The Best EASY Chocolate Cupcakes are moist, have a tender crumb, are deeply chocolatey and made without an electric beater. No waiting for butter to soften, no creaming, the batter is simple and quick to make. Excellent emergency cupcakes!
After Vanilla Cupcakes? Here they are!
Chocolate Cupakes
Using the term “BEST” is not something I do lightly.
I do feel a bit uncomfortable saying that these are the BEST Easy Chocolate Cupcakes. But in the cupcake world, I truly do believe these to be the best that can be for a simple no-standmixer, no creaming butter recipe.
I was back and forth about which cupcake recipe to share. I was tempted to go for a “100% perfect” version which requires a stand mixer / electric beater to cream butter. And I wanted to be able to talk to you about how perfect they are.
But you know what? The Perfect version is not the one I make the most. This Easy version is. It’s my “go to”, the one I can make right now, without waiting for butter to soften, without pulling out my hand beater. And the difference between this Easy version and the Perfect version is so insignificant, I don’t care.
And so it was settled. I went for the Easy version. 🙂
These Chocolate Cupcakes are…
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Soft and tender, not crumbly. Like Red Velvet Cake – it should be “velvety”;
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Moist;
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Actually taste of chocolate (unfortunate many lack this!);
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Delicate, but still be sturdy enough to support a generous pile of frosting; and
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Have a sweet dome, shaped such that it looks nice enough if you just dust with icing sugar / powdered sugar, but flat enough to pipe on tall swirls of frosting.
Being the quick and easy version these are, you’ll notice that the surface of the dome does have some small cracks on it. But for the easy of this recipe, it is a very small price to pay.
Besides, no cupcake ever leaves my kitchen without frosting!!!
Best frosting for Chocolate Cupcakes
Hard to go past chocolate-on-chocolate, but I will put forward some non chocolate options too!
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Chocolate Buttercream – I realise how ironic it is that I’d feature these cupcakes with tall swirls of buttercream frosting which calls for both softened butter and and stand mixer! 😂 But hey, frosting is worth the effort. 😇 Pipe on swirls, or spread on with a knife;
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Speedy Chocolate Fudge Frosting (pictured below, in recipe card) – made with cocoa powder mixed with melted butter, then thickened with icing sugar/frosting until it’s a spreadable consistency, this frosting is quite rich so I’d recommend just spreading onto the cupcakes rather than piping tall swirls;
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Decadent Chocolate Ganache Frosting – made with melted chocolate and cream, this is a deluxe chocolate frosting that I use for my sinfully decadent Chocolate Fudge Cake. Once melted, it’s cooled until it thicken into a spreadable consistency. I don’t recommend piping this on in tall swirls, it would be overly rich I feel!
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Vanilla Buttercream – White frosting on chocolate cupcakes looks striking and makes for a lovely flavour combination! Use the recipe in my Vanilla Cake recipe – it will frost 12 cupcakes generously (tall swirls) though if you just want to smear it on then you can halve the batch; and
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My Secret Less-Sweet Fluffy Vanilla Frosting – this frosting is magical! It’s like a cross between whipped cream and buttercream. Far less sweet and fluffier than buttercream, and it’s also 100% silky smooth (buttercream will always have a faint grit to it, the icing sugar/powdered sugar never fully dissolves). Dense than whipped cream, and unlike whipped cream, it holds its form for days.
I’ve shared the Chocolate Buttercream Frosting in a separate post because I think it’s worthy of being a separate recipe. 🙂 Also because I’ve done a video for that too – I didn’t want to cram it into the cupcake recipe video.
The weekend is here!! Do I hear chocolate cupcakes calling your name?? I think I do….. 😉 – Nagi xx
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Best Easy Chocolate Cupcakes recipe video!
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Best Easy Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
Dry:
- 3/4 cup plain/all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup caster sugar (super fine sugar, or sub with normal white sugar)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda / bi carbonate soda (Note 1)
- Pinch of salt
Wet:
- 120g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into 1" / 2cm pieces (1 US stick / 1/2 cup)
- 60g / 2 oz dark chocolate , preferably 70%+ cocoa, broken into pieces (Note 2)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder , preferably Dutch processed (Note 3)
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil (or other neutral flavour oil)
- 2 large eggs (55 - 60g / 2 oz each)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
Chocolate Fudge Frosting:
- 120g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into 1" / 2cm pieces (1 US stick / 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder , preferably Dutch processed
- 2 1/2 cups soft icing sugar / powdered sugar (NOT pure icing sugar)
- 3 - 4 tbsp milk (any)
- Sprinkles and other decorations, if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan). Put oven rack in the middle of the oven.
- Place 12 cupcake liners in a cupcake tin.
- Sift Dry ingredients into a bowl. Whisk briefly.
- Place butter and chocolate in a separate, large heatproof bowl. Microwave for 45 seconds, mix, then microwave for another 30 seconds. Mix until chocolate is melted and smooth (keep microwaving in 20 sec bursts if chocolate not melted).
- Add cocoa powder and mix.
- Add milk and oil, then eggs, vanilla and vinegar. Whisk until smooth.
