Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies
These easy chocolate chip cookies only require 6 ingredients: butter, flour, sugar, egg, salt, and chocolate chips!
Overview
- Skill Level: Beginner
- Techniques Used: The Creaming Method for Cookies
These are the easiest chocolate chip cookies and can be in the oven in less than 10 minutes with very few ingredients.
While I love a fancy and over-the-top cookie, like my favorite recipe for ultimate chocolate chip cookies, sometimes I just don’t have the energy and time. This is the recipe that will appease your cookie craving with the littlest effort!
NOTE: If you are wanting an easy vegan recipe, check out my post specifically for Easy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Why We Love this Recipe
- Only six ingredients that you likely already have in your pantry!
- No baking soda or baking powder required! Perfect for when you run out of either!
- It creates very classic chocolate chip cookies with slightly crisp edges and a soft and chewy center.
- It’s all made in one bowl! No need to mix dry ingredients separately.
Ingredients and Substitutions
While you will find many recipes that include a lot more ingredients than this one. This simple chocolate chip cookie recipe only requires the basic ingredients that are necessary.
Fat (Butter)
Butter is the most traditional fat used in making chocolate chip cookies, however, some recipes will also call for shortening.
Butter adds to the richness, tenderness, and moistness of the cookie. Additionally, the water content in the butter will evaporate out in the oven helping to lift and leaven the cookie.
This recipe is created for the use of regular butter, salted or unsalted. You can substitute margarine, shortening, or vegan butter, but the texture and results will vary.
Note: It is traditional to use softened butter for cookies and to cream it together with the sugar. However, if you do not have a mixer you can use melted butter. Make sure the butter is not hot and stir it together with the brown sugar. This will result in thinner cookies but it will also make them a little chewier!
Sugar
Sugar obviously works to sweeten the cookie, but it also adds to the structure and texture. Brown sugar gives a cookie more chewiness due to its molasses content while white sugar will keep a cookie crisp.
This recipe calls for the use of only brown sugar. You can use light or dark brown sugar depending on what you have on hand or your preference for texture. Light brown sugar will produce a cookie that has slightly crispy edges while dark brown sugar will give you very soft cookies. Granulated sugar does not tend to work well in this specific recipe.
Egg
An egg works to help bind the ingredients together as well as add moisture and tenderness. Eggs also help to leaven (make things rise) which is why this recipe works without the help of baking soda or baking powder.
This recipe has been made successfully with vegan egg substitutions (such as Ener-G egg replacer, flax egg, or chia egg) however, results will vary. Baking is science! Check out my recipe for 6 ingredient vegan chocolate chip cookies if you are looking to veganize these!
Flour
Flour is the main structure of chocolate chip cookies. One of the best things about this recipe is that you can use all-purpose flour (plain flour), self-rising flour, or bread flour. All of them work!
All-purpose flour will give you a very classic chocolate chip cookie like you might associate with the Nestle Tollhouse recipe. Self-rising flour will give you a cakier cookie, while bread flour will give you a chewier cookie.
It is very important that you measure your flour correctly so that your cookies have the right texture. I recommend either measuring your flour by weight using a kitchen scale or measuring using the spoon and level method. To do this lightly spoon it into measuring cups (do not pack down!) and level the cup off with a knife. This will give you enough flour without getting too much!
Chocolate
You can’t make a chocolate chip cookie without chocolate! Of course, chips are the most classic choice, but chocolate chunks or chopped chocolate work as well! Chips will hold their shape more and don’t get quite as melty. I find that the best chocolate chip cookies use chopped chocolate or chunks which will create those chocolate puddles that are so decadent!
The type of chocolate used is where you can really customize the flavor here! Semisweet chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips are what kids tend to prefer more. But if you’re making these for adults go ahead and grab that bittersweet chocolate or dark chocolate! Hey, you could even use white chocolate chips! Whatever you decide don’t forget the glass of milk!
Salt
Salt is a necessity in any baked good as the flavor will be completely flat and taste overly sweet without it! If you used salted butter or self-rising flour, then the dough will already have salt in it. However, if you used unsalted butter and all-purpose flour or bread flour then you definitely need to add a bit of salt.
You can use fine sea salt, kosher salt, or table salt in these cookies. I prefer to use non-iodized salt in all of my baking, but use what you have on hand. I also love to sprinkle a bit of course salt over the top before they are baked to really give a kick of that salty
Note: If you do need to bake without salt due to health reasons, the cookies will bake up absolutely fine without it!
