Golden, crispy edges, a gooey center and puddles of melted chocolate, scooped straight from the pan.
A Note From My Kitchen
I love a scoopable cookie, but I don’t always want to turn the oven on for one pan of dessert. So I started making it in the air fryer, and honestly, I think it works even better. The heat circulates around the pan, so the edges turn golden and crisp while the middle stays soft, gooey and slightly underdone.
Instead of baking individual cookies, the dough balls go into a round pan together and bake into one giant cookie. It looks completely over the top, but it takes about thirty minutes, and you scoop it straight into bowls with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
What Is a Scoopable Cookie?
A scoopable cookie (or scoop cookie) is a viral cookie where, instead of spacing out individual cookies, you press all the dough balls into one pan and bake them together. The dough merges into one big cookie that’s intentionally left slightly underdone in the middle, so it’s soft enough to scoop straight from the pan. It’s served warm, usually with ice cream.
This air fryer chocolate chip cookie uses that method, made entirely in the air fryer.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- One giant gooey cookie. Baking the dough balls together gives you crisp golden edges and a soft, underdone center that you scoop into rather than slice.
- Packed with chocolate. A mix of chocolate chips and chopped chocolate chunks means every spoonful has melted chocolate in it. I love using dark, milk and semi-sweet chocolate together.
- Small batch. It makes just enough for two to four people in one pan, with no leftovers going stale.
- Quick and easy. Melted butter means no creaming, and there are no individual cookies to roll and space out. The dough comes together with just a whisk and a spoon.
What Does It Taste Like?
Think of a warm, chewy chocolate chip cookie that’s been baked into a pie. Mostly brown sugar gives it a deep, slightly caramelized flavor, melted butter makes it chewy and fudgy, and the chopped chocolate leaves glossy puddles throughout. A sprinkle of flaky salt on top balances out the sweetness.
Ingredient Notes
The exact measurements are in the recipe card below.
For the Cookie Dough
- Salted butter – melted rather than creamed, which gives a chewier, more fudgy cookie and makes the dough come together easily. If you use unsalted butter, add around ¼ tsp of salt to the dry ingredients.
- Light brown sugar – most of the sugar is brown, for depth of flavor, chewiness and a slightly caramelized taste. Light or dark brown sugar both work.
- Granulated sugar – just a small amount, to help the edges crisp up while the middle stays gooey.
- Egg – one large egg, at room temperature, so it mixes smoothly into the melted butter.
- Whole milk – a splash adds richness and makes the cookie extra soft and chewy. It’s optional.
- Vanilla extract or vanilla paste – optional, but it adds a subtle vanilla flavor.
- All-purpose flour (plain flour) – weigh it if you can (more on that in the tips below).
- Baking soda and baking powder – a small amount of each gives the cookie a little lift and helps the edges puff up and turn golden.
For the Chocolate and Topping
- Chocolate chips – I use a mix of semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips, but use whatever you prefer.
- Chocolate chunks – roughly chopped from a good bar of chocolate, or use chocolate chunk chips. They stay in bigger pieces and melt into glossy puddles. I like dark chocolate here.
- Chocolate buttons (optional) – I add a few larger buttons on top after air frying, just for texture and presentation.
- Flaky salt (optional) – sprinkled on just before serving to balance the sweetness.
Equipment You’ll Need
You’ll need a large mixing bowl for the dough, a medium bowl for the dry ingredients, a whisk, a spoon or rubber spatula for folding, and parchment paper to line the pan.
You’ll also need a small round cake pan that fits inside your air fryer. I use an 8-inch pan. Any basket-style air fryer works, but I personally love using the Our Place Wonder Oven for this.
How to Make an Air Fryer Chocolate Chip Cookie
The full measurements and condensed method are in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
1. Mix the Butter and Sugars
Melt the butter and let it cool slightly. Add it to a large mixing bowl with the light brown sugar and granulated sugar, and whisk until smooth.
Add the egg, milk and vanilla, then whisk again until the mixture is glossy and smooth.
2. Add the Dry Ingredients and Chocolate
In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and baking powder. Add this to the wet mixture along with the chocolate chips and chocolate chunks.
Gently fold everything together until you have a soft, sticky cookie dough. Stop as soon as it comes together.
3. Chill the Dough
Place the dough in the fridge for 20–30 minutes so it firms up slightly and is easier to handle.
4. Shape and Air Fry
Line a small round cake pan with parchment paper and preheat the air fryer to 320°F (160°C) for 5–10 minutes. Split the dough into 7 equal-sized balls and place them together in the pan.
Air fry for about 15–17 minutes, until the edges are golden and crispy but the center still looks slightly underdone and glossy. It keeps cooking as it sits, so don’t wait until it looks fully done.
5. Top and Serve
Top with extra chocolate chips and chocolate buttons, then sprinkle with flaky salt. Let it cool for 3–4 minutes, then scoop straight from the pan into bowls and serve with vanilla ice cream.
Air Fryer Time and Temperature
For this giant air fryer chocolate chip cookie, 320°F (160°C) for about 15 minutes is the sweet spot. That’s lower and slower than you might expect, but it’s intentional. A higher temperature would set the outside too fast and leave the inside raw rather than gooey, while the lower temperature lets the whole cookie bake through gradually and still get golden edges.
Tips for the Best Air Fryer Cookie
- Take it out while it still looks underdone. The edges should be golden and crisp, but the center should look soft, glossy and slightly raw. The cookie keeps cooking from the heat of the pan, so if it looks fully set in the air fryer, the middle will be overdone by the time you eat it. Every air fryer runs a little differently, so start checking at around 12 minutes and add time a minute at a time.
- Let it rest for 3–4 minutes before scooping. This gives the edges time to firm up, so you get clean, gooey scoops instead of a molten puddle.
