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Your search for the best chocolate chip cookies ends here. Loaded with melty chocolate chips, these cookies are soft, chewy, and just the right of dense. They are perfection in cookie form.

A stack of chocolate chip cookies. The top cookie has a bite taken out of it.
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I’ve been searching for the perfect chocolate chip cookie for years and I finally figured out the magical recipe that gets it done. These cookies have it all. They are perfectly soft and chewy and have a satisfying density to them that makes them so dreamy to bite into. And those chocolate chips? Not only are there plenty of them but they stay nice and melty for days! Liquidy chocolate goodness in every mouthful. Don’t believe me? Give it a try. I promise you won’t regret it.

What Makes These The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies?

These really are the best chocolate chip cookies. Here’s what sets them apart.

  • Great texture. Thanks to the long chill time (over 24 hours!) and the perfect combination of ingredients (especially the use of both cake and bread flour), these cookies are wonderfully dense (but not too dense) and chewy and stay nice and moist for days.
  • Chocolate chip magic. The chocolate chips in these cookies stay subtly melty for a good long while (a couple of days). So you get that perfectly moist, chewy cookie smattered with sweet surprises of almost liquidy chocolate. Yum!
  • Salty aftertaste. I love the addition of coarse sea salt flakes to these tasty treats. The slight hint of a salty aftertaste provides the perfect balance to the sweetness of the cookie.
Ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.

What You’ll Need

Here’s what you’ll need to make this stellar chocolate chip cookies recipe. Don’t forget to scroll to the recipe card below for precise measurements.

  • Cake flour and bread flour – The use of both kinds of flour really contributes to the superior texture of these cookies.
  • Baking soda and baking powder
  • Kosher salt
  • Unsalted butter – Start with room temperature butter. If it is too cold or too melted, it won’t cream properly with the sugars.
  • Light brown sugar – The use of brown sugar in addition to granulated sugar contributes extra moisture to the cookies as well as a deeper, more complex flavor profile.
  • Granulated sugar
  • Eggs
  • Pure vanilla extract
  • Dark chocolate chips – You could use milk chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips instead. Chocolate chunks would also do the trick.
  • Coarse sea salt flakes – The sea salt is sprinkled on the cookies as they cool. It adds the perfect salty balance to the sweetness of these irresistible cookies.

How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ready to learn how to make the best chocolate chip cookies? Here’s a quick look at how to do it. Be sure to scrol to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for more thorough instructions.

Sifting together dry ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.
  • Combine the dry ingredients. Sift together flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
  • Cream. Cream together the butter and sugars for about 5 minutes. Mix the eggs into the butter mixture, one at a time, followed by the vanilla.
  • Put it all together. On low speed, mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and then fold in the chocolate chips.
  • Chill. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 24-46 hours.
  • Prepare to bake. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Take your cookie dough out of the fridge to warm up while the oven preheats.
  • Form cookies. Form the dough into 2 tablespoon-sized balls and arrange them on the prepared baking sheets with a couple of inches between each.
  • Bake. Bake for 18-20 minutes.
  • Cool. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes or so before transferring them to a wire rack, sprinkling them with sea salt flakes, and letting them cool completely.
Overhead shot of chocolate chip cookies on a baking sheet.

Tips for the Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

You found the best chocolate chip cookies recipes ever. Now it’s time to read the fine print and figure out how to achieve perfect results every time. Here are a few tips and tricks to get you started.

  • Flour combo. Pay attention to the ingredient list here, folks. There is a reason I used a combination of cake flour and bread flour. It really does yield the best texture ever.
  • Room temperature butter. Start with room-temperature butter. Butter that is too cold or too melted won’t cream properly with the sugars.
  • Don’t skimp on creaming time. Cream the butter and sugars together until they have significantly lightened in color and the mixture has become fluffy. The creaming process incorporates air into the dough which helps keep the cookies from becoming overly dense.
  • Don’t over-mix. Once you start adding the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, be very careful not to over-mix. Mix just until everything is incorporated. Over-mixing can cause the glutens in the flour to over-develop which can end you with tough, overly dense cookies.
  • CHILL. Allowing the dough at least 24 hours to chill in the fridge is vital to the success of this recipe. This time allows the flour to soak in all of the moisture and flavors of the wet ingredients. The resulting cookies will taste better, have better texture, and they won’t spread too much as they bake.
Overhead image of a pile of chocolate chip cookies.