Optional Ingredients
Vanilla extract is very common in chocolate chip cookies and can absolutely be added if you have it on hand and want the flavor. I call it an optional ingredient because it is not needed for the structure of the cookies and the flavor is still great without it!
You can also always add nuts like pecans or walnuts if you like! I like to toast them on the stove for a few minutes in a dry pan over medium heat before adding them to my dough as it really improves the flavor of the nuts.
Tips and Tricks for Perfect Cookies
- Scoop your dough with a cookie scoop to get cookies that are all the same size and perfectly round!
- Pull your cookies out of the oven when you see golden brown edges but the center still looks slightly underbaked.
- Let your cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes to solidify before moving them to a wire rack. They will continue cooking slightly.
- For the perfect chocolate chip cookie look, add a few chips or chunks on top of the balls of dough before baking.
Troubleshooting
Here are some common issues people tend to encounter when making chocolate chip cookies and how you can remedy them!
Why are my cookies spreading too much?
Cookies spreading too much is typically a result of your oven not being hot enough or the pan being overcrowded. It can also happen if there is too much butter in the dough, but that is not as common of a problem.
If you end up with flat cookies, make sure your oven is really up to temperature by using an oven thermometer. Also, make sure you keep the oven door shut until right towards the end of the baking process and only put about 9 cookies per cookie sheet.
Why aren’t my cookies spreading out enough?
If your cookies are staying in mounds and not spreading out during the baking process this can be an issue with your oven temperature being too hot or too much flour in your dough. Make sure you measure your flour either by weight or use the spoon and level method, making sure you do not pack it down into your measuring cup. You can also turn down the heat in your oven slightly to help them spread more.
How do I keep my cookies soft after baking?
To keep your cookies soft and moist after baking make sure you do not overbake them. You should remove them from the oven when the edges are set and the middle still looks slightly underbaked. I also find that storing them in an airtight container will help soften them more.
Some recipes will call for an extra egg yolk to help keep cookies soft, but I find this typically isn’t necessary. Proper storage is really the biggest contributing factor to keeping cookies soft.
Other Easy Recipes
If you like this easy chocolate chip cookie recipe, you might like these other easy recipes!
Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies
These easy chocolate chip cookies only require 6 ingredients! With only butter, flour, sugar, egg, salt, and chocolate chips you can make great chocolate chip cookies!
Ingredients
- 113 grams (½ cup, 1 stick) softened butter, salted or unsalted (room temperature)
- 150 grams (¾ cup) light or dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 150 grams (1 ¼ cup) all-purpose flour
- 150 grams (1 cup) chocolate chips or chunks, any kind your prefer or have on hand
Instructions
Prep:
- Measure out all of your ingredients.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF/175ºC.
- Prepare a sheet pan or cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
To Make the Cookies
- In a medium bowl with a hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together the butter (113 grams/ ½ cup) and brown sugar (150 grams, ¾ cup) until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Alternatively: if you do not have a mixer you can melt your butter until it is liquid but not hot and mix it together with the sugar. This will give you a thinner and chewier cookie.
- Add the egg (1 large) and vanilla (1 teaspoon), if using, to the butter mixture and mix until incorporated.
- Stir in the flour (150 grams, 1 ¼ cup), salt (¼ teaspoon), and the chocolate chips or chunks (150 grams, 1 cup) just until combined. Do not mix for a long time after adding the flour, it will create cookies that are too tough or cakey.
- Scoop the dough into mounds about 2 tablespoons each onto the prepared cookie sheet. Do not put more than 9 cookies per sheet.
- Bake one sheet at a time at 350ºF/175ºC until set on the edges and the middle still looks a little bit undercooked. About 8-12 minutes. (these cookies do not brown as much as other cookies because of the lack of baking soda or baking powder.)
- Allow to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. Cookies will continue to cook on the sheets for a few minutes.
- Allow cookies to cool completely before storing in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Make-Ahead Dough:
- This dough works very well to make ahead and keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container to bake off when you would like fresh cookies. I like to pre-portion it into balls of dough and then bake straight from the refrigerator adding 1 more minute to the bake time.
- You can also portion out the dough and put the dough balls store in the freezer in a ziplock bag for up to 3 months. To bake from frozen, reduce the baking temperature to 325ºF/160ºC and increase the baking time to 15-18 minutes.
Notes
- Flour: If you do not have all-purpose flour on hand you can substitute in self-rising flour or bread flour. If you use self-rising flour leave out the salt.
- Butter: You can use melted butter if you prefer a chewier cookie and do not have a mixer. Make sure it is not hot before stirring together with the brown sugar.
