3 Ingredient Chewy Brownies (No Flour, Butter or Oil)
These brownies are so fudgy and chewy. They taste like box mix brownies but better and you only need 3 simple ingredients. You don’t need flour, butter or oil and you don’t even need a mixer. The brownies are rich and chocolatey and will satisfy your brownie cravings.
I’ve made a lot of brownies from scratch throughout the years but I can never resist box mix brownies. They are just so incredibly chewy and fudgy and made-from-scratch brownies never seem to achieve that same texture. Until now. These brownies are as chewy, fudgy and sweet as box mix brownies but they don’t need a lot of ingredients. You likely already have all the ingredients in your kitchen.
Ingredients
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Powdered Sugar
- Egg Whites
Unsweetened cocoa powder: I have only tested these with dutch process cocoa powder. I prefer dutch process because I think it gives these brownies a richer chocolate flavor and color.
Powdered Sugar: These brownies are sweetened with powdered sugar, also known as confectioners’ sugar. Do not use regular sugar because it will make the brownies grainy and will affect the chewiness of the brownies.
Egg Whites: The key to the very chewy texture of these brownies is using just egg whites, no yolks. You do not need to beat the egg whites either. I used eggs straight from the fridge.
How to Make 3 Ingredient Brownies
The cocoa powder and sugar are first whisked together until they are evenly mixed. The egg whites are stirred in until your batter is smooth. The brownie batter is then ready to be poured into your baking pan and baked in the oven.
Brownie Texture
These brownies have a very chewy, slightly firm texture. Think the corner pieces when you make box mix brownies. They are also very fudgy. The top shiny crinkle layer is thicker than most box mix brownies. It adds a bit of texture to these brownies.
More Easy Brownie Recipes
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- Healthy Brownies
3 Ingredient Brownies
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp (37 g) unsweetened dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cup (158 g) powdered sugar
- 2 large egg whites, (see notes)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8 ½ inch by 4 ½ inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- Add cocoa powder and powdered sugar to a large mixing bowl. Mix together with a whisk until evenly combined.
- Add in egg whites. Whisk in egg whites until batter becomes smooth and thick. Because this batter has very little liquid, it may seem like you don't have enough liquid at first but as you continue to incorporate the egg whites into the dry mixture, it will turn into a thick batter. See recipe notes for more tips.
- Pour batter into prepared baking pan. Bake for about 20-25 minutes. Insert a toothpick to check for doneness. The batter should not be liquid but the crumbs will stick to the toothpick when the brownies are ready. As the brownies cool, they will shrink. See notes for tips for keeping the brownies from shrinking too much when they cool. Let brownies cool fully before cutting and serving.
Notes
- I have also made this recipe with 3 egg whites instead of 2. If you use 3, your brownies will be a little softer. They are still chewy but the texture will be more like the center brownie pieces instead of the firmer and super chewy corner pieces. The shiny surface will also be thinner and not quite as shiny and crackly. The batter is much thinner if you use 3 egg whites and is easier to mix. You will need to bake the brownies for about 25 minutes if you use 3 egg whites.
- If you don't feel like you have enough liquid in your batter (and you're doing the 2 egg white version), either you have not mixed long enough or you overpacked your dry ingredients. You can always add a little more egg white until your batter is wet enough to mix.
- Because there is very little liquid in this batter you do need to be careful with your ingredient measurements. Powdered sugar often gets clumped up when stored. Make sure your powdered sugar is powdery before measuring it for the recipe. When you measure out your powdered sugar, use a spoon to spoon it into your measuring cup and then level off the surface with a knife. Do not directly scoop your measuring cup into your powdered sugar container because this will cause you to overpack your sugar. The cocoa powder should also be measured the same way to prevent overpacking.
- This recipe may appear to contain a lot of sugar but keep in mind that it is using powdered sugar. 1 cup of granular sugar will make about 1 3/4 cups of powdered sugar.
- The brownies will initially be puffy when they come out of the oven but they will condense as they cool to become fudgy. As they shrink, the sides of the brownies tend to collapse inward. To prevent this from happening too much, I like to lift the brownies out of the baking pan (by grabbing the parchment paper) after they are done baking and then apply light pressure around the edges, pushing them down and outward. This will help counter the effect of the edges shrinking inward. This is not a necessary step but it does make the brownies have a more even surface when you cut them so that they don't all have edges that stick up.
- You can also bake these in an 8 x 4 inch pan (though your brownie squares will be smaller) or a 9 x 5 inch pan (your brownies will be thinner). Baking time will need to be adjusted. You can also double the recipe and bake in an 8 x 8 inch pan.
I tried making this last night. It was a complete disaster. I used an 8×8-inch baking pan, doubling the ingredients as was suggested. The batter was thick, as was stated in step 5. However, it wasn’t fully cooked at 25 minutes; the tester I inserted came out with raw batter on it. I tried baking it for another 10 minutes with the same result.
