How to Tell If Brownies Are Done (2024)

No matter if you’re making a box mix or from-scratch brownie recipe, it can sometimes be a little tricky to hit that perfectly fudgy or cakey sweet spot between undercooked and over-baked brownies. While I believe that essentially any brownie is a good brownie, making sure you know when to take the brownies out of the oven can make the difference between a good brownie and great brownie.

What Is the Toothpick Test for Brownies?

To test for doneness with a toothpick, insert a toothpick into the center of the brownies and pull it back out.

For fudgy brownies, you’ll want to see some moist crumbs attached to the toothpick when you pull it back out. If it looks like it’s covered in brownie batter, the brownies will need to bake a bit longer. If the toothpick is totally clean, the brownies may already be over-baked.

For cakey brownies, you’re looking for a toothpick that is clean or has just a few crumbs attached.

How to Tell if Brownies Are Done Without a Toothpick

How to Tell If Brownies Are Done (1)

No toothpick? No problem. For cakey brownies, you’ll be looking for brownies that are evenly dry on top with edges that are starting to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Fudgy brownies can be a bit more difficult to judge without using something to test for doneness in the middle. You can use a butter knife to test for doneness – as with the toothpick, you’ll want to make sure you don’t have an excessive amount of batter clinging to the knife. Just know that it can be harder to look for that “few crumbs attached” level of doneness with a butter knife. Other alternatives for toothpicks include cake testers (they’re reusable!) or wooden skewers, like you might use for kabobs.

Fudgy vs. Undercooked Brownies

Want to make sure that your brownies are still fudgy but not raw? The truth is, fudgy brownies are slightly undercooked. The key is to make sure the center of the brownies is set and that the toothpick doesn’t look too gooey when you remove it from the brownies.

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How Long Should You Let Brownies Cool?

How to Tell If Brownies Are Done (2)

It can be difficult to resist a warm, gooey brownie straight from the oven, but letting the brownies cool for at least an hour before cutting them helps the brownies set in the middle, especially if you’re following a recipe for fudgy brownies.

For a perfect cut on your brownies, try refrigerating them before cutting – it’s much easier to achieve perfect squares when a brownie is firm from the fridge.

If you’re adding a frosting to your brownies, you’ll want to make sure the brownies are fully cooled first, or the residual heat from the brownies will melt the frosting.

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When Should You Remove Brownies From the Pan?

Brownies will be easiest to remove from the pan when they are fully cooled, because they will be fully set and firm. If you want to be able to remove the brownies from the pan without cutting them first, you can line the pan with parchment paper, allowing it to hang over the sides of the pan. Once the brownies are fully cooled, use the parchment to carefully lift them out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board.

More Tips for Making Sure Your Brownies Will Be Perfectly Cooked:

How to Tell If Brownies Are Done (3)

  • Make sure you’re using the same size pan that the recipe does. Shifting from a 13x9-inch pan to a 9x9-inch pan will give you thicker brownies that will likely take longer to bake (if all of the batter even fits into the smaller pan). Note that the material your pan is made out of will also make a difference, as brownies in a glass baking dishes or pans with a very dark coating tend to bake a bit faster than a lighter-colored pan.
  • Start checking for doneness at the beginning of the bake time range, or even a minute or two early. Most home ovens are not perfectly calibrated (running at the temperature the oven is set for), and if your oven is running hot, your brownies may bake faster than what the recipe says.
  • Speaking of oven temperatures, use an oven thermometer to check how hot your oven really is when it says it’s reached the temperature listed in the recipe. Check your manual – some ovens can be calibrated easily by yourself, but if yours cannot, you can make adjustments by setting your oven higher or lower as needed.
How to Tell If Brownies Are Done (2024)

FAQs

How to Tell If Brownies Are Done? ›

To test for doneness with a toothpick, insert a toothpick into the center of the brownies and pull it back out. For fudgy brownies, you'll want to see some moist crumbs attached to the toothpick when you pull it back out. If it looks like it's covered in brownie batter, the brownies will need to bake a bit longer.

How can you tell if brownies are done? ›

wet crumbs on the toothpick are perfect. and when it comes out completely dry. so are your brownies.

What do undercooked brownies look like? ›

If the brownies still look wet or aren't pulling away, they aren't done. Even fudgy brownies will pull from the edges once they've finished baking. You'll see that the edges look dry while the middle still looks soft or slightly wet. Chewy and cakey brownies will have dry edges with firmer-looking centers.

