Brown Butter Is The Unbeatable Ingredient For The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

There's nothing like biting into a soft (or crunchy, if that's your jam) chocolate chip cookie. The classic treat is full of compelling, rich flavors. But while chocolate chip cookies are certainly tasty, there's actually a way to make them taste even better: By making them with brown butter.

If you're not familiar with brown butter, it's pretty much just butter that has been melted and cooked down until it turns a rich, golden brown color. This happens because the dairy product's milk solids caramelize. The resulting liquid has an intense nuttiness and undercurrent of caramel flavor that adds a bold touch to your cooking and baking — including your chocolate chip cookies.

However, in order to incorporate brown butter's unique flavor into your cookies, there are some considerations to keep in mind as you go. Similarly, it also pays to have a few tips and tricks up your sleeve to enhance the baked goods' flavor even more!

If you're going to make brown butter chocolate chip cookies, the first thing to consider is whether to go with salted or unsalted butter. Both have their benefits. If you choose unsalted butter, you'll have more control over the amount of the condiment that goes into your cookies. That way, if you add salt to your dough, you won't have to worry about overdoing it — especially if youplan to use sea salt as a garnish. On the other hand, since salt can really bring out the taste of brown butter, so using a salted variety can work to enhance the flavor of the cookies as well.

Another thing to keep in mind when baking chocolate chip cookies using browned butter is that this ingredient can compromise the texture of your cookies. The reason for this is that when you cook the fat, the water in it evaporates. That moisture loss will make it tougher for your dough to coalesce. To avoid this problem, you can brown only some of the butter in your recipe while reserving the rest. That way, you'll still retain moisture in your dough. Alternatively, you can add moisture using other ingredients, such as by adding an extra egg yolk to the batter (which will also increase your cookies' chewiness) or even just mixing in some water (around 2 tablespoons per cup of butter browned).

Besides choosing the right butter and making sure to prevent moisture loss in your cookies, there are a few other tricks you can implement to make your brown butter chocolate chip cookies a success. For starters, it's important not to overcook your butter, which can lead to it burning rather than turning brown. To tell if your brown butter is done, first look for bubbles. It will foam up and start to crackle as it turns brown. Once the butter stops spitting, it's time to turn off the heat. This process can happen quickly, so using medium-low heat and staying vigilant are keys to ensuring you don't burn it.

Another tip to make use of when baking with this ingredient is to cool your butter down a bit before mixing it into the rest of your ingredients. This helps it incorporate seamlessly with your dough and prevents your cookies from having a greasy, unpleasant texture. If you accidentally cool it too much and it starts to go solid, you can just reheat it again to get it back to its original liquid form. Or, use a stand mixer and the solidified form of it to make your treats. Now that you know how to add brown butter to your cookies, you're well-equipped to take your chocolate chip cookies to a new level.