The best—and easiest—brownies you'll ever make. This recipe belongs in your repertoire. This is part of BA's Best, a collection of our essential recipes.
Ingredients
Makes 16 Servings
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Preparation
Step 1
Preheat oven to 325°. Line an 8x8x2 inches glass baking dish with foil, pressing firmly into pan and leaving a 2 inches overhang. Coat foil with nonstick spray; set baking dish aside.
Step 2
Melt butter in a small sauce-pan over medium heat. Let cool slightly. Whisk sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl to combine. Pour butter in a steady stream into dry ingredients, whisking constantly to blend. Whisk in vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating vigorously to blend after each addition. Add flour and stir until just combined (do not overmix). Scrape batter into prepared pan; smooth top.
Step 3
Bake until top begins to crack and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 25-30 minutes.
Step 4
Transfer pan to a wire rack; let cool completely in pan. Using foil overhang, lift brownie out of pan; transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 16 squares.
Nutrition Per Serving
Leave a Review
Reviews (1001)
Back to TopLike many others, my husband is extremely allergic to soy sauce. It's hard enough to make sure there's nothing in the various packaged goods where it unexpectedly shows up, but putting it into something like this is extremely dangerous unless the baker is there to tell everyone who may eat it.
Anonymous
Los Angeles CA
4/1/2024
I’m a pretty good baker, and have no problem following a recipe. So what happened with this one? The recipe calls for 1/3 c of AP flour, which doesn’t sound like enough to me. But, I went ahead and measured and mixed it in, and dumped it into a prepared 8x8 glass pan lined with foil. Into the oven at 325 degrees for 30 minutes and it was still very liquid. I cooked it another 30 minutes, and it still wasn’t fully cooked. So I took it out anyway, and hoped it would firm up as it cooled. It did, but not very much. It was very sticky and the foil ripped into shreds when I tried to remove it. The brownies tasted very good, but I wouldn’t serve them to guests. They didn’t hold their shape, and were broken and sticky. So if anyone can explain what happened, I’d like to try them again. BTW, the oven temp was accurate.
Anonymous
Terre Haute, IN
10/25/2023
These brownies will make everyone think you’re a better baker than you are.
Anonymous
11/7/2022
I found this recipe by searching for "never fail brownie" and this was a great choice! I am a good baker, but brownies have always been my Achilles heel. Something about this recipe just worked perfectly for me! I made several batches for a church dinner, and I even forgot to set the timer for one batch. All came out fudgy and delicious. This will be my go-to brownie recipe from now on
PennieS
Arlington, TX
9/21/2022
Why hide mediocre recipes behind a paywall?
Disappointed with BA
NY
4/8/2022
Like a few people below, I was directed here from a BA article suggesting substituting soy sauce for kosher salt in dessert - particularly chocolate dessert - recipes. So, I have copied and pasted this recipe to my collection, adding, in the ingredient list, "1/2 tsp kosher salt or 1 tsp soy sauce".
Dan W
CT
3/28/2022
This needs something... Soy sauce!!!
Anonymous
Boston, MA
3/24/2022
Where does the soy sauce come into this recipe?
Anonymous
Fresno, CA
3/8/2022
When this recipe was written, 10 years ago, Scharffenberger had already been owned by Hershey’s for 5 years. But the brand of the cocoa is not important, it’s the word ‘natural’. If you make these with Dutch Processed cocoa, which most cocoa is, you’ll get very dark (nearly black) brownies and without the crust. If you use natural cocoa (aka cacao) you’ll get a more traditionally brown brownie with the desired crust. They should have pointed out that the type of cocoa matters (a true Red Velvet cake is red from vinegar acting with the natural cacao, not food coloring). Either way, these are rather thin brownies, but with a nice fudgy texture and rich chocolate taste.
Gryphonisle
San Francisco
1/13/2022
My favorite brownie recipe. Notes to self: - Add 1 tsp espresso powder - Lowered sugar to 1 cup (1/2 brown, 1/2 granulated) - Beat eggs vigorously into the mix - Bake in a 6x6 pan for thicker brownies (~35 minutes)
PER
10/27/2021
These are delicious brownies! Fudgie, they do not rise like cake. I like to add dark and milk chocolate chips to this recipe. They are addictive! Toooo good!
Trish
Ny
10/7/2021
Amazing brownies!! My husband loves mix/box type and these were real close and very rich!! I let mine cook longer than suggested but kept checking where the edges showed some cracking and the pan didn't jiggle. Will definitely make again!!
Steph G
MN
6/19/2021
If you want quick fudgy brownies with a crackly top and chewy crispy edges, you will like these brownies. Instead of lining with foil, I used an 8x8 metal pan, buttered and dusted with cocoa powder, and they released just fine. I added chopped pecans, a lot of them, and I always add a little cinnamon to brownies, too, for depth. I used half white sugar and half brown. When I make these again, I'll decrease the sugar by a 1/4 cup and see how they go.
Laura
Texas
2/7/2021
Will they turn out well if I only have a metal pan and not glass?
Anonymous
Los Angeles
2/7/2021
The easiest and one of the tastiest brownie recipes ever! I was slightly skeptical reading the reviews...but the recipe won me over! I was a bit hesitant about using glass pan lined with foil but I stuck with it and it turned out great. Yes the brownie turned out a bit flat BUT the fudgy-ness makes up for it! The top was crispy and crackly like any good brownies. A tad bit too sweet so might use only 1 cup of sugar next time. Might add some nuts next time. Also yes, the serving size pretty small (due to its flatness) but it's perfect for lone baker like me. This will probably my new go-to brownie recipe now - so simple and delicious!
Million
From Thailand, Living in VA
1/31/2021