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Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 0
355 Comments on “Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies”
I was looking for something easy to make while traveling and I was really impressed by these, they are easy and so very delicious. The short ingredient list was great (I did add a bit of vanilla and salt) and I substituted 1/4 cup of the flour with good quality cocoa and put white chocolate bits in instead, and they still turned out as warm gooey centred deliciousness. Thank you!
are they good im doing a bake sale tomorrow and im thinking of doing these
thay are grate but dont turn out as the picture
mine turned out good but like you were saying they don’t turn out like the pic.
Glad you liked them Grace!
what substance can i use if i don’t have chocolate chips
so they crusty
AWESUUUUUUM! We just got three feet of snow so what else is there to do but make cookies!?! This was the easiest, best tasting chocolate chip cookie I’ve ever tasted! Chewy in the center, crispy on the outside, with the correct ratio of salty and sweet. Just pulled them out the oven…hopefully my family will get to taste them. Thank you!
This did not work for me☹️☹️☹️☹️
ok so my team was having a bake sale and it was 10pm and I needed some fast cookies. The only thing i changed was using white sugar. the cookies literally turned into pancakes and spilled all over the oven. they looked nothing like the picture and when i finally managed to scrape them off the pan, i just had a pile of baked dough and chocolate chips. tasted amazing though. 3/10 would not recommend.
She literally said not to use white sugar.
You give a bad review on a recipe because you used an ingredient that the recipe blatantly says not to use?
hahaha yummy and delisous!
Hi “Disgruntled”,
Sorry these did not work out for you. This recipe specifically needs brown sugar as stated in the post. White sugar will not work as it is less hygroscopic than brown sugar and will end in results as you described. If you do decide to try it again, please use brown sugar for more desirable results!
I used brown sugar and mine turned out like hers, what went wrong?
Hi there, wondering if gluten free flour can work?
Switching the sugars will do that to the cookies (changes the consistency – with white sugar the cookies spread much more than with brown sugar)
i used white sugar coz i dont have any brown sugar that time. it turned out well and tasted so good. my family likes them.
It was the white sugar that made them tien or this way
I’ve tried this recipe twice, and with the same outcome. They spread way too much in the oven, turns more into pancakes than cookies. I think what this recipe needs is some baking soda and also the dough NEEDS to be chilled. Recipe 2/10
Hi Jaundell,
I’m sorry this hasn’t worked out for you! This is a tested recipe that has been successful for me many times and many other people. Question, do you live at high altitute? That could cause you spreading. It also sounds like possibly you did not measure your flour correctly. Too little flour could cause more spreading as well. The dough should not need to chill unless you live in a very hot climate and your kitchen is very hot. Then yes, it may need some chilling time.
I made these tonight with my 3 year old. The recipe is SO easy and she loved helping. I live at high altitude and followed your recipe to a tee plus added vanilla and baking powder. These cookies were perfect!! Even fluffier then I thought they would be. Thanks for posting!
-Shannon
I made them, came out ok! But really really sweet =/ like extremely….maybe because i used regular white sugar?? I didn’t have any broken sugar
I just made these cookies for my 14 year old and 11 month old and they loved them! They did spread a bit but I wanted them bigger as I did not have a need for 2 dozen. Great and easy recipe!
Can I add pumpkin to this recipe? Would it make it too runny/mushy?
I just made these cookies, I added vanilla and baking soda. They turned out awesome! They are delious and so so easy! Will be making again! Thanks for posting these cookies! 🙂
I messed these up… like I really fumbled this one, I was softening the butter and compleatly melted it…. I had rock solid brown sugar so I broke off a few chunks and disolved it in the now liquid butter, then beat in the egg, added a bit of salt and vanilla, guesstimated the flour and chip and stirred. I don’t know why I was such a mess with this recipe I almost always am so by the book and will measure to the last granual of sugar but what really shocked me at the end of all this…….they were amazing!! They didn’t flatten as much as expected….well they didn’t flatten at all really you could still see our fingerprints in them but they came out soft and moist on the inside and all around fantastic!!!!!!
So if I were to add baking soda to this recipe, how much would be enough?
That’s because you substituted the type of sugar used. There is a reason why the recipe called for brown sugar. I understand that you were in a hurry, but in order for them to be good, the recipe has to be followed.
Just made these, the perfect quick fix , who would have thought just five simple ingredients,Thanks
I just made these. I made about 16. I could’ve made them smaller but it’s only me and I usually let cookies and stuff go to waste which I hate to do.
Next time I make these I’m going to add less sugar because I’ve been trying to cut back on sugar and things have been tasting overly sweet to me.
