My easy chocolate cupcake recipe yields two-dozen light, fluffy, and chocolatey cupcakes that are better than a box-mix (and just as easy!). Made quickly and easily in one bowl, they can be baked and frosted in less than an hour. Recipe includes a how-to video!
The Perfect Chocolate Cupcakes
You’re going to be so happy you found this recipe. After all, who doesn’t love a perfectly balanced chocolate cupcake (preferably topped with a generous swirl of chocolate buttercream). My recipe is incredibly moist, so soft, and so perfectly fluffy. Taste wise, they’re sweet without being too sweet and have a pronounced chocolate flavor (I’ll share a few tricks to pull this off). Plus, they’re incredibly quick and easy to make in just one bowl!
I first published this recipe six years ago and it’s been a huge hit with my readers and my own faithful go-to chocolate cupcake recipe (I prefer my slightly heavier chocolate cake recipe for cakes). However, the original recipe made a large, awkward number of cupcakes, so I’ve scaled down the recipe to now make a neat 24 cupcakes with subtly domed tops.
What You Need
Making chocolate cupcakes from scratch is just as easy as using a box mix, but they taste so much better. Here are a few of the ingredients you’ll be using today:
- Cocoa powder. I recommend using natural, regular cocoa powder in your chocolate cupcakes. Dutch process will change the flavor and could impact the texture (if the baking soda isn’t fully neutralized), so I’d recommend sticking with the recipe as written.
- Hot water/coffee. It is very important that you use a hot liquid (the hotter the better, but be careful not to splash yourself with it while mixing) as this reacts with the cocoa powder, causing it to “bloom” and fully develop the rich flavor of the cocoa.
- Oil. Don’t be tempted to replace the oil with melted butter, please! Using oil makes these chocolate cupcakes super moist without weighing them down. The cocoa powder (when bloomed by the hot liquid) provides plenty of flavor, so butter is unnecessary (never would have thought I would type those words!) and actually yields a less-desirable cupcake.
- Cornstarch. I’ve updated this recipe to include a tablespoon of cornstarch. One of my favorite secret ingredients (you may recognize it from my best chocolate chip cookies), this simple addition keeps them tender, soft, and fluffy and it also gives these formerly completely flat cupcakes a slight rounded dome.
SAM’S TIP: If you choose to use coffee, your chocolate cupcakes will not taste mocha-esque; rather the coffee helps to enhance the rich chocolate flavors of the cocoa powder. I recommend you use it!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make My Favorite Chocolate Cupcake Recipe
Make the Batter
- Whisk all of the dry ingredients and sugar together.
- Add the oil, egg, and vanilla and mix to combine. It’ll seem a bit stiff, dry and crumbly, but just keep mixing and go until all of the dry ingredients are moistened. Feel free to use your electric mixer for this step, but I usually just use a spatula.
- Slowly drizzle in the milk and continue stirring until the batter looks uniform.
- Gradually and carefully add the hot liquid and mix until everything is completely combined.
SAM’S TIP: While you might be able to get away with using buttermilk straight from the fridge, room temp eggs are key here! If your eggs are cold, straight from the fridge, they will not incorporate well into your dry ingredients, leaving you with a batter that’s clumpy, clunky, and not uniform. This can lead to sunken or otherwise wonky cupcakes.
Divide the Batter & Bake
It’s very important to not fill your cupcake liners higher than ⅔ full. If you do, the batter will spread out over the tops and the resulting cupcakes will have flat tops that are likely to sink in on themselves. Opt for under-filling rather than over-filling, and if you do happen to have leftover batter, make extra cupcakes or discard it.
- Evenly divide the batter among a lined cupcake pan and bake for 17-19 minutes.
- Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
SAM’S TIP: I recommend baking one pan of chocolate cupcakes at a time, just in case your oven bakes unevenly or does something funky while baking, or even just in case you accidentally leave the first batch in too long. The batter will be fine to wait on the counter while the first batch bakes!
While you can always stick with chocolate buttercream (shown here), my chocolate cupcake recipe tastes lovely with just about any topping. Some of my top recommendations are brown butter frosting (my husband’s favorite pairing), marshmallow frosting, cream cheese frosting, peanut butter frosting (perfect for peanut butter & chocolate lovers!), Swiss meringue buttercream, or vanilla frosting.
Frequently Asked Questions
This chocolate cupcake batter will be very, very thin–much different from the thick batter of my vanilla cake. It’ll seem almost watery/soupy. This is normal and means you’ve done everything right!
While I do have a great chocolate cake recipe, you can use this recipe to make a two layer 8″ or 9″ cake. I provide instructions on how to do this in the recipe notes.
I don’t recommend it. This batter was carefully developed and the inclusion of the cocoa is critical for the proper texture. Even if you swapped an equal amount of flour, it’s not likely to turn out nearly as well as a recipe that was actually designed to be a vanilla cupcake. I suggest you make my easy vanilla cupcake recipe instead!
