The Best Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies — One of my absolute favorite recipes for chocolate chip cookies thanks to a special ingredient! Just one bite and I think you’ll agree!!
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies…With Pudding!
These really are my new favorite soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies. Now, that’s a big statement because I haven’t cheated on this recipe in years!
I’ve used the base of that cookie recipe for Twix Bar Cookies, Snickers Cookies, M&M’s Cookies, S’mores Cookies, and many others when I want a hearty, but buttery dough base. Any cookie I’m going to stuff with add-ins or candy, that’s not a peanut butter cookie, I use that base.
But all good things eventually get knocked off their pedestal and something better, shinier, and newer comes along. Enter: these big, chewy chocolate chip cookies . Spoiler: these sot and chewy chocolate chip cookies are made with vanilla pudding mix!
The dough is buttery and moist with hints of vanilla, and it’s the perfect canvas for the melted chocolate chips.
So it’s ‘the best’ according to me and my family, and of course, this can change. Food bloggers, we change our minds, if you haven’t noticed. But for now, these gooey chocolate chip cookies are the top dog.
I can’t wait for you to try them and let me know if you agree.
What’s in These Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies?
These gooey chocolate chip pudding cookies are thick enough to sink your teeth into, with slight chewiness at the base and edges.
It’s just enough to balance the very pillowy soft centers and give me the mouthfeel I want in a perfectly baked, soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie.
Here’s what you’ll need to make the absolute best chewy chocolate chip cookies:
- Unsalted butter
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Instant vanilla pudding mix
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
How to Make Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
To make truly soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies, you first need to cream together the butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla. Beat the mixture for a good 4 minutes — don’t skip this step!
Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, then fold in the chocolate chips.
Note that you add the pudding mix like a dry ingredient. You do NOT actually make the pudding. Scoop the cookie dough into balls using a large cookie scoop, then place on a large tray and cover with plastic wrap.
I baked my chewy chocolate chip cookies for 11 minutes, but if you choose to make smaller cookies, you’ll need to bake for less time. How much less? I don’t know.
Tip: The secret to making the best chewy chocolate chip cookies is keeping them a touch underbaked. I think that’s the secret to most good cookies!
Can I Omit the Pudding Mix?
The pudding cookie craze certainly isn’t new. I’ve used instant pudding mix in my Soft M&M’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, Dark Chocolate Chunk and Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies, and Quadruple Chocolate Soft Fudgy Pudding Cookies and I wanted to create a classic chewy chocolate chip cookies recipe with it.
This chocolate chip pudding cookie recipe is nearly a carbon copy of my old standby. The significant change is that I omitted 2 teaspoons of cornstarch and replaced them with one packet instant vanilla pudding mix.
If you don’t like pudding mix or can’t find it in your area, I recommend you use this soft chocolate chip cookie recipe because there are really no substitutions you can use in this chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe.
Do I Have to Freeze the Cookie Dough?
As with all my cookies, you must chill the dough before baking these chewy chocolate chip cookies with vanilla pudding mix. It’s absolutely crucial for thick, puffy, full cookies.
If you bake with warm, limp dough, your chocolate chip cookies will spread and bake thinner and flatter. Why bother? Plan ahead and chill your dough.
Can I Freeze Chocolate Chip Cookies?
Yes, although I actually recommend making the cookie dough and freezing it in balls rather than freezing baked cookies. You can bake the cookie dough straight from frozen, just note that you’ll likely need to add a few extra minutes to the bake time.
But if you’ve already made these gooey chocolate chip cookies and want to freeze some for later, just pop them in a freezer bag. When you’re ready to eat them, leave them on your counter to thaw or reheat them in the oven.
Can I Make These Gluten-Free?
Without having tried it myself, I can’t say for sure. If you find a way to make these chocolate chip cookies with vanilla pudding gluten-free that works for you, please let me know in a comment below!
Can I Add Extra Mix-Ins?
I’m sure you can! These thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies can be loaded up with chopped nuts, M&M’s, chopped candy bars, and more. Just be sure to add no more than 2 cups of mix-ins total.
