Why chocolate chunks are better than chocolate chips

One of the staples of every baker’s pantry is a substantial bag of chocolate chips. They’re necessary to keep on hand for any emergency chocolate chip cookie scenarios that might come up, and they’re uniform size makes using them a breeze.

So, what would ever make us argue that chocolate chips require substitution? After all, chopped chocolate requires more effort on your part. The results are not usually perfectly uniform, even if you have unparalleled knife skills. Your cutting board will look like you murdered a chocolate bar in cold blood.

While the deck seems stacked at this point against chopping chocolate, don’t count it out yet. It might be a labor of love, but the results are worth it. We’re going to tell you why you should use chopped chocolate in your recipes, how to make the switch, and which recipes will see the most benefit.

Why bother?

The first question you probably have on your mind is, why? Aren’t chocolate chips essentially chopped chocolate anyway? If those are your questions, we can only assume you’ve never tasted something with chopped chocolate. There is a difference in how the chocolate reacts during the baking process, packing more of a chocolate punch in each bite. Because chocolate bars have more cocoa butter than chips do, the chunks get more gooey when heated. If you’re looking for those melty pockets of chocolate in your cookies or brownies, the best way to achieve that is with chopped chocolate.

Another big factor is taste. Everyone has a favorite type of chocolate. Usually the chips you buy in the grocery store are not just uniform in color - they’re uniform in flavor, too. When you use chopped chocolate, you can select the bar you enjoy the most and that will work best with your recipe. You even have the opportunity to experiment with flavor by choosing a flavored bar.

How do you make the substitution?

Now that we’ve surely convinced you to start using chopped chocolate instead of chocolate chips, let’s understand how to use it in recipes. This is a one for one substitution, which makes life easy. The best way to measure it is to use a kitchen scale. You should try to use a scale in all of your baking recipes if possible, but it’s especially important here. One measuring cup full of chocolate chips may end up weighing more than a cup of chocolate chunks because the chunks are usually bigger and don’t fill up the gaps as easily.

When chopping your chocolate, you can make clean-up easier by using a piece of parchment paper on top of your cutter board and gloves for your hands. Don’t forget that chocolate melts, so it will get on pretty much anything. Try to not wear your white sweater when you’re cutting up the chocolate bar.

You can of course use the chocolate chunks in chocolate chip cookie recipes, but don’t limit yourself. They will be exceptional in brownies for an intense chocolate experience. You can also try them in chocolate chip banana bread or even homemade ice cream. The key is to not limit yourself - if a recipe calls for chocolate chips, give it a try!