So, I baked it for another 15 minutes, thinking that I should double the baking time because I’d doubled the ingredients. The result was not good. The top is crunchy and hard, breaking into pieces as if the brownie had “erupted”, and the interior was still slightly raw. It also adheres to the paper; no amount of sawing or cooling will let me peel it from the parchment.
If you double the recipe and bake in an 8 x 8 pan, you should not need to double the baking time because the batter thickness is close to the same as the original recipe. The baking time might be a few minutes longer but that is all. So doubling the baking time likely is what caused issues for you. The brownies should also not be cooked until they are fully cooked because they will continue to firm up as they cool. Some of the batter should stick to the tester but it should be like wet crumbs and not just very liquidy batter.
I made these brownies and I didn’t care for them that much. I decided to try the recipe again but I substituted the brown sugar in place of the powdered sugar. They were great.. I ended up eating all the brownies myself. I did share them with everyone the next time I made them. As a matter of fact I’m about to whip up a batch now!!
Thanks for sharing your feedback!
These 3-Ingredient Anti-Inflammatory Brownie Recipes Are Packed With Protein
One of the 3 ingredients is 1½ cups of powdered sugar. Sugar is a big inflammatory ingredient. I’m confused.
That is from an article that was written by someone else who made the recipe. We don’t claim that they are anti-inflammatory.
I made them….the taste was just , ok.
Didnt taste anything like a brownie to me.
The powder sugar taste was very strong.
Disappointed
We’re sorry you didn’t enjoy the brownies. You might like our classic fudgy brownie recipe instead.
Baked for 25 minutes they were hard on top and bottom but completely wet in center. Tried for another 5 minutes and no change. Then 5 more and still seemed completely raw in the middle.
Did you use dutch process cocoa powder or did you use natural cocoa powder? I haven’t tested with natural but I don’t think it will work the same as dutch process for this particular recipe which is why the recipe says to use dutch process
These recipes sound so yummy. Can’t wait to try them.
We hope you love the brownies!
What? Is ingredient amounts not important? They sound great bt would have to trial and error lots, without amounts given.
All of the ingredient amounts are in the recipe card at the end of the post. You scrolled past it to leave your comment.
I cannot emphasize enough how good this recipe is. Considering the fact that it only requires such minimal effort and ingredients, some may be doubtful but it actually works! I’m a skilled baker and I’ve made dozens of brownies from scratch and the only good ones were the ones with a nice shiny thick crust on the top. Only real way to get that top is incorporating melted chocolate but I don’t always have that on hand. This recipe however called for only cocoa powder and I got that shiny crispy top! Plus it may seem too sweet but it’s really important to have this much sugar to get the right texture. Using dutch processed cocoa powder really helps here too since it’s much more fatty and intense than natural cocoa. Thanks for the recipe, I’ll definitely be using more of it in the future.
We’re so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
It’s so simple
We’re glad you enjoyed them!
Would honey work instead of powdered sugar?
No, honey won’t work.
I swirled the batter with the batter fir your three ingredient peanut butter recipe in a 9X5-inch pan. I mixed them separately and alternated dollops into the pan. Then I used my spatula to swirl them. I baked them at 350-degree for 26 minutes. They are so good.
I used your exact recipe when making the batter. Thank you so much for sharing.
That’s so great! Thanks for sharing that – we’re glad it worked for you.
I haven’t tried them yet, but I’m wondering if they can be frozen to enjoy at a later time.
We haven’t tried freezing them, but it should be okay. Just keep them tightly wrapped.
Can you use powdered Monkfruit sweetener in place of the Confectioners sugar?
We haven’t tried it so can’t say if you’ll need to adjust the amount or how it will work.
I am really looking forward to trying this
We hope you love the recipe!
Hi! I was wondering how many servings you count per batch when you list nutrition facts for 1 brownie (like how many would I cut total to have that nutrition info?) thank you!!
The recipe makes 8 brownies – this info is in the recipe card.
Can I use monkfruit powdered sugar to make them keto friendly?
Sorry, but we haven’t tried that – you might like our Keto Brownies instead.
I live in Cape Coast, Ghana. We do not have confectioners sugar. We have “icing sugar” which is for cooked icing. We have castor sugar which is very fine grain white sugar. I find that when I use the “icing sugar” in recipes that call for 10X confectioners sugar, the texture is gritty and too sweet. Can I use the castor sugar in this recipe? I have a freezer full of egg whites and want to use them. Could I grind the castor sugar in my mini food processor? Thanks!
Sorry, but we’re not sure what substitute would work best if icing sugar doesn’t. You could try grinding the castor sugar to get it finer, but can’t say for sure how that will work in the recipe.