- Add flour mixture and whisk until lump free.
- Divide mixture between cupcake liners. I use a ice cream scoop for this. They should be just over 3/4 full.
- Bake for 18 - 20 minutes, or until skewer inserted into the cupcake in the middle of the tray comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and immediately transfer to cooling rack (spoon or knife helps).
- Once cool, spread with frosting and decorate with sprinkles if desired. Alternatively, use Chocolate Buttercream Frosting!
Speedy Chocolate Fudge Frosting:
- Melt butter then mix in cocoa powder until smooth.
- Add icing sugar and milk. Mix until smooth. Use milk to adjust consistency if required - it should be a soft spreadable consistency (like peanut butter).
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
No chocolate cupcake for Dozer. Bad for you! How about a giant bone instead? (Mind you, it’s a dry aged one from a fancy butcher. Got it for free! 💪🏻)
Do you have any recipes that are gluten free? Desserts?
Try these! N x https://www.recipetineats.com/brownies-fudgey-easy-gluten-free/. https://www.recipetineats.com/italian-almond-cookies-ricciarelli/
This is definitely a recipe to keep in the arsenal. Much simpler than having to get out the stand mixer, but yields an excellent, moist chocolatey cupcake with a yummy crunchy crust. I used buttermilk instead of milk and vinegar which I think worked well.
These were easy and delicious!
Can a stand mixer be used to make this recipe
Hi Kim – you can use one on low if you like but they are also easily mixed by hand! N x
Hi Nagi! I just wanted to thank you for this amazing cupcake recipe. I’ve made several of your recipes now and they are always soooo yummy. I also love your dog, he is so cute! I have found myself coming directly to your website when I want a good baking recipe for something, and if anyone ever asks, I will definitely be recommending this website! I hope you are well! ^_^
Hi Nagi,
I LOVE LOVE this cupcake recipe. Definitely the best I have made and tried so far. I was wondering if I could use this recipe to make a cake? Could I double it to make 2x 8inch cakes?
Thank you so much for everything!
This is a fabulous recipe. I subbed buttermilk for the milk and vinegar as I was unsure of the purpose of the vinegar. I also used semisweet (45%) chocolate and normal cocoa and the cakes still had a lovely chocolate flavour. I used muffin tins and the amount of mixture was perfect for 12 and needed 22 minutes to cook in my oven. The cakes had a soft even texture and I topped them with ganache. Best cupcakes i have made in a long time.
Hi Nagi,
Do you think egg replacers will work for this recipe? I really want to bring them for our Christmas lunch, but my daughter has an egg allergy.
Thank you
Great cup cakes , next time I would reduce the amount of frosting by half – I had lots left over
I made these but it the cupcake cracked on top, it’s didn’t make 12 and took longer than 18min. Ideas on what went wrong?
Hi Robyn – it sounds like they baked too long and were too big perhaps? You are meant to divide the batter between the 12 cupcake liners and that size should take 18 minutes and not crack. N x
Has anyone substituted the milk and vinegar for buttermilk… Does it work as well!!!???
I substituted the milk with buttermilk as I was not sure about adding the vinegar and the cakes worked out fine. In fact I think that this is a fabulous recipe and I will continue to use buttermilk and omit the vinegar.
Thanks Rosie. I ended up doing likewise and turned out fantastic. I also added a little instant coffee to the fudge icing… It was amazing!!!
Thanks Nagi for the recipe
So delicious! Thank you Nagi
You are the best! I am starting a stall called charming cupcakes and these are go to for my customers thanks so much😁
Omg this is amazing nagi your recipes are amaze gaze! I just have a question what is a replacement for the part where you melt the chocolate and butter becuase i dont have chocolate
Can you tell me please what’s is the secret of making your cupcakes flat mine comes with a dome thank you.
Hi Nagi,I made this amazing chocolate cupcake it’s was very delicious the test it’s like cafes promise you guys try only this recipe you will blow your family and friends same thing wit red velvet 🤍
Thanks! N x
Hi Nagi, I can’t wait to make these as a gift for my friends (maybe only 10 will make it into the box ;-))
Quick question – how do you think it would go with cacao powder instead of cocoa powder? Google tells me they’re interchangeable, but I only really trust you on these things.
Thank you!
These choc cupcakes are amazing. Love this recipe. Everyone that’s tried them each time I’ve baked them think they are the most delicious light tasty cupcakes ever. Always an OMG response worth using the cocoa powder & choc that’s recommended
Excellent! Fluffy, moist chocolatey, not too sweet, and quick and easy to make. My new go—to ( as are an ever-increasing number of Nagi‘s recipes!)
Hi Nagi, this choc cupcake recipe is just wonderful. I have just baked for my beautiful 7 yr old grandson for a treat while in lockdown. Thank you for your recipes/website. Just love it!! Kind Regards
Chrissy a co.
Hi Nagi, I was just wondering how did you make these cupcakes? Usually, in vanilla cupcakes or something like that there are connections e.g 180g self-raising flour, 180g caster sugar, 180g butter. I would really like to know how you came up with this because I’m a keen baker who wants to learn especially from a professional baker.