These cookies came out great!! I added 1/8 of baking powder and a sprinkle of baking soda and these came out brown and soft!
This is the way I like to bake. It took less time to make. I didn’t have to chill in the fridge for hours and I’ve already had two, hehe! Thanks for this recipe.
Ignore those who substituted brown sugar for white sugar, didn’t measure right, and claimed these have to be chilled, and for this to be runny. I still don’t see how this happened unless they used water instead of flour. I stuck to the recipe but only added baking soda and baking powder and they came out great!
how much did you use?
hello there,
I just made this recipe and it turned out better than I expected! I didn’t have vanilla essence so I added a sprinkle of custard powder for flavor. Crazy but true. I also only had 3/4 cup of chocolate chips, so I made up the last quarter with mixed seeds and broken almonds. I am so impressed by the result, I will definitely be make no these again. Thank you so much for the recipe!
These were soggy and never cooked all the way through. They spread out like pancakes. I followed the recipe exactly as written and do not live at a high altitude. Very disappointing since I was looking for a recipe to make on a very low budget, and I’ve now used the ingredients for a recipe that doesn’t work.
Based on the fact that they spread out too much and didn’t cook through, it definitely sounds like your oven wasn’t hot enough. Ovens can vary greatly in their actual temperature compared to what the temperature is set at. It might be a good idea to try baking them 25 degrees or even 50 degrees hotter and watch them closely to see if that helps. It is a very common problem with ovens. If the temperature is too low, the butter will melt before the outside of the cookie sets resulting in cookie that spreads too much.
I made these and they turned out amazing thanks so much for the recipe !!! Bc I didn’t have certain ingredients at home and this recipe worked out perfectly for me !!! And taste amazing will use again thanks!!!
So i searched for a recipe that did not require baking soda due to the taste it leaves on food. This recipe worked great! I did added vanilla, baking powder and salt. I would have smashed the dough due to the rise and not spread but these chunky cookies was the perfect resolution to a sweet tooth at midnight. Thanks for posting this you have to follow the directions for best results.
Your recipe is now popular in my family here in montreal canada! They are delicious! My boyfriend keep asking for them !! Thank you!! 🙂
The recipe was so easy and yet so great! Thanks!
Hi! I just tried these a few minutes ago and they are awesome! But I did smaller cookies. And granulated sugar actually works!
Hi Madison! Glad these worked for you. I specify not to use granulated sugar because I haven’t had as consistent results with the granulated sugar. They tend to spread more for people and become too flat. Glad to know you had success though!
hi, does the recipe call for a rising agent?
Today i cooked these cookies AGAIN!! And what an easy whip up they were… Even after mistakedly adding 2 eggs and 1/ 4 more flour and brown sugar. They are not as sweet but rich in texture and good. I do add baking powder and vanilla extract. After eating 2 to4 i am so satisfied and my family. Sure will share this with the world!
Terrific! Love the way you explained the science of the ingredients in baking and love the simplicity of 5 ingredients. The option of kicking the taste up is simple, too. First recipe of yours and I’m already big fan of your style! Thanks!
Phone won’t let me rate this. So for the record I vote 5 stars
I was really excited to try these but once I got done my dough was really runny.. I followed the directions so I’m not sure what went wrong 🙁
They turned out great. A bit smaller than I excepted but over all great.:)
Can i use organic sugar?
same question
I have made these multiple times and they always come out perfect! My hubby loves some chopped pecans mixed in too. Today i accidentally put an extra egg and forgot any leavening agents, soda or powder. They still turned out delicious and were fluffy cakey, but crisp on the edges. Normally I follow the recipe and add in soda, vanilla, a splash of almond extract and baking powder for a crisp, flat, buttery cookie. Thanks for this simple recipe! P.s. i tried to give this five stars but it wouldn’t let me!
I made these with the optional ingredients. They came out perfectly! I scooped 1 1/2tb per cookie, as they were for a party, and made one tray per the recipe and then added 1/4c cocoa and 1tb milk. Delicious and not too sweet.
I actually made these with white sugar (didn’t have brown) and added vanilla extract. They turned out Amazing! Not too sweet and kinda cakey in the middle which was a hit with my family!
these came out absolutely DELICIOUS thank you so much for posting this recipe. I followed it to a T and added the baking soda, baking powder, and some vanilla and they were a hit with all the kids
I have been making these cookies about once a month since I found the recipe over a year ago. I usually add the baking powder and soda. I always add cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. They are always fantastic!
I followed all instructions as listed, and they came out horrible. The texture was more pancake like, or maybe a rubbery texture rather than the normal texture cookies tend to have.
