How can I get chewy chocolate chip cookies?

I like my chocolate chip cookies chewy too and I do it all the time. Here is what I do:

• Flour: I use a higher gluten flour instead of AP, such as Bread flour.
• Eggs: An additional egg yolk will help
• Sugar: A bigger Brown Sugar to Sugar ratio helps but not vital if you do not have brown sugar at hand.
• Butter: Butter should be melted. I think this is the key to chewiness.

The recipe is straightforward: cream butter with sugar, add wet ingredients, incorporate dry ingredients slowly and lastly add the chips.

Be sure to chill the dough for at least 30 min. The more you rest, the better. See this NY Times Article for effects of resting the dough.

This is the recipe for chocolate chip cookies For more details check out the Jan/Feb 96 edition of Cooks Illustrated.

• 2 c. all-purpose flour plus two tablespoons more
• ½ t baking soda
• ½ t salt
• 1½ sticks Butter (melted and this is key! also this is a bit less than typical)
• ½ c granulated sugar
• 1 c packed brown sugar
• 2 t vanilla extract
• 2 Eggs (1 whole, 1 yolk)
• 1 12oz (bag) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Mix butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in large mixer bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Bake on un-greased cookie sheets for 15-18 min. @ 325°F.

Also this recipe works great with white whole wheat flour as well to add at least some nutrition.

I have had excellent success substituting 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed meal and 5 tablespoons of water for the eggs if you need to go egg-less.

In addition to what everyone else has said (increase fat...), make sure you let the dough rest (in the fridge or freezer) for at least 20 minutes before baking.

More fat generally makes softer cookies. For a great desciption of how the fat / sugar / flour ratio affects the texture of cookies etc. check out Michael Ruhlman's "Ratio" cookbook.

You could try cooking at a slightly lower temperature, spraying the walls of your oven with water or putting an oven-safe bowl of water in with the cookies to prevent drying out, and/or cook them for less time.

When finished cooling immediately put them into an airtight container or foil and they will stay fairly soft, but of course are best just after cooling.

You can do a number of things like using brown sugar instead of white, use more leavening, and use oil or margarine instead of butter.

On the Serious Eats Food Lab, J. Kenji Lopez Alt goes deep into The Science of the Best Chocolate Chip Cookies. He discusses a couple ideas for making your cookies chewier.

1. Use bread flour instead (or something with a higher protein content than your recipe calls for)
2. Replace some sugar with a touch of corn syrup.

The higher protein content in the bread flour than in AP flour will lead to a chewier cookie. The bread flour reference comes from The Chewy by Alton Brown.

I bake mine a minute or two less than it calls for and only let them cool half way and then place them in my cookie container with a layer of parchment paper between each layer and while still slightly warm cover tightly and the heat of cookies will keep them from getting hard and will stay softer and chewier.

I have had brilliant results using this recipe that incorporates instant vanilla pudding mix. These cookies come out with an incredible texture that you just want to keep putting your teeth inside, aside from the fact that they also taste incredible.

The best way is a mix of both white and brown sugar. Too much white and they'll be tough too much brown and they can break by their own weight. Play with the two proportions till you find what you want. More brown typically more chewy.

Another way is to make it with brown and to cool the dough in the fridge before baking so that the integrity is better.

You can also put a piece of white bread in your container with the cookies, as it will help keep the cookies softer for a longer time. I don't know why, but it does work for me.