Fudgy Brownies {Homemade Brownies Like The Boxed Mix!}
These homemade fudgy brownies are a boxed brownie knockoff, and they are even more delicious and decadent and fudgy than any boxed mix!
As promised, here is the all-cocoa powder fudgy brownie recipe I used when judging the difference between natural and dutch-process cocoa powders.
This is the closest homemade recipe to rival the boxed brownie mixes I’ve found – which means a lot in my family since Brian adores the boxed brownie variety.
And I can’t bring myself to buy them (nothing against the boxed brownies – there is a time and a place, but I’m always on a quest to get a homemade version!).
Which means these fudgy brownies are a very happy compromise, especially considering that this simple homemade recipe takes maybe two minutes longer than the boxed mix.
Ok, three.
The decadent, fudgy brownies are so delicious, they easily gain access to The Best Recipe list.
Fudgy, dense and downright decadent and addicting, the chocolate flavor comes exclusively from cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate in the batter, which means using natural or dutch-process can vary the chocolate flavor (see this post for more details).
Either way is delicious, but I have to admit that because I love my chocolate dark, the dutch-process cocoa in these brownies is heavenly to my dark chocolate loving palette.
It makes for a slightly more mild chocolate flavor that isn’t as sharp as natural, unsweetened cocoa (but is still decadent and rich).
Test it out and see decide for yourself.
It may take two or three batches, but seriously, what’s so wrong with extra brownies laying around, right?
One Year Ago: Blueberry Fool
Two Years Ago: Perfect Corn on the Cob
Three Years Ago: Cookie Dough Topped Brownies
The Best Fudgy Brownies {Think: Homemade Brownies Like The Boxed Mix!}
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons (142 g) butter
- 1 ¼ cups (265 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (79 g) plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup (71 g) all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides. Lightly grease with cooking spray and set aside.
- Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for one minute intervals, stirring in between, until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Set the mixture aside until it cools slightly (is warm to the touch not hot). It will look gritty but it will become smooth once the other ingredients are added.
- Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely on a rack. After the brownies are cooled completely, I like to throw the pan in the refrigerator – cold brownies cut much easier and taste heavenly. Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into squares and serve.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen originally from Alice Medrich’s Bittersweet
Wow. These brownies are freaking disgusting. I like, they were REALLY gooey and bad. I think these are the antichrist of all brownies.
Damn you. You vile, vile, Mel’s Kitchen
I HATE LONELY TROLLS!!
I love this recipe and make them all the time. One thing I do different is I pour the batter into mini-muffin pan tins and bake for the same amount of time. They come out perfectly when sprayed with oil, but bite sized! Awesome.
I am so excited to eat these! I have a craving for brownies and was so sad to find that I didnt have any boxed mix in the house. I seen I had Cocoa powder and I instantly Googled! Thank you for blogging this amazing looking recipe!! Its in the oven baking right now and I cant stop thinking about them HaHaHa XoXo-
After searching Google for a good half hour, I decided on this recipe (based on the pictures, the recipe’s simplicity, and I barely had a 1/2 cup of flour left in the pantry). I made them with natural unsweetened cocoa powder since I don’t have dutch processed. These brownies ARE amazing! I’ve tried so many different brownie recipes over the years and none of them ever came close to how they taste out of the box. IMO this recipe surpasses box brownies as far as taste and quality is concerned, because I made it and I used ingredients I trust. Thanks so much for sharing!
G’day Mel! I just stumbled across your blog this morning and had made these by noon! I added 1/2 cup of dried cranberries, 1/2 cup of prunes and increased butter ever so slightly to 150g. Ended up taking longer to bake (30 mins on 160C), but I’m wondering if that’s because I opted to not use fan-forced? Thanks for the recipe.
Absolutely the BEST! Can you tell me how many calories are in one brownie please?
Hi Sara – I don’t keep track of the nutritional info but you could use an online nutritional calculator to figure it out if you wanted. Glad you loved them!
How do you get the cracked, shiny look with this recipe? I tried them tonight. They tasted good, but lack the “boxed-brownie” look.
Sandy – not really sure of the secret – they get a bit crackly on top while baking so I’m not sure what would have happened with your batch. Keep in mind they aren’t quite as crackly and shiny as the boxed mix so maybe they turned out just fine.
The crackly, shiny tops come from the sugar melting into the butter (step 2 in the recipe). Make sure your sugar is completely dissolved and you’ll have crackly tops!