Why are my brownies gooey in the middle? ›

Problem 2: My brownies are too GOOEY

Honestly, there is a slim chance they are underbaked, but it's more likely that they just need to firm up in the fridge.

What should brownie mix look like when done? ›

What Should the Consistency Be? The ideal consistency of brownie mix is thick and gooey, similar to a thick cake batter.

Is it better to overcook or undercook brownies? ›

Brownies should be removed from the oven before the centre is fully cooked, as the brownies will continue to set as they cool and this gives the brownie its soft texture. You do not want the brownies to be raw in the centre when you remove them from the oven, but they should be slightly undercooked.

Should brownies be jiggly in the middle? ›

Give the baking pan a little jiggle and if the centre is wobbly then return the pan to the oven for 5 minutes and check again. if the centre looks set then check with a skewer or cake tester - if the brownies are done then it should come out with a few damp cake crumbs clinging to it (though not raw cake batter).

What should a cooked brownie look like? ›

The first check is a visible check of the brownie tray. You will want to see cooked edges around the tray and a slight shrinking away from the side of the pan. Importantly you should see shiny cracks in the crispy top of the brownie.

Do brownies harden as they cool? ›

As brownies cool, they will solidify and set up, so slicing into them too early can result in brownie squares that fall apart or become a mess very quickly. Note: I don't recommend slicing baked brownies until just before you plan to serve them!

Is it bad to eat slightly undercooked brownies? ›

Potential Health Consequences: Consuming undercooked brownies or raw dough can lead to symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal cramping, nausea, vomiting, fever, and headaches [3].

Can I put underbaked brownies back in the oven? ›

Put the brownies back in the 300 degree oven and bake until a cooking thermometer reads 195 degrees, or about 30 more minutes. Finally, you'll cool the brownies for 30 minutes in the pan, then for 10 minutes on a cooling rack before slicing with a pizza cutter (my favorite tip) and serving.

What if brownies are not cooking through? ›

Put them back in the oven: If your brownies are undercooked in the middle, you can put them back in the oven at a lower temperature (around 350 degrees Fahrenheit) and continue baking them until they are cooked through.

What makes brownies fudgy vs cakey? ›

Fudgy brownies have a higher fat-to-flour ratio than cakey ones. So add more fat—in this case, butter and chocolate. A cakey batch has more flour and relies on baking powder for leavening. The amount of sugar and eggs does not change whether you're going fudgy or cakey.

What is the best way to tell if brownies are done? ›

To test for doneness with a toothpick, insert a toothpick into the center of the brownies and pull it back out. For fudgy brownies, you'll want to see some moist crumbs attached to the toothpick when you pull it back out. If it looks like it's covered in brownie batter, the brownies will need to bake a bit longer.

How to not overcook brownies? ›

Brownies keep cooking after you remove them from the oven, so you'll end up with an overcooked batch if you wait until there are no crumbs at all. Using an oven thermometer can also help you avoid overbaking because it'll tell you the exact temperature of your oven.

Should brownie batter sit before baking? ›

Though making brownie batter in advance is possible, it has to be done in a specific way to prevent spoiling. Because most brownie recipes call for eggs, the batter shouldn't sit out for longer than two hours before baking.

Do brownies continue to cook out of the oven? ›

Follow This Tip: Start testing the brownies with a toothpick a minute or so before you think they're done. Take them out of the oven when there are still some crumbs on the toothpick. The brownies are just about done, and will continue to cook as they cool.

How long to cook brownies in an 8x8 pan? ›

Instructions:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, or 325 for dark-coated or glass pans. Grease bottom only of 8” x 8” pan.
  2. Empty Brownie Mix into large bowl.
  3. Stir egg, water, and oil into Brownie Mix with spoon until well blended (about 50 strokes). ...
  4. Spread into greased pan.
  5. Bake in center of oven, 37 –39 minutes.

How to check if cake is done without a toothpick? ›

Our Favorite Alternative to Toothpicks

Look at your knife set and find the one with the thinnest blade. Then insert the blade into the center of the cake. If the knife comes out clean, the cake is done. If batter or crumbs stick to the blade, let your cake bake a few minutes more and retest with a clean knife.

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