With only 15 minutes to prep and only one bowl to dirty, what are you waiting for!?
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Truly the Best Chocolate Cupcake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ⅔ cups (333 g) granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup (65 g) natural cocoa powder see note 1
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch see note 2
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- ½ cup (118 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil
- 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk room temperature preferred
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup (157 ml) whole milk room temperature preferred
- 1 cup (236 ml) hot coffee see note 3, may substitute hot water
- 1 batch chocolate buttercream or preferred frosting
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Arrange rack to center of oven and preheat oven to 350F (175C). Line two 12-count muffin tins with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt (I make this recipe with an electric mixer but it can be done by hand using a whisk and spatula instead).1 ⅔ cups (333 g) granulated sugar, 1 ½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour, ⅔ cup (65 g) natural cocoa powder, 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon table salt
- Add canola oil, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir until batter is combined (it will be a bit dry and crumbly but all of the flour mixture should be moistened before proceeding).½ cup (118 ml) avocado, canola or vegetable oil, 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Drizzle in milk while stirring and stir until batter is uniform and completely combined.⅔ cup (157 ml) whole milk
- Gradually add hot coffee or hot water (take care not to burn yourself!) and stir until liquid is completely incorporated into the batter and you have a smooth chocolate batter. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is well-combined. The batter will be very thin, this is normal!1 cup (236 ml) hot coffee
- Evenly divide batter into prepared muffin tin, but take care to fill liners between ½ and not more than ⅔ of the way full, this is typically about 3 Tablespoons of batter or less per cupcake liner. Over-filled liners will result in cupcakes with flat tops and they may cave in on themselves. If you have excess batter, discard it (or make extra cupcakes!).
- Transfer one pan of cupcakes to 350F (175C) preheated oven and bake for 17-19 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (or clean). Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes in baking pan before carefully removing to cooling rack to cool completely before frosting (I like to use a knife to gently pry up the cupcake from the bottom and then carefully lift it out to a cooling rack). Repeat with second pan of cupcakes
- Once cupcakes have cooled, frost with my chocolate frosting or your favorite frosting recipe.1 batch chocolate buttercream
Notes
Cocoa powder
I recommend using natural unsweetened cocoa powder for best results. However, in a pinch Dutch process cocoa powder can be used instead, but note that the flavor will be slightly different and the cupcakes will be darker.Cornstarch
Cornstarch is my secret ingredient, it makes the cupcakes tender and fluffy and gives them the perfect, slight domed tops. However, if you do not have it on hand you may omit it, note that your cupcakes will likely be flatter though.Hot coffee/hot water
A hot liquid is essential to properly blooming the cocoa powder (which gives the cake a pronounced, rich chocolate flavor). I like to use hot coffee because the coffee flavor enhances the chocolate, making the flavor even richer and deeper. However, you can just use hot water instead. The hotter the liquid the better; boiling is fine, just be careful! Please note I don’t recommend using other hot liquids such as hot chocolate which often have other additives and sugar added and could adversely affect the final outcome.Frosting
I used my Ateco 848 tip to pipe the frosting on the cupcakes in the photos above and in the video. If you wish to frost all of your cupcakes this generously you will want to double the frosting called for in the recipe that I linked to, but honestly you don’t need to and a more modest amount (half the amount shown) works great and allows the cupcake flavor to really shine, it just didn’t look quite as nice in the pictures!Baking chocolate cupcake batter in different sized pans
You may bake these cupcakes in two 8” pans for 35-37 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with a few moist crumbs. In two 9” pans the cakes will take a bit less time, start checking at 30-32 minutes. This recipe should also work just fine in a 13×9” pan, but I would keep an eye on it as I haven’t tested it in this size pan yet.Original recipe
I’ve received a lot of requests for the original recipe. As I mentioned in my post, this current recipe is the one I recommend, it’s simply scaled down from that one to make an even 24 cupcakes, to prevent the overflowing issue many people were having, and a bit of cornstarch has been added to improve structure. It’s a slightly better cupcake recipe for the changes and I recommend using the recipe as seen here. However, since so many of you have asked, here is the original recipe. Please note that I am not accepting comments or questions on the original and recommend you use the recipe I have published here currently.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Related Recipes
My chocolate cupcake recipe was originally published in March of 2016. A few small modifications were made to scale the recipe down to 24 even cupcakes without changing the texture, and the post has been updated to be more informative and a how-to video has been added.
Cindy Brown
My son’s 11th birthday is tomorrow, July 10th( The Bahamas’ 45th Independence) and he wanted chocolate cupcakes instead of a traditional birthday cake. I just got done baking 4 dozen of these and half dozen are gone before I got a chance to frost them. They are very moist and delicious. HE lOVES THEM!
Sam
I’m so glad that your son enjoyed them!! Happy Birthday to him! Thanks for commenting, Cindy!
Lauren
These are the most amazing cupcakes! So moist, and the flavor is so rich (I did use coffee and totally agree how it helps the chocolate flavor). I had so many compliments the other day when I made them. I used your “favorite chocolate frosting” recipe instead, just because I wanted to try a frosting with chocolate chips instead of cocoa.
Sam
So happy to hear you enjoyed them, Lauren!! 🙂
Emily
I was looking for a simple chocolate cupcake recipe I could modify slightly to make chocolate-chili-lime cupcakes and yours looked like the best. Turned out great…and my mom’s 1960 wedding shower tins are smaller than modern tins, so I ended up with 30 cupcakes. I think my next experiment will be chocolate-orange-cinnamon cupcakes, again using this fantastic recipe as a base.
(Tech specs: I added two teaspoons of chili powder and the zest of a small-ish lime.)
Sam
So glad they turned out so well for you, Emily! Thank you for commenting!! The addition of chili powder and lime sounds neat!
heather franco
These are amazing ! My favorite recipe I topped them with boiled icing so delicious ! I’m about to make these with the chocolate buttercream frosting now. can’t wait! these are such a hit !
Jenny Bridges
I made this and it turned out perfect. I don’t use canola or vegetable oil, so I used olive oil instead. Huge hit! The cupcake was moist, delicious and not overly sweet. I wanted to eat more! But I made it for a baby shower. I topped it off with melted jumbo marshmallows because I don’t have time to make frosting and ensure it keeps its shape while transporting it in my car for a long commute. Thanks so much!!!
Sam
I’m so happy to hear they were such a hit, Jenny!!
Cintya Maria
Hi Sam! I made this recipe last Tuesday for Valentine’s Day here in Brazil (June 12th) and my husband simply loved it! Thanks a lot for sharing such an amazing recipe! I put “brigadeiro” on top and it worked well! Thanks again! xxoo (I will tag you and post it on instagram, ok?)
Sam
I’m so glad to hear that you (and your husband!) enjoyed the recipe! I will look for the Insta tag, thank you!! 🙂
Kate
Thanks for sharing the recipe! Excited to try it out for my daughter’s birthday party soon! I intend to make it one night before the event, do I need to keep them in the fridge? Will the frosting melt when I get them out of the fridge? I live in Malaysia, the average temperature is about 30 Deg (even at night). Thank you!
Sam
I usually do not refrigerate mine, but if you are frosting them I would probably keep them chilled in an airtight container to keep the frosting from getting too soft, it shouldn’t melt but it would probably get very soft at that temperature.
April Menk
These have become my go to for cupcakes! Made these and my usual vanilla cupcakes for an anniversary party this last weekend. The chocolate cupcakes were gone before midnight while the vanilla had barely been touched!
Sam
I’m so happy to hear these were such a hit, April!! Thank you for commenting to let me know how they turned out for you!! 🙂
Cassandra
I don’t really like chocolate cake but I ate three of these. Your recipes are always a hit for me.
Sam
So happy to hear this! Thank you for commenting, Cassandra! 🙂
Priya
I am always trying to find a really good chocolate cake / cupcake recipe thats not dry….and I have now found my one and only go to recipe!!! I made these and I loved how moist it was!! I baked it a day in advanced put in the fridge and still came out moist!!! Thank you for a wonderful recipe!! 🙂 🙂
Sam
I’m so glad to hear you loved them!! 🙂
Lisa
These were the best chocolate cupcakes I’ve ever had. The frosting was scrumptious!! My husband loved this cake too.
Sam
I’m so glad to hear they were such a hit!! 🙂
Wendy
Have made this recipe twice now. These cupcakes are divine! Easy recipe. Anyone who has said this recipe is not a keeper clearly does not bake often. Thank you so much for this! My daughter loves them. I bake a lot but have never found a cupcake recipe this moist and light. Followed your instructions exactly.
Zara
First off, these are Delicious. They are moist, and kinda crunchy on the outside which makes it wonderful to eat. However, these rise up a lot so I recommend filling them quarter of the way instead of 2/3. Apart from that, these were perfect. Thank you so much for the recipe. I’m a beginner baker so this was a great guide 🙂
Andrea
I only used about 1/4 cup of coffee and the batter was perfect. The cupcakes came out moist and delicious. I think using one cup would have been way too much!
Sam
I’m glad they came out! However I can’t guarantee how these will turn out using less coffee than specified in the recipe.
KF
Wow these were really easy and tasty. My kids loved them too. I actually made them to use up some cream cheese frosting I had in the freezer. I didn’t have vanilla so I used orange essence, and I topped each one with a piece of Lindt orange and almond dark chocolate while they were still warm so it melted into the tops a little, then put the frosting on top. Now I have to stop myself from eating the lot.