- Chill the dough before shaping. Straight after mixing, the dough is soft and sticky. 20–30 minutes in the fridge firms it up so it’s easy to roll into balls. If it softens again while you work, pop it back in the fridge for a few minutes.
- Make the dough balls the same size. Use a large cookie scoop or weigh them, so they melt into each other evenly and bake at the same rate.
- Weigh the flour. A kitchen scale gives the most accurate result. If you use cups, the flour measurement in the recipe card is higher than usual because it allows for scooping the flour straight from the bag.
- Fold the flour in gently. Once the dry ingredients go in, mix with a spoon or spatula only until there’s no dry flour left. Over mixing makes the cookie tougher and less chewy.
- Adjust the salt, not the sugar. If you find the cookie too sweet, add a little more salt to the dough. Cutting the sugar changes the chewy, gooey texture.
Make Ahead and Storage
Store: keep any leftovers covered at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Reheat: warm it in the air fryer at 320°F (160°C) for 2–3 minutes to bring back the gooey texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Know When the Cookie Is Done?
After about 15 minutes at 320°F (160°C), the edges should be golden, set and slightly crispy, and the center should still look soft and slightly underdone. It firms up as it rests out of the air fryer.
What Size Pan Do I Need?
A small round cake pan that fits inside your air fryer. I use an 8-inch pan, lined with parchment paper.
Can I Make It Without Milk?
Yes. The milk adds a little extra chewiness and richness, but it’s completely fine to leave it out if you don’t have any or would rather not use it.
Can I Make It Without Brown Sugar?
Yes. Swap it for the same amount of granulated sugar. Brown sugar is what keeps the cookie extra soft and chewy, so with granulated sugar only it will be a little less chewy, slightly crisper and less caramelized in flavor.
Can I Make a Single Serving?
Yes. For one cookie instead of a whole pan, use my single serve chocolate chip cookie recipe, then bake it in the air fryer at 320°F (160°C) for around 15 minutes.
Can I Use Store-Bought Cookie Dough?
Yes. Place it into the lined pan the same way and air fry at 320°F (160°C), but start checking at 10 minutes, since pre-made dough often bakes faster than homemade.
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
For a full batch with no eggs, try my eggless chocolate chip cookies.
If you love the cookie-and-ice-cream combination, my mini cookie pies have golden edges, gooey centers and melted chocolate under a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
And for a few cookies at a time, my small batch chocolate chip cookies are made with brown butter and packed with melty chocolate.
If you love a chewy cookie with a twist, my brown butter coffee cookies are made with espresso.
If you love a chocolatey cookie, my smores cookie recipe adds marshmallow and a biscuit base.
Air Fryer Chocolate Chip Cookies
Gooey, golden air fryer chocolate chip cookies, made as one giant scoopable cookie in a round pan. Loaded with chocolate chips and chunks and finished with flaky sea salt.
- 20 minprep
- 15 mincook
- total
- 4servings
- inactive20 min
ingredients
14 ingredientsCookie dough
- 125g butter, salted (1/2 cup + 1 tbsp)
- 100g light brown sugar (1/2 cup, packed)
- 50g granulated sugar (3 tbsps + 2 tsps)
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tbsp whole milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla paste
- 200g plain flour or all purpose flour (1 cup + 1/4 cup)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 80g dark chocolate, chopped (1/4 cup + 3 tbsps)
- 50g milk chocolate chips (1/4 cup)
- 50g semi sweet chocolate chips (1/4 cup)
- Extra chocolate, for topping
- Flaky salt, for topping
method
15 steps- Melt the butter and set aside to cool slightly.
- Add the melted butter to a large mixing bowl, along with the light brown sugar and the granulated sugar.
- Whisk together the butter and sugars until smooth and combined.
- Add the egg, the milk and the vanilla extract and whisk again until the mixture is glossy and smooth.
- In another bowl, mix together flour, baking soda and baking powder. add this mixture to the wet batter.
- Add the chocolate chips and chopped chocolate chunks.
- Gently fold all of the dry ingredients into the wet batter until you get a soft and sticky chocolate chip cookie dough.
- Place the cookie dough in the fridge for about 20-30 minutes until it firms up slightly so that it's easier to handle.
- Once the cookie dough is ready, remove it from the fridge. split the dough into 7 equal-sized dough balls.
- Line a small round cake pan with parchment paper or baking paper and preheat the air fryer at 160°c (320°f) for 5-10 minutes.
- Add the cookie dough balls to the lined cake tin.
- Air fry the scoop cookie at 160°c (320°f) for about 15-17 minutes, until the edges are golden and crispy but the centre still looks slightly underdone and soft. it will continue to cook a little as it sits, so don't wait until it looks fully done, as you want that gooey centre.
- Remove from the air fryer and top with extra chocolate.
- Sprinkle flaky salt generously over the top.
- Let it cool for just a few minutes, then scoop straight from the pan into bowls, serve with vanilla ice cream and let's eat!
notes
- Baking times will vary depending on your air fryer, so keep an eye on your cookies to ensure that they don't over bake. start checking them at around 12 minutes.
- If using unsalted butter, add around 1/4 tsp of salt to the dry ingredients.
- I'm making these cookies in an 8 inch round pan.
tools
7 tools- large mixing bowl - for the air fryer chocolate chip cookie dough
- medium sized bowl - for the dry ingredients
- whisk - for mixing the wet ingredients
- spoon or rubber spatula - to fold in the dry ingredients
- parchment paper or baking paper - to line your pan
- round cake pan/tin - a small round cake tin that fits inside your air fryer - i'm using an 8 inch pan.
- air fryer - any basket-style air fryer works, but i personally love to use the our place wonder oven for this!
comments
Questions, tips, and kind notes are welcome.