture.