These chocolate chip muffins are a huge hit with my family! They rise into beautiful, tall domes and are wonderfully moist and tender. The sour cream in the recipe is the key to their perfectly soft texture. You’ll absolutely love them!
These chocolate chip muffins are a family favorite for a reason! Thanks to the sour cream in the batter, they’re quick, simple, and incredibly moist. I love the sour cream in this recipe, but you should know I’ve used plain, thick yogurt (like Greek yogurt) and was super happy! Both achieve the same results: big, tall, fluffy, moist, and delicious chocolate chip muffins.
These are perfect for beginners and busy families! I’ve served them on weekends for breakfast instead of pancakes and have even made them for a sweet treat! If you love these, I bet you will also love oursee our highly rated blueberry muffins, these banana muffins with chocolate chips, or these strawberry chocolate muffins!
Key Ingredients
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour, but these muffins work with whole wheat flour, spelt flour, and even an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend (like Bob’s Red Mill).
- Sugar and Vanilla: I use brown sugar to keep these muffins super moist inside. It also adds a toasty caramel flavor, enhanced even more with a generous amount of vanilla extract.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: This muffin batter is thick, so we need a good amount of leavener. That’s why I use both baking powder and baking soda in this recipe.
- Oil: I love how oil makes muffins nice and light in the middle. Vegetable or avocado oil is great, but olive oil also works nicely.
- Egg: Adds structure and flavor to our muffins. If you do not eat eggs, use one flax egg.
- Milk: I usually use whole milk, but reduced-fat milk works fine, too. If you are making these non-dairy, you can substitute your favorite non-dairy milk.
- Sour Cream: As I mentioned above, sour cream or a thick plain yogurt is the secret to the best chocolate chip muffins. I slightly prefer sour cream over yogurt, but both make really delicious muffins! To make this dairy-free, use a plant-based yogurt or sour cream.
- Chocolate Chips: I use semi-sweet chocolate chips, but feel free to use what you love. If you have them, a combination of mini chips and regular chips is amazing. I use this combination when making our chocolate chip banana muffins as well as in our chocolate chip banana bread, and love how the mini chips melt into the batter.
How to Make Chocolate Chip Muffins
Once you try this easy chocolate chip muffin recipe, you’ll want to make them again and again! Just like so many of our muffin recipes, the batter is easy. Whisk flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.
Then, mix vegetable oil, one egg, milk, and vanilla extract for the wet ingredients. Stir them and the sour cream into the dry ingredients, add chocolate chips, and you’re done. I told you it was easy!
I bake my chocolate chip muffins at 400°F for 15 to 20 minutes. The higher oven temperature helps them rise quickly, activating the baking powder in the batter. If you want that perfect looking top, push a few extra chocolate chips on top of each muffin before baking. They won’t sink and will stay on top, giving you that perfect look!
Easy Chocolate Chip Muffins
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
This chocolate chip muffin recipe is super easy to make and makes 10 muffins. Since most standard muffin tins have 12 cups, you will have two empty cups. Alternatively, you can divide the batter between 12 muffin cups and get 12 smaller muffins with smaller tops.
You Will Need
1 ½ cups (195g) all-purpose flour
¾ cup (150g) lightly packed brown sugar
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
⅓ cup (80ml) vegetable oil, safflower oil, or avocado oil
1 large egg
⅓ cup (80ml) milk, use more as needed
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup (113g) sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
¾ cup (127g) chocolate chips, plus 2 tablespoons more for tops
Directions
1Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Line 10 standard-size muffin cups with paper liners.
2Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until well blended.
3Choose a measuring jug that holds at least 1 cup. Add the oil to the jug, and then crack in the egg. Pour in enough milk to reach the 1-cup line on the jug (this should be about ⅓ cup of milk). Add the vanilla extract and whisk until everything is combined.
4Add the milk mixture and sour cream to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir gently until the batter comes together. The batter will be on the thicker side, but if it is hard to stir, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk.
5Fold in the chocolate chips.
6Divide the batter between the muffin cups. (The batter will reach the tops of the paper liners.) Press 3 to 4 extra chocolate chips into the top of each muffin.
7Bake muffins for 15 to 20 minutes or until the tops are no longer wet and a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out with crumbs, not wet batter. Transfer to a cooling rack.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Place cooled muffins in a plastic bag, seal them, and store them at room temperature for up to 3 days. To freeze, wrap them tightly in aluminum foil or place into freezer bags. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Measuring your flour: Fluff the flour in its container, then gently scoop it into your measuring cup until slightly mounded. Level off the top with a knife for accurate measuring. For even more accuracy, use a scale and measure the flour by weight (in grams).