How to Store Chocolate Chip Cookies
These chocolate chip cookies with pudding can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 week. You can also freeze the baked cookies for up to 6 months. I like to reheat frozen cookies in the microwave or oven so the chocolate chips become gooey.
Tips for the Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Tip 1: The big, chewy chocolate chip cookies are slightly larger than you may be used to baking. There are about 4 tablespoons of dough (1/4 cup) per cookie, and the batch makes just 14 large-ish cookies.
The cookies are still so much smaller than cookies I see for sale at bakeries and coffee shops, and eight comfortably fit on a baking tray.
I’d rather bake fewer bigger cookies because frankly, it’s less work. But also because the size and the related surface area does matter in terms of the final taste and texture.
Tip 2: Smaller cookies tend to dry out faster and relatively speaking, there’s more chewy edge than soft center.
Conversely, bigger cookies have softer, tender, juicy bites loaded with chocolate due to a greater interior surface area. Christina Tosi speaks very eloquently about this in her book.
Tip 3: You also need to make sure the butter is truly soft. If it’s not, cheat and zap it in the micro for 5 to 10 seconds.
It’s best to plan ahead and set your butter out 2 to 4 hours ahead of time, but it’s better to cheat with the micro than try to cream cold butter.
Your dough will seem overly dry and crumbly after adding the dry ingredients if your butter wasn’t sufficiently softened. I used Trader Joe’s unsalted butter.
A few more tips and tricks for making the best chewy chocolate chip cookies:
- You’ll want to use a high-quality flour like King Arthur. It has just a bit more protein (gluten) than other brands so your baked goods have more structure and will rise higher.
- As I’ve already mentioned, you MUST chill the dough so the cookies bake up thick and don’t spread as much.
- Underbake so the cookies are (almost) as good on the third day as they are right out of the oven.
- And bake on a Silpat because it provides traction so the cookies don’t slip-and-slide around a slippery greased baking sheet.
- Use a cookie scoop. I first portion out the dough with the scoop so all the mounds are the same size, and then I smooth them out with my hands so they’re perfectly smooth.
- Finally, you want to strategically re-positioning the chocolate chips while smoothing the mounds.
Obsessive? Yes, but I am asked all the time what my tricks and secrets are, and now you know.
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The Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- one 3.5-ounce packet instant vanilla pudding mix, not sugar-free and not ‘cook & serve’
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
- one-12 ounce bag, 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I use Trader Joe’s)
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the butter, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 4 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, pudding mix, baking soda, optional salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the chocolate chips, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 14 equal-sized mounds of dough, roll into balls, and flatten slightly.*
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 5 days. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet) and bake for about 11 minutes, or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center; don’t overbake. Cookies firm up as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don’t use a rack.
Notes
- *Tip – Strategically place a few chocolate chips right on top of each mound of dough by taking chips from the underside and adding them on top.
- Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Pudding Cookie Recipes:
ALL OF MY PUDDING COOKIE RECIPES!
Cream Cheese White Chocolate Chip Cookies — These soft and chewy white chocolate chip cookies use two special ingredients to achieve their pillowy texture: instant pudding mix and cream cheese!
Soft and Chewy M&M’s Cookies — These big, bakery-style cookies are very soft, slightly chewy, buttery, and loaded with M&M’S and chocolate chips.
Quadruple Chocolate Soft Fudgy Pudding Cookies – For true chocolate lovers, these super soft cookies are loaded with chocolate!
Mounds Bar Chocolate Chunk Cookies — These big, thick, bakery-style cookies are pillowy soft in the interior, slightly chewy at the edges, and are loaded with chocolate chunks and hunks of Mounds Bars.
Oreos and Sprinkles Chocolate Chip Cookies — The cookies are loaded with Oreos, sprinkles, chocolate chips, and are adapted from my favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies.
Caramel-Stuffed Quadruple Chocolate Cookies — The cookies are thicker, bakery-style cookies that are bold and rich, and are oozing with melted chocolate and stuffed with Rolos.
Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies— You won’t miss the butter at all in these coconut oil chocolate chip cookies! They’re so soft and ever so slightly chewy. Dangerously good!
This is a repost of this 2014 recipe, and while I’ve made many other chocolate chip cookies since then, these particular cookies are some of my absolute favorites.
