Triple Chocolate Brownie Recipe
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If you are looking for the ultimate triple chocolate brownie recipe, then these rich, indulgent and delicious brownies are the ones to bake. Packed with triple chocolate chunks, and with the perfect balance of chocolate throughout, these brownies have the delicious fudgy texture every baker is after.
Whether you are baking for birthdays, afternoon treats, a family gathering, or simply trying to satisfy a chocolate craving, this recipe is the one you will turn to again and again.
Note’s from The Patisserie
I have made these brownies well over five hundred times now, in this base form and with extra flavours throughout, so I feel like somewhat of an expert now. They are thick, fudgy and I have tested this recipe over and over to try and produce the best brownie ever…
- Deep chocolate flavour from a dark chocolate base
- Three chocolates folded through for extra indulgence
- Easy to follow method
- Perfect for freezing and making ahead
- Soft, gooey and fudgy texture all in one
- Great for bake sales, parties, and for use as a base brownie for other flavours
This recipe is part of a ‘back to basics’ series on my blog where I am trying to provide as much information on the basics of baking, to make you a better bake. I firmly believe that once you crack the basics, you can have a lot more fun with baking.
Ingredient notes + tips
The chocolate in the base
This recipe has the best flavour balance, but it does use dark chocolate in the base. This ingredient is particularly important for a few reasons. The higher cocoa solids (I would always recommend 70% dark chocolate or higher) helps create a rich chocolate flavour, but it also has naturally less sugar and milk in the chocolate.
Dark chocolate works best in the brownie base because it creates a richer chocolate flavour and helps achieve that classic fudgy texture. With a higher cocoa content and less added sugar than milk chocolate, it provides a deeper taste and balances the sweetness of the brownie mixture, and with the addition of the rest of the ingredients, provides the best base.
Personally, I would recommend using cooking chocolate such as this one, or using a basic chocolate from the shop. You do not need to use a fancy brand of chocolate for the base mixture.
The rest of the ingredients:
- Butter – I would recommend using block unsalted butter for the base of a brownie, or a baking spread. Generally, block butter may likely create a better set compared to a spread due to it’s less process nature.
- Sugar – You can use caster sugar, golden caster sugar, light brown soft sugar or even dark brown soft sugar. For a basic triple chocolate, I usually use white caster sugar.
- Eggs – to make it slightly easier, this recipe is formulated to use four medium eggs, or three large eggs.
- Flour – it’s important to use plain flour with no raising agent in it – if you use self raising flour, it will cause a cake texture. If you don’t have plain flour, it may also be known as all-purpose flour
- Cocoa – I would ALWAYS recommend using a good quality cocoa, with a high cocoa percentage. I would suggest not using a hot chocolate powder as they are mainly sugar and not cocoa.
Tops tips to making the best brownies
The method behind making these brownies, other than the importance of the chocolate base, is what makes these brownies brilliant and the wonderful texture that they have. Make sure to check out the full recipe and method in the recipe card
Whisking the eggs and the sugar
One of the most important steps in making perfect homemade brownies is whisking the eggs and sugar correctly. This stage creates a thick, mousse-like mixture that forms the foundation of the brownie texture.
You need to whisk the eggs and sugar for several minutes until the mixture becomes:
- Noticeably paler in colour
- Thick and mousse-like
- More than doubled in volume
Do not rush this step. A quick mix simply won’t create the same result, and skipping proper whisking can affect the final texture of your brownies. It’s easier to use a stand mixer or hand mixer because they are quickly, but you do not need to. You just need to whisk for quite a bit longer by hand to get the same texture
Folding the ingredients together
Once your egg mixture has reached the correct mousse-like consistency, gently fold in the melted chocolate and butter mixture, followed by the flour and cocoa powder. This stage should always be done by hand.
Mixing too aggressively can deflate the air you’ve created during whisking, leaving you with a thinner batter and affecting the final brownie texture. So, make sure to fold slowly and carefully in a figure of eight pattern, keep as much air in the mixture as possible, and avoid over mixing.