- For mini muffin: Baking time will be less — keep an eye on them while they bake and expect them to take 9 to 11 minutes.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
I tried this recipe last night. They were delicious and so moist as I was hoping. Thank you. I will try next your easy blueberry muffin recipe.
Can I use coconut oil
Yep, but keep in mind it will add a light coconut flavor to the muffins.
Made them in a silicon pan. 4 blueberry walnut. 6 dark chocolate chip walnut. Bringing as a gift.
Will substituting apple sauce for the vegetable oil change the texture of the muffin? Thanks in advance!
Hi Stacey! Curious if you tried them with the applesauce? How did they turn out? Thanks!!
Hi Stacey, The oil keeps these muffins moist. Substituting with apple sauce will definitely change things, but you may still enjoy them. I just cannot say for sure since I’ve always made these per the recipe ingredients listed.
They were perfect. Just what we needed, a little pick me up!Very easy and the chocolate made did the trick.My only tweak was to do part brown and part white sugar (my preference). Thanks for the recipe.
Amazing! ❤️ I love these chocolate muffins – they are the best!! The only thing is that whenever I make them the chocolate chips sink to the bottom of the muffin. Anything I can do to fix this?
Hi, I dust them (or any nuts, fruit, etc.) in flour.
Absolutely beautiful, the best recipe ever wont be using any other recipe, so moist and soft full of chocolate chips ,my family can’t get enough of these, I’ve also done the blueberry muffins and they were so good 😋
Could you substitute Greek yogurt for the sour cream?
Hi Kim, Greek (or other plain) yogurt is an excellent substitution.
Hi from Belgium, This is a really good recipe, they are super moist and not too many chocolate chips, but to be honest i prefer the blueberry ones! Thank you
Excellent! They are delicious, will make them again. Just the right amount of sweet, and the sour cream perfect.
Thanks for the recipe.
My family can’t get enough of these muffins. I have made 3 batches already this week. They are so moist and so unbelievably delicious warm. Try stopping at just one is the problem. This recipe is the best chocolate chip recipe I have ever made and will be the only Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe I make from now on. Thank you
Made blueberry muffins in air oven. Wow so light and fluffy. We loved them
I made these muffins this morning with my two children. The best! An easy recipe to fallow and have fun with the children in the kitchen. The only change I made was the substitution of the brown sugar with white sugar ( did not have it). Also, I used less chocolate chips than required ( personal preference). I certainly make them again. I tried different recipes, but I think this is the winner. I will try to make the blueberry muffins from this website later this week.
Thank you for a great and delicious recipe.
Thank you for this lovely recipe and details about not over-mixing muffin batter!
I used 1/3 Whole Wheat flour, the remaining 2/3 regular all-purpose, and added about 1/3 C of cocoa powder with great results.
These babies rose a LOT for me…like they almost look like Costco muffins when they come out! Those beautiful full domes look amazing, but it does make them seem too big to some lighter eaters to approach (aka dainty ladies at a bridal shower ;).
The muffins were absolutely delicious and easy to make. I used paper liners and had a little problem because the liners became “oily”. How can I avoid this in the future? Thank you!
I realize your comment is like from years ago but just recently stumbled across this recipe and didn’t want to withold a tip that I know for any newcomers like me. Try sprinkling rice at the bottom of each cavity. They will absorbe any oil that’s released from both the muffins and the liners.
Wow! These muffins were amazing! Best chocolate chips muffins I have ever tasted! The only sub I did was to use 1/3 coconut oil instead of vegetable oil. Also, we used our new mini muffin pan and baked them for 10 minutes. Turned out perfect and unbelieveably delicious! Great recipe!!!
Hi, I love your blueberry muffins recipe and can’t wait to try this! Can I skip the baking soda and put in 2 teaspoons of baking powder instead? I don’t really like the taste of baking soda. Thanks!
Hi Jamie, We are thrilled you enjoy the blueberry muffins. We have only used baking soda for this recipe, so it is difficult for us to say how changing to baking powder will affect things. If you want to give it a try, I’d start with 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and go from there.
I have been looking for a chocolate chocolate chip muffin and wasn’t sold on any recipes I was seeing online. So I added 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder to this recipe, and they turned out great! I also sprinkle a little white granulated sugar on the top of each muffin before baking because I love the “crust” it creates. I learned that tip from Adam and Joanne’s blueberry muffins, a favorite around here!