Hi Patti, you can put 2 cups of sugar and 2 tablespoons of corn starch in your food processor to make confectioners sugar. You could probably use castor sugar but I don’t know if that would lower the amount of corn starch you would need
Could yo please amend the recipe for the majority of home cooks who use 8”x8” pans?? Why the heck would anyone have a 4.5×8.5??
DO you ever make bread or quick bread? A 8×4 or 8.5×4.5 is very common loaf pan size. The recipe can be made in either. I also state in the notes that the recipe can be doubled for an 8 x 8 pan.
You sound delicious, however I am in wheat workers and was hoping you could help me with converting this to points. Thank you very much
Sorry, we don’t have the weight watchers points for our recipes.
Hi Jennifer,
I’m on WW as well. You need to “create the recipe” in your WW app to get the Personal Points. I get 17 dailies and after putting this in my app it’s 7 points. The recipes sounds great and I have another brownie recipe in my WW app where the brownies are only 1 PP but I’m looking through the site now for that recipe. Hope this helps.
Can i use the yolks too?
using yolks would completely change the texture
Can a 1:1 powdered sweetener, like Lakanto or Swerve, be used in place of regular powdered sugar for these? Looking to reduce carbs and these sounds like they would be a great treat.
Unfortunately no. Powdered Swerve doesn’t melt the same way regular confectionary sugar does. I am working on trying to make a keto version though
Hi, thank you so much for sharing this recipe
I hope you enjoy!
Any idea if this recipe would work with a sugar substitute such as swerve?
Unfortunately it won’t work with confectionary swerve. I am working on creating a keto version though
would more like this please
We have lots of recipe with 4 Ingredients or Less you should check out!
Quick and easy, I like it
Sounds Great.
These did not turn out so great for us. I followed the recipe to a T. Was sad because they smelled heavenly. Maybe I’ll give it a second try.
Can you elaborate why they didn’t turn out great? Did they not set?
I like the fact it has no flour.Especially when you ensure everything to begin with.Heathly and gluten free. I’ll baking them today
Let us know what you thinK!
Healthy?
Question . Is it one AND 1/2 cups sugar or 1/2 cup?
The amount is 1 and 1/2 cup sugar.
Have you tried these with honey or any other sweetener?
We have only tested the recipe with powdered sugar.
Very good for those midnight craving get your desire in about 45 minutes when completely cool all steps finished not bad for sexy chocolate lovers lol ?
I’m glad you liked it!
It came out so perfect and I have liked it so much easy to make and tests good
I’m glad it worked out for you!
Is it possible to make this with Swerve sugar free powdered sugar?
Unfortunately it won’t work with confectionary swerve. I am working on creating a keto version though
Could you replace the powder sugar with an alternative to make it Low Carb or Keto friendly?
Unfortunately it won’t work with something like confectionary swerve. I am working on creating a keto version though
Okay, they are definitely fudgy, which I love. Pros: they come together quickly, they are a small batch (a definite plus), and they are tasty. Cons: they took much longer than 25 minutes not to be complete liquid with the toothpick test (I took them out at 37 minutes and let them cool and solidify a bit more in the pan), they aren’t as shiny as I thought they would be (although they have a nice crackled top), and boy they are sweet, which I should have expected given the amount of sugar. Will I make them again? Probably. I may juggle the amount of sugar and substitute in some pulverized oatmeal to keep the toothiness but make them less sweet.
Hi, if you make the 2 egg version you’ll get a thick layer of shiny crust. But the 3 egg version doesn’t have as much of a shiny surface as stated in the recipe notes. I’m not sure why yours took so long to bake. Mine were done at 25 minutes.
I love this recipe because you can very easily substitute confectionery swerve for sugar and make it keto friendly.
Unfortunately it won’t work with confectionary swerve. I am working on creating a keto version though
I love so many of your recipes and am looking forward to trying this one. Do you think aquafaba could be substituted for the egg whites? I would like to begin using it in more of my cooking. Thank you!
Sorry I’m not sure
Will using less sugar or a sugar substitute work for this recipe?
We don’t recommend changing the amount of sugar or using a sugar alternative.
What is the measurement for 3 Ingredient brownie
All of the measurements are listed in the recipe card at the end of the post.
Please put a warning at the beginning not to use Swerve. I rarely read comments unless I am making one. Boy…it was awful. It was all powder like and not chewy at all. What wasn’t powdery was crunchy. I ate one anyway but the Swerve also makes a cold sensation in your mouth. Next time, regular powdered sugar and the reading of comments.
We would have included it as a possible substitute if we thought it would work. It’s safe to assume that if we don’t mention a sub then we haven’t tested the recipe with it. We’re always happy to answer questions, so feel free to drop us a comment if you have questions about substitutes before making a recipe.
Thank you