Cookie Science: How Chocolate Chips and Chunks Make Different Chocolate Chip Cookies

Did you know that the chocolate chip cookie is over 80 years old? A wonderful woman named Ruth Wakefield created the original recipe for our beloved treats in the 1930s! I think we can all agree that chocolate chip cookies are completely delicious no matter what… but are chunks better than chips? Let’s dive into why that might be true!

Scientifically, to bake the perfect cookie you need: flour, sugar, butter, egg, and chocolate of some sort. While the ratios of ingredients determine how chewy, thick, thin or crispy the cookie may be, the type of chocolate you use in them determines your entire cookie experience.

Let’s begin with the good ol’ chocolate chips! Chocolate chips are small teardrop shaped chocolate drops and don’t lose their shape once baked. Hence, why they are specifically made for baking. They’re meant to withstand even the highest of heats. So no matter what temperature you bake them at, they will always maintain their little drop shapes. Standard chocolate chips have a higher sugar content and lower cocoa butter content than chocolate bars. They taste much sweeter, making them great for snacking on their own.

Chocolate chunks on the other hand melt smoother and more evenly, creating deliciously decadent pools of gooey chocolate pockets. Chocolate chunks, like baking chocolate for example, are generally of higher quality, resulting in a much more decadent and lavish treat. If you’re using a dough that has a significant amount of sugar, choose a good quality semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate for perfectly rich cookies.

With all of your newfound knowledge about chocolate chip & chunk cookies… which type of cookie recipe will you be bringing into the kitchen this weekend? That’s what the weekends are for, of course!

Check out this video comparing chocolate chunks vs chips:

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About Corinne Quesnel

Corinne is a Vancouver-based writer and home-baker with a passion for the cooking process. She believes that cooking and baking should be an engaging and fulfilling practice, not just another chore. Through writing about healthy and flavorsome meals, Corinne hopes to inspire others to cherish their time in the kitchen as an adventure in creativity and well-being.