Another 5 star winner! These chocolate chip muffins could not be easier or more delicious. Somehow my batter was a tad soupy..I was a bit concerned but after 20 minutes in the oven out popped 9 of the most gorgeous golden muffins..as always, recipe suggested to cool completely..I can never wait..absolutely amazing warm and still absolutely amazing 10 hours later!
My little ones and I made these last night for breakfast this morning. I am so thrilled to finally have found a muffin they will actually eat. Thank you so much. We had a few of the muffins to develop a hole in the top of the them while they cooled over night. Do you know what I did wrong to cause this? I made jumbo muffins instead of the regular size and I doubled everything.
Hi Suzanne, It is possible that you over mixed the batter when you combined the liquid and dry ingredients. Over mixing can add air bubbles, which will the collapse while baking or in your case cooling. I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed the recipe – holes or not! 🙂
Can the brown sugar be substituted with ordinary granulated sugar?
Just made these with granulated sugar and curds. They are really so yummy! Thanks for the recipe.
The brown sugar keeps the muffins extra moist, but granulated sugar will definitely work if that is all you have.
These muffins are excellent! Any idea of how many calories in each?
I don’t have sour cream and yougurt.
Can i skip this?
Not in this recipe. The sour cream/yogurt adds moisture to the muffins. Buttermilk could work as an alternative.
I just made these to use up some leftover sour cream from taco night! They were so easy to throw together and I had all the ingredients handy. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing this recipe with us! God bless you!:)
Thank you! I’m enjoying my second warm and fresh muffin as I type. I fixed half a batch in my convection toaster oven, making 5 pretty muffins. I used plain yogurt and the texture is lovely and moist.
Beautiful blog, btw.. I found you while searching for a oil version of c.c. muffins. Love your “about page”. You guys are cute together and I love your writing style.
Thanks again for the recipe!
I would love to try this recipe but I would like to also add cherries. Have you ever tried this?
Hi Joanne & Adam, I’ve just made these muffins and they are definitely tasty and certainly moist. My boys said they are the best tasting muffins I’ve made in a long while as my UK muffin recipes haven’t been as good as these, so thank you ?. Your Banana and Chocolate Chip Muffins are a regular feature in our household too. Unfortunately all the chocolate chips sank to the bottom though. I even tossed them in a little flour to ensure they stay dispersed in the batter, a trick that often works hence unsure what went wrong. I also ensured all ingredients were at room temperature. Any thoughts? BTW, stating quantities in grams is bonus, saves me converting, so thank you for that too.
Hi Lina, We are thrilled you enjoy both muffin recipes! As for the chocolate chips sinking on you, you could try using smaller chips or reserve some of the chocolate chips and sprinkle them on top of the muffins before they go into the oven to bake.
Cherries would be a great addition! We haven’t tried it, but think it would be lovely.
Best muffins ever!!! added a 1/4 cup more of chocolate chips microwaved for 20 secs. Yummy in my tummy
Nice! Thanks for coming back and sharing.
Can’t wait to try these! They look so delicious and moist! Since I don’t have sour cream, I’ll use plain yogurt instead.Thanks for sharing!
Yogurt should work out just fine. Hope you love them!
I just thought I would tell you that I have made these many times just as written and they come out perfect every time. In the words of my Grandson…”Nanna, these are just all kinds of deliciousness”….how could I not make them a Sunday morning ritual when they sleep over. Thank you!
You are so welcome. So glad you and your Grandson love them 🙂
I just made these. They are yummy! Thank you for your recipe. 🙂
You are welcome 🙂 Glad you enjoyed them!
Do I have to use sour cream? Could I use something else than plain yogurt, like another cream? (like whipping cream?)
Hi Callie, You could try it, it may work just fine — We have only ever used yogurt or sour cream, though. They react well with the baking soda and makes the muffins light.
Why only 9 muffins? I would love to make a full 12. What can I do to convert?
This recipe makes big muffins, you could divide the recipe into 12 smaller muffins.
Thanks for sharing i definitely love this … with this I was able to make a good muffin for the first time ever.
I made 12 smaller muffins and used 2 egg whites instead of one egg. came out outstanding. I didn’t have muffing cups so I used some olive oil spray. this turned out to be a great dessert for my little one after dinner.
Excellent muffins!! Stayed moist all week long for my kids snack at school. Followed the directions carefully and they came out perfect!