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My salted caramel chocolate chip cookies are thick and chewy with tons of dark chocolate and gooey caramel. This easy recipe doesn't require a long chill time and looks like they came from a local bakery!

a chocolate chunk cookie with caramel bits topped with flaky sea salt.

Cookies are my favorite thing to bake. I've shared over 50 cookie recipes so far including easy brownie mix cookies, birthday cake cookies, and over the top creations like Buckeye cookies. These salted caramel chocolate chip cookies are on my all time faves! They're so soft and chewy. Best of all they only need one bowl and less than an hour. Serve warm with a tall glass of ice cold milk.

Why Our Recipe Is the Best: A Sprinkle of Food Science

We Use a 2:1 Ratio of Brown Sugar To White Sugar: The molasses in brown sugar attracts water keeping the cookies chewy and preventing them from drying out.
We Add An Extra Egg Yolk: This extra fat makes the cookies super rich and chewy.
We Freeze The Dough: This firms the butter so the cookies are thicker and spread less.
We add some chocolate chips and caramel bits on top for a bakery style finish.

Ingredient Notes and Shopping Tips

Butter: I like using unsalted butter so I can control the salt level as it varies between brands and sometimes even batch by batch. Make sure your butter is softened to room temp. It should be soft enough that you can make a dent with your finger but not melted.
Flour: Be sure to measure your flour by spooning it into your measuring cup and leveling it with a knife. Do not dip the cup into the flour or you risk over measuring.
Baking Soda: It loses its effectiveness over time. I like to write the date I open it on the box in Sharpie and toss it once it's 6 months old. Not sure if yours is fresh? It should fizz when mixed with vinegar.
Vanilla: This recipe is great with my homemade vanilla.
Eggs: Bring eggs to room temp. to help them incorporate smoothly. A hour on the counter is my preferred method. You can also dunk them in a glass of warm (not hot!) water.
Chocolate Chunks: I used Ghirardelli dark chocolate, but semisweet will also work.
Caramel Bits: I used Kraft. Look for them in the baking aisle near the chocolate chips. Do not use chopped up caramel candy as they lack stabilizers that help them hold their shape when baked.

a 2 image collage showing how to make salted caramel chocolate chip cookie dough and add the mix ins.

Krystle's Tips: Steal My Culinary School Secrets

Don't Overmix: Mix until the flour just disappears or the cookies can become tough and dense.
Don't Overbake: It's okay if the center still looks a little underdone. The cookies will continue to cook and firm up on the hot pan as they cool.
Always Use a Cookie Scoop: This gives you pretty cookies, but more important it helps them all finish baking at the same time.
Don't Skip Cooling Them On the Pan: This also prevents the delicate cookies from falling apart and prevents your next batch from going onto a scorching hot pan.
Your Pan Matters: Dark pans absorb more heat which can burn the bottoms. Use a light colored pan if possible.