AMAZING! Easy and delicious! I didn’t have white sugar so googled cookies without white sugar and gave it a try – with chopped up hershey kisses too since I didn’t have chocolate chips. Great recipe – not too sweet or rich. I didn’t watch the video and followed the recipe – I measured 2 tbsp of dough and only made 10 cookies – I may have messed that part up but who cares as long as they taste good.
I’ve been looking for an easy chocolate chip cookie recipe and found this one. Actually used vanilla, salt, baking powder and soda as well (have never made cookies without those ingredients before so didn’t want to start not using them now :D) so thank you for adding their measurements in. I’m very particular about my choc chip cookies and will hardly ever buy any premades as I like having more cookie than choc chips.
So I made the batter and portioned them out on the sheet and added 5 or 6 mint choc chips to each cookie and folded a bit of the dough over them, baked them for 10 minutes and they came out perfect. I mean perfect! My bf is a bit of a picky eater and he said these were perfect. We had them with cold milk and a movie.
Thanks for posting this recipe! I’ve bookmarked it and will be making more of them in the future 😀
I have done this recipe over a dozen time and I haven’t had no problems with it I love it and so do my kids and husband 🙂
These cookies were so easy to make and were very tasty. Will make these again really soon …. Like tomorrow. 5 ⭐️
I’m eager to try this! I will find r sure use brown sugar. I did giggle a bit though….
5 ingredient cookies that have 7 ingredients
If you see the ingredient list, two of the ingredients are optional and not absolutely necessary to make the cookies. Only 5 ingredients are required. Hope you enjoy!
I tried this recipe and added the baking soda, baking powder, and vanilla. The cookies turned out great. They have a very homemade look and are the perfect sweetness, not to mention they were fast and easy. I will be using this recipe more often!
I used all of the recommended ingredients minus salt and vanilla extract as i didn’t have any and baked for 8 minutes exactly and they turned out amazing. Whoever says this recipe didn’t work didn’t follow the directions these are chewy and kept their shape really well only growing a tiny bit from the original drop shape of the dough
Yeah they were yummy
I am visiting have to really calm down and make some sort of business plan to obtain concentrated.
I am making these right now and they are coming out wonderfully!! They are cooling as I type. Did not add chocolate chips to half of them seeing as I gave up chocolate for lent, but they still came out great! Will definitely save this recipe. I used the vanilla extract with it. Thanks!! Definitely recommend.
I did a routine event for about 70, and the morning of, needed ‘nut free’ cookies for 20 kids. Saw this, it appeared quick, easy, added the baking powder and soda… Unbelievable! I rec’d more comments of the cookies for the kids than the meal. I have requests for us to make just these cookies now. So simple, yet outstanding. Thank you.
I only have baking powder, but not baking soda. Can I add one but not the other? At my sisters house sitting and I can’t find the flour!
I normally don’t bother to leave comments or reviews, unless the product is amazing.
This is amazing!! I’ve used this recipe about four times now! People having a problem with this recipe should really check to make sure that they’re following it to a T; check your oven temp, because they all vary; make sure your ingredients like baking soda and powder aren’t really old; and your altitude level.
I followed this exactly, adding in the baking soda, baking powder and vanilla extract. (Cookies without the extract aren’t real cookies!) I used light brown sugar. These are big, fluffy and my favorite texture: crunchy on the bottom and outside, soft on the inside.
Thank you for this recipe, Bettie, because it’s not only simple, but my absolute favorite now! 🙂
These were not flavorful – should have added optional ingredients. My grandkids did not like them. They did not have any sweet flavor. Will try with optional ingredients listed above recipe. I did add vanilla extract and salt, however.
Since I made 18 of these cookies, is there anything I can do to salvage these?
OMG! I love this recipe! I have been looking for a good chocolate chip cookie recipe for a long time and this is my go-to!
I typically use a different recipe but as a nanny to a 4 year old, I was seeking something simple, interactive for her and not too sweet. This was it ! Did 1TBS hand scoops and baked for 10 mins, made 16 cookies. Pretty happy.
Can i use organic sugar? It’s not brown sugar but it’s not white sugar either.
I made these for the first time. Instead normal flour I used Schär’s gluten free flour and for brown sugar I used Bellington’s “dark brown soft” sugar. I didn’t put 2 TBSP I put 1, because 2 seemed too large. When I took them out of the oven, their texture was let’s say interesting – like kinetic sand. That was probably because the sugar has exact kinect sand texture. I left them in the fridge for the night and wow- they are very good!