Im wondering if you weigh your ingredients, and if you might have those available? I feel recipes are always more consistent with weighted measurements.
Sorry I don’t, no.
THESE ARE AMAZING!!!
Thanks! :)
Hello Averie! These cookies are indeed the BEST soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies I have ever tried!!! I will admit that I cut back on the chocolate chips since the original recipes calls a little bit to much for my liking. Either way, these are the BEST cookies ever! Every single time I bake these I get so many compliments and they seems to be everyones favorite! Thank you for sharing this recepie! I can’t wait to try your other recipes! -Isabel
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
Hello Averie! These cookies are indeed the BEST soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies I have ever tried!!! I will admit that I cut back on the chocolate chips since the original recipes calls a little bit to much for my liking. Either way, these are the BEST cookies ever! Every single time I bake these I get so many compliments and they seems to be everyones favorite!!! Thank you for sharing this recepie! I can’t wait to try your other recipes! -Isabel
After (almost) the failures of hundreds of chocolate chip cookie recipes, I decided to give this one a try. Glad I did because these were amazing!! Officially adding these to my recipe book!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ A true hit in the family and also DELICIOUS with milk. Like D. E. L. I. C. I. O. U. S. Anyway, even though I only baked half of the batter, these finished in under an hour. Planning to bake the rest tomorrow since these already made 18 medium-sized soft and chewy but also somehow crispy cookies! Thank you so much for posting!! Love from Cali☀️
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it worked out great for you! Glad mine is the one success story out of so many other fails :)
Hi! First off, just have to say this is great recipe and now my “go-to” for chocolate chip cookies. I definitely think some of the difference (at least for me) is the 2 cups of flour vs. the 1.5 cups I have been using in previous recipes. But besides the point… I had a question! What would happen if I used the ‘cook and serve’ kind of pudding instead? I ask only because you do specify and I’ve almost grabbed the wrong box several times!
Thanks in advance for any answer provided and again for the wonderful recipe!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! Cook and serve vs. instant pudding has different ingredients (i.e. whatever they use to make the pudding set-up) and I think it has to do with how it reacts with proteins, i.e. milk, and really…I just wouldn’t mess with things since we know this works with instant, at the risk of ruining a whole batch of dough! :)
I tried these out tonight for a family celebration and they absolutely went over like gangbusters! Awesome recipe, the fam loved them :D
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
These are definitely the best cookies. Everyone loved them, even more so than your previous go to recipe. My husband prefers them flat so I don’t chill them and just scoop, flatten and bake right away. Still awesome made this way. Thanks!!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it’s a new favorite, even trumping my former recipe! Glad you found the perfect method to make them just like your husband prefers them, too!
Hey Averie,
I have been working my way through some of your cookie recipes and taking them to the office for taste testing by my co-workers. So far The Best Soft and Chewy M&M’s scored the highest with The Soft and Chewy Honey Roasted Peanuts and Butterscotch a close second. I personally love, loved the Big Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Crinkle, However a couple of the folks were a little “Meh” about them, but then I found out that they are not peanut butter lovers (and therefore CANNOT be trusted). I do have a couple of questions for you. Vanilla pudding vs. cornstarch. Can they be used interchangeably or is there a taste rule of thumb I can follow? Or are there specific reasons to use one over the other? And secondly I couldn’t wait to make the ANZAC biscuits, so much so that I didn’t make a special trip to the store for whole oats. Yes, it pains me to confess I used Quick Cook and have to assume that’s why the little devils spread out and never did set up for me. Delicious flavor, but a bit of a gooey mess to eat (but I still did). Just looking for confirmation that using the wrong oats is probably what did it. Thanks again for developing some fantastic cookie recipes and sharing them with us!!
I do have a couple of questions for you. Vanilla pudding vs. cornstarch. Can they be used interchangeably or is there a taste rule of thumb I can follow? = no, and no rules of thumb. Trial and error.
Quick cook and whole rolled are totally different in terms of how they behave when baked and cannot be used interchangeably and that’s definitely where things went south. Use whole rolled next time and you’ll be set!