Using the correct tin and oven setting
As well as making sure to use the correct ingredients, following the top tips above, it is so important to use the correct size tin. I use a 9” square metal tin for my brownies, and for the best results, it’s important to use this too.
Using a smaller tin can cause problems with the bake as the volume difference is much larger than people may realise. An 8” square tin is roughly 25% smaller in volume, and a 7” square tin is 50% less. Also, using silicone or glass or ceramic instead of metal can cause a problem due to how they conduct heat in the oven.
I always bake brownies on the fan setting in my fan oven, so I bake at 160ºc. I bake them for 25 minutes on the dot as I know my oven well, and when the 25 minutes is up, there is a small wobble in the middle.
As ovens vary SO much, even if you think they are all set to ‘the same’ setting, there is a very high chance they are not. Timings can therefore vary, so keep an eye on them and adjust accordingly.
FAQs
Yes, you definitely can. The brownies will still be delicious without (might take a couple of minutes less time to bake)
This is likely due to the brownies being over baked, but they can also be over mixed.
Definitely! You can add in flavour extracts really easily when folding in the chocolate/butter mixture to the eggs and sugar. I would use 1-2 tsps of a strong extract such as vanilla, orange or mint.
Yes, but they won’t have set yet so if they are cut warm, they may still be very gooey. They are still fine to eat, but generally we recommend setting the brownies fully, and the warming a piece through in the microwave if you have one
Brownies do naturally sink slightly when cooling, but if they have sunk a lot it could be due to adding too much air into the eggs and sugar at the start, under baking the brownies, or opening the oven door too early to check on them.
Yes! You can use all white chocolate, all milk chocolate, all dark chocolate or whatever mix you want folded into the brownie mix.
Triple Chocolate Brownie Recipe
Ingredients
- 200 g dark chocolate (70%+ cocoa content)
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 3 large eggs (or 4 medium)
- 275 g caster sugar
- 100 g plain flour
- 50 g cocoa powder
- 100 g white chocolate (chips/chunks)
- 100 g milk chocolate (chips/chunks)
- 100 g dark chocolate (chips/chunks)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180ºc/160ºc fan and line a 9″ square baking tray with parchment paper.
- Melt together the unsalted butter and dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of boiling water, on the microwave for 1-2 minutes until melted.
- Leave to the side to cool to room temperature for 5-10 minutes
- In a new bowl, whisk together the eggs & caster sugar for a few minutes until the colour has turned pale, is very mousse like, and is double the original volume
- You will know its done because when you lift the whisk up out of the mix it should leave a trail for a couple of seconds before disappearing
- When whisked, pour the cooled chocolate mix over eggs and fold together carefully.
- Once completely combined, add the cocoa powder and plain flour on top of the chocolate mix and then fold together again
- Once combined well, fold through the chocolate chips and pour into the prepared tin
- Bake in the oven for 25-30+ minutes until there is a small wobble in the middle.
- Once baked, leave to cool in the tin completely. The, set the the brownies in the fridge for 3+ hours for best results.
Notes
- These brownies will last for up to one week in the fridge or at room temperature on a cool day
- These brownies can freeze for 3+ months
- I use this 9″ square tin in this recipe
Storage and Freezing
These brownies are great as they do last really well. As well as being delicious on the day of baking, they also last for up to a week either at room temperature on a cooler day, but also in the fridge. I prefer mine in the fridge, as it keeps the fudge texture.
These brownies will also last for 3+ months, in the freezer. I would recommend letting the brownies bake and cool fully, and then portioning before freezing.
It doesn’t say when to put the chocolate chips in?
Hiya! Take a look at step 7 on the recipe – it says to fold in you chocolate chips once your mixture is combined well! Hope this helps! x
I made these brownies for my work colleagues and they went down extremely well! They got snapped up so quickly and received really good reviews. One of my colleagues used to be a pastry chef and work in a fancy bakery and she said they were even nicer than the brownies they sold there! So I recommend giving these brownies a try!!