I added 1/4 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 cup milk and they got nice and crispy/shiny on the top
These are amazing!!! I made them not knowing what to expect and I’m so glad I did. I Love boxed brownies but I actually think I like these more. They are perfect. So decadent. They are very fudgey. I ate then with my husband and his friend and we ate them all the day of. Yikes!
These brownies are easy to make and turned out chewy and moist with a wonderful
dark chocolate flavor. Thank you for sharing the recipe. : )
I Have made these 3 times now,the best brownies! delicious!!!
just threw these in the oven but I used Hershey’s special dark coca powder and a little bit of cinnamon!. cant wait to see if they taste as good as they already look.
I cooked these brownies exactly to the recipe and they are not that good. Use this recipe if you are looking for more cake like brownies without the glistening top.
These are wonderful! I use the Pampered Chef brownie pan and get 10 thick ones from this recipe (I could probably get 12 if I made them slightly thinner and quit tasting the batter!)
I also add 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper along with the vanilla and it gives them a nice little bite that enhances the chocolate taste. Looking forward to trying them with the Dutch-process cocoa. Thank you!
Made these last night, yummmm. Was looking for a recipe similar to the classic Fry’s cocoa brownie recipe, but without baking powder since I’m out. These hit the spot. I cooked them in a 9×9 greased baking pan with no problem. Since I like my brownies pretty chewy, and I have a feeling my new apartment’s oven runs a little cool, I ended up leaving these in the oven for about 35 minutes. They were perfect!! If you’re looking for a super dense, chewy, fudgey brownie, these are the ones. Not cake-like at all.
Disappointing taste and texture :-(…. won’t be making these again.
Thank you! My 3 month old has a milk/soy allergy & I am breastfeeding…so hard to find brownie mixes that are completely milk & soy free. Made these with coconut oil in place of butter. They were simple (made them with my 3 year old), quick cleanup, & tasted amazing. Finally got the chocolate I have been craving. 🙂 Thank you!
I can’t get salted butter where I live so what can I use instead?
should the sugar be grinded or simple granulated sugar is fine?
please tell as soon as possible thankyou!
May Lee – granulated sugar is fine. You’ll have to use whatever is closest to salted butter (I don’t know where you live or what you have access too). Can you get unsalted butter? If so, use that.
Wow! These brownies are amazing. I added a chocolate chips to the microwave mixture. But there was no need to add chocolate chips to this recipe unless you wanted a more chewy fudge brownie. Next time, I will make this recipe just as is. Thanks Mel! Will definitely check out more recipes from this website.
Mel, I absolutely loved these (and I’m not generally a brownie lover, they always seem too sweet and not chocolately enough.) The fact that they are super fast and easy to make and don’t require melting chocolate has moved them up to “favorite” status. I used Cacao Barry Extra Brute cocoa powder, which really intensified the delicious dark chocolate flavor. Thanks so much for another awesome recipe!
I made these for my son’s birthday party yesterday, and they were a big hit! So rich and decadent. Will definitely make again. Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
I adapted these on my blog using carob powder and loved them! They are so good with some peanut butter on top. It would be awesome if you’d come take a look at my post 🙂 http://piesandplots.net/rich-carob-powder-brownies/
I am so dissapointed….that I didn’t check here first. I found a recipe (attributed to you) for Best Brownies on Pinterest. I looked up the link and it led me to http://www.peachtreecooking.blogspot.com. Anxious for a great recipe I decided to try this one from the peachtree blog. I followed it step by step and to my dismay, the brownies are horrible! Too sweet, and they are falling apart! I was so disappointed. So I decided to look you up and double check the recipe, and sure enough, they (peachtree.blogspot) got it all wrong! I used 5 eggs according to their recipe (which I did think was too much), and the amount of cocoa powder is wrong too. I hate that I wasted all those ingredients on crappy brownies!! I will however try again with the correct recipe!
I love how dark the brownies came out when using the Dutch process cocoa. Mine turned out even darker than your photos! They are so easy and so yummy and so fudgy. Love them!
I found it…I finally found it! A moist, fudgy and oh-so-easy-to-make brownie. Thank you so much for sharing, Mel!
I have made these 3 times already! I love that it doesn’t have any special ingredients. I just shared this recipe with a friend.
I just made these, and they are soooo good. They practically melt in your mouth. Thank you Ms. Mel for all of your hard work. Your website is wonderful!
These are amazing, best brownies I have EVER HAD. I used special dark cocoa powder and if you are a chocoholic, this is the way to go. deepest, darkest chocolatey yumminess. Look no further, this recipe is the only one needed.