Proper Storage

Once the cookies have cooled completely, seal them in an airtight container. You can store them at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months. I do not suggest refrigerating these cookies as the cold temperatures in the fridge will zap them of their moisture.

Chocolate chip cookies on a baking sheet. One has a bite taken out of it.

You can never have too many cookie recipes in your back pocket. Of course, chocolate chip cookies are a classic favorite but here are some of my other top picks for you to take a run at.

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5 from 6 votes

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are truly the Best Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER! The time and effort it takes to make these chewy, soft-baked chocolate chip cookies will be WELL worth it!
Prep Time: 1 day
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 day 20 minutes
Servings: 24 cookies

Ingredients 

  • 2 cups (250 g) minus 2 tablespoons cake flour
  • 1 ⅔ cup (208 g) bread flour
  • 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 ¼ cups (284 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 ¼ cups (275 g) light brown sugar
  • 1 cup (200 g) plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 3 cups (525 g) dark chocolate chips
  • Coarse sea salt flakes, for finishing
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Instructions 

  • In a large bowl, sift together flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
  • Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugars until very light, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla and mix until vanilla is gone. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. About 10-15 seconds. Drop in chocolate pieces and incorporate them without breaking them. You might need to take the bowl off the stand and just fold it in by hand (which is what I did).
  • Take large piece of plastic wrap and lay it on the counter top. Put the dough on top and wrap the dough up in the plastic wrap.
  • Refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours.
  • When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 °F (177 °C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside. While the oven is pre-heating, set your dough out to warm up a little.
  • Using your hands, break off the dough (it'll be kinda hard) into two tablespoon pieces and roll into balls. Place them two inches apart on the baking sheet.
  • Bake the cookies for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown but still soft. Allow the cookies to rest for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Sprinkle sea salt flakes on top.
  • Repeat with remaining dough or you can reserve the remaining dough by freezing it.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie (46 grams), Calories: 357kcal, Carbohydrates: 46g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 13g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0.4g, Cholesterol: 39mg, Sodium: 263mg, Potassium: 185mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 27g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For the most precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator based on the actual ingredients you used in the recipe.

The default measuring system for this website is US Customary. Unit conversions are provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. While we strive to provide accurate unit conversions, please be aware that there may be some discrepancies.

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Photographs by Meg McKeehan Photography

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Recipe Rating




30 Comments

  1. This is exactly how I prefer my chocolate chip cookies…soft and gooey and just overall delish. These earned a five star review from everyone in my family!

  2. I bake cookies for my grandkids every weekend and found this recipe pinterest. I refrigerated the dough for 24 hours and used semi-sweet chocolate chips and they were amazing. My new go-to chocolate chip cookies.

  3. These really are the best chocolate chip cookies ever. The bread flour makes them a little fluffier, and the dark chocolate chips give it a deeper flavor that we all love. We made the recipe and have already eaten every one of the cookies. I am going to be making another batch this weekend!

  4. I just made these and I can’t argue they are amazing!! I did not salt before baking, only advice I have is make sure you make your dough balls golf ball size or the cookies will come out flat golf ball size is perfect. Second bit of advice only make them when you’re having company or you may end up a little fatter…..!

  5. I love to see other people’s favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes! This one looks amazing-thick and chewy just the way I like them!

  6. girl these look amazing! and I saw them on pg 1 of the FG most Favorited of the past 7 days…congrats :)

    I have tried the cooks illustrated recipe w/ melted butter and an egg + yolk, but never the NYT recipe. Must make them!

    I’m posting cookies tomorrow that my hubs deemed the best ever…next up will be NYT recipe.