Hi Jane, these look AMAZING ! What is the difference between a large and medium egg? I’m assuming there is a weight difference but im not sure what that is?
Hi
Such a great recipe but how would I adjust this for a heart 8” tin? Wanting to make something for next month.
Thanks
Hi Jane,
How would I adapt the quantities for an 8” tin?
Thanks x
divide grams by 9 that gives u 1 portion than times 8 and there u go
Actually you’d need to divide by 81 and multiply by 64
Omg this recipe was fab! Made for my daughters bday this weekend.
I bought a 90% montezuma dark choc bar last uear by accident(!) and for ages didnt know what to do with it, used it in your recipe- i used white choc chips and orange smarties and omg what a brownie! I am a convert! Decadent, not too sweet, just delicious!! Thank you!
Hi Jane
I follow all your brownie recipes, thank you. Am also looking to purchase your book as a Christmas gift to myself 🙂
If I use a 8”x10” tray do I need to up any of the ingredients ?
Or does an 8×10 equate to a 9×9 tin ?
9×9=81 inch²
8×10=80 inch²
Not enough difference to worry about
Hi! I don’t have any cocoa powder, are there any substitutes for it? X
Hi Jane. Just wondered if this recipe could be adapted to fit a 6″ or 8″ round tin to make a bottom layer of a cake. Want to make a 3 tier cake for the wife’s birthday with bottom layer brownie and 2 layers of chocolate sponge. Or is it just easier to cut tye brownie in a circle after baking in the square tin. Thanks
Did you try this? I also want to do something Similar?
Hiya, I want to make these. Just checking as the ingredients say plain flour and there’s no baking powder. Do these rise? And are they light?
Hiya! Standard brownie recipes do not contain raisin agents & they shouldn’t if i’m honest! Hope this helps! x
Hi, I was just looking at brownie pictures, and I was just wondering have you used chocolate bars chopped up, as in the picture they look very chunky and too large to be chocolate chips ?
We always use a chocolate bar and cut them into chunks find it works so much better than chips 🥰
Hello Jane! Just wondering, in a pinch, could you use 50% dark chocolate for the base?
Looking at the other comments, seems like it has to be over 70% 🙂
Can these brownies be frozen?
Yes! They can be frozen for up to 3 months! Hope this helps x
I use supermarket own cheap choclate works well
I always use a bars of dairy milk and they turn out amazing, not a big fan of dark chocolate in our house
Hi,
I’ve always used your brownie recipe I LOVE LOVE them and just seen the flour/cocoa is increased?
How does this change the texture?
Thank you
Hi, do you remember what the original recipe is? i know the coco/ flour was 35/70 or 30/75 (please to remind me if you can) but has the amount of butter changed too? I’m autistic and I can notice the difference but I can’t figure it out and it been making really uneasy.
I, too LOVEEEED these and my opinion those were better than this recipe. Pls help 🙂
Hiya! The original recipe is 200g dark chocolate, 200g unsalted butter, 90g plain flour, 35g cocoa powder (as well as the rest). The original recipe was altered to make it easier to measure out – but there is no real difference in the two! Hope this helps! x
My kids said they’re too chocolatey. Who knew that was even possible??? I’m not sure they can really be my kids 😂
Which of your many brownie recipes are the least chocolatey, or use more milk choc than dark?
Hi Jane!
I tried these brownies as first attempt went down like a treat for the family!! Thank you!
After cooling on a wire rack the top and bottom of the brownies went hard but the middle stayed soft. Would you kindly advise on how to keep it soft from top and bottom. I did later cover it with cling film to see if it would help, it did alittle bit. Just hoping to give these as a gift and wanted to know how to prevent hard top n bottom?
Is there something I’m doing wrong while mixing ingredients or oven?
Much appreciated xxx
Hiya! This sounds like your oven was slightly too hot! Hope this helps! x