Doubled this yesterday for a group of 20 or so (with oil instead of butter for a dairy-free version), and got paid the highest compliment i’ve ever gotten as a baker. a friend told me they were like “sex in the pan!” Thanks!
Very nice – but perhaps too decadent. If I make again I will not use Dutch process.
I do love not having to use chocolate squares!
These brownies are THE BOMB. No need for any other recipe. I made them in mini muffin tins, got 24 of them, baked for 15 mins. They were a hundred times better than those two bite brownies you can get at the store!
This is seriously the only batter for any baking i have literally been able to ‘lick the bowl’ with lol i bake often and this is by far the easiest and yummest baking aside from homemade pizza, and will now be written in my recipe book! !!! Thank you 🙂
I tried these tonight. I didn’t do the foil thing because I just cut them out of the pan. I also added mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (about a cup) to the batter and toffee chips to the top. Turned out great. I baked them about 30 minutes. Will make again! Thanks!
I just made your brownie recipe. Thank you for posting it! These are by far the best homemade brownies I have ever tasted! My husband and I are both very impressed. I did make one minor tweak, and that was to use peppermint extract instead of vanilla but I was in the mood for chocolate mint. Amazing! This is the only homemade brownie recipe I will ever make!
just made a batch of the brownies in the oven for 19 mins.
dry centre , very dark., no fudge texture, , big disappointment,
the ingrediants in ounce were hard to follow, tried using the cups.
it was a big fail for me as i was hopping to make a batch for a road trip coming up.
xxxxx
TRY THIS RECIPE!! I just made these brownies (I doubled the recipe and used a 9×13 pan) and they are amazing. I had to add a little extra time in the oven, but they were so gooey, delicious and perfect.. I would recommend them to anyone. Will definitely be making these again. THANK YOU for this recipe :)))))
Tried this and doubled it too because of all the positive comments, but it didn’t work. Batter didn’t rise and brownie turned out to be a rather flat cake.
I needed a chocolate fix and my mind was set on brownies. I have to admit, I love boxed brownies and I have tried to make homemade ones that never can compare. Today, I tried yours and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I say this because I have been disappointed so many times in the past. Your recipe is awesome! You just may have converted me for good!
-Jennifer
Are these worth it????
Just wanted to share that I made these using King Arthur’s Gluten Free All Purpose Flour, and they are awesome!!! I was nervous, truth be told, but they are so yummy! Required a little extra baking time (about 10 minutes and I turned up the heat a little at that point). Thanks for sharing! Will be making again and again and again and…
I didn’t notice the instruction to put them on the lower 3rd of the oven, oops, but they still turned out great. I thought I should bake them longer, probably because they weren’t on the lower level so they still looked wet on top… I’ve been using coconut sugar as a substitute for white sugar as kind of an experiment and it seemed to work well in these (and has worked well in your lemon bread, – although it turned it brown instead of the cheery yellow – and your cornbread). Holden especially loved these. I liked them a lot and especially loved how easy they were. Thanks!
figured it out reading it wrong sorry……
made would like to how all you like this try to make butter mix was very dry .what does 27/8 oz. mean .try to make with 8oz. sugar and so on wasted all ing.
These were SOOOO good! I threw in a few handfuls of chocolate chips just for kicks as well 🙂 Thank you!
Making these now hope they are good as everyone says:) concerned about cookin them in the lower part of the oven and not the top tho.. Won’t the bottom burn??
I just made these brownies with my own twist and they were simply amazing! I added in chocolate chips and threw on some sprinkles, but it was fantastic!
I am always on the lookout for the perfect fudge brownie recipe and found yours tonight. They are in the oven baking! The batter is delicious, but I have a question about the amount of sugar. When I used the 1 & 1/4 cup, the batter was still quite bitter. I added another 1/2 cup and while it wasn’t overly sweet, seemed better. I will let you know the outcome.
In answer to the reader who asked what a “cup” was- it is 8 oz. so a mug would be far too large unless you adjusted everything.
The batter was delish! I’m always looking for things to bake to keep my 14 year old self busy and these are the best yet! I also added some chocolate chips and I cannot wait to see how they taste!
Great great great! Best bownie recipe I have ever had, bar none. Even added more unsweetened chocolate to get a darker chocolate flavor. Fantastic! A new favorite!
In the ingredients list, by ‘cup’, what kind of ‘cup’ do you mean because surely 3/4 of a mug of unsweetend cocoa powder is A LOT of cocoa powder?
She means a measuring cup of you don’t have the separate cups you can you use a liquid measuring cup.