I never leave comments but these cookies are amazing. My boyfriend requested chocolate chip cookies and I found this recipe. He said they were the best cookies he’s ever had. I’ve also tried a lot of your other recipes and all were a success. I think your directions are very well written and helpful. I’m not a baker at all so those who are getting bad results just aren’t following directions well.
Thanks for trying this recipe as well as many others and I’m glad they’ve all worked out great for you and glad to hear these are the best cookies your boyfriend has ever had! What a compliment!!
Thanks for your support and compliments regarding the way I write my recipes and directions. It’s nice to know that you don’t consider yourself to be a baker yet have success with my recipes and that’s nice to know. And I think your assessment is spot on :)
Do you make the pupping mix up with milk or add it in dry??
Dry.
“BEST COOKIES EVER!” A repeated comment received after making this recipe! Thanks, they were a hit :)
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you and that it’s a repeated favorite!!! That’s wonderful!
I was wondering what happens if you do use sugar-free pudding? I have all of the other ingredients and was thinking about trying this, but I only have sugar-free pudding? Have you tried it?
I have read reports that the texture can be a little off, as well as the flavor. You could take the gamble and try…If you do, LMK how it goes!
Have not baked the cookies just yet but the dough is chilling as we speak. My brother tried one of the formed cookie dough mounds and he said they taste great (I’m gluten free so I couldn’t try it :( but they looked good). The only thing I was concerned about was when I was combining the dry ingredients into the wet, the dough started getting crumbly when I wasn’t even finished putting all the flour in. I finished mixing the ingredients (had to finish with my hands because a spoon, spatula, or mixer wouldn’t work) and then put in the chocolate chips but when I started mixing those, it wouldn’t mix and just fell completely apart. I had to put in probably a tablespoon of milk in for it to come together a little better.
Don’t know if that was how it was supposed to be and I just panicked with the milk because I’ve made plenty of cookies from scratch but never this recipe or one with the instant pudding.
Do you think this sounds normal with the amount of flour in this recipe or could there be a step I missed that led to this?
Thanks so much!
The dough is thick and dense but not so dry that I’ve ever had to really struggle with it. Good call on adding a little milk in your situation and I think the culprit here was accidental over-measuring of the flour. Use a very LIGHT hand when measuring it so that you don’t overdo it. Between the flour and the pudding mix, there’s a lot of dry ingredients so you going overboard with the flour accidentally, even just a bit, could dry out the dough too much. That’s my hunch and what to do for next time (and maybe start with 2-4 tbsp less flour before adding the whole amount in at once, so you can eyeball things as the dough is coming together).
Hope your family enjoys the cookies!
Hi! I am making the divine looking cookies as I type but I was wondering if I could use custard instead of Vanilla pudding as it’s not really available in London… and if so would it be the same amount? Thanks ASAP !!!
I haven’t tried it with custard so not sure what to say about how much to use or the results but playing around with it will be half the fun for you :) Taste-testing!!
Like Lindsay above, this recipe didn’t work so well for me, and I think it’s for the reasons stated. I used every ingredient exactly (even bought King Arthur flour for it). I did cream the butter and sugar first (the same way I do for every other cookie recipe) and I did the dry ingredients separate, but I did include the pudding mix. And my batter came out way too… fluffy? Floury? (I’m not a baker so I don’t know what the correct term would be, lol) It didn’t stick together well. I had to literally mash it together with my hands just to make the rounds.
Then after being in the fridge a couple hours, I had to cook mine for 15 minutes just to get slightly brown, AND they didn’t spread AT ALL. I got really bally round cookies that were only about 2 inches wide.
However they still did taste amazing, thankfully. I like the recipe but I think it needs way less flour, since the pudding mix adds so much extra dry ingredients. That or maybe add a little milk to make it stickier?
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad they tasted okay. It’s so hard for me to be able to tell someone why their cookies didn’t work yet another person who makes the recipe (and I’ve made the recipe no less than probably 100 times) and it works great. It sounds like you did everything ‘right’ and the taste was good but like you said the dough wasn’t typical cookie dough consistency. If you think that given your climate, ingredients, oven, etc. that using less flour would be beneficial OR that if skipping the pudding mix would be better or using half, then you could always try those tweaks. Like I said though, I truly stand by the recipe as written because I always get great results. Sorry that you had a little trouble with it.