Table of Contents
- 1 Does refrigerating cookie dough make a difference?
- 2 Do you chill cookie dough in fridge or freezer?
- 3 Does refrigerated cookie dough take longer to bake?
- 4 How long should I chill cookie dough before baking?
- 5 Should you chill cookie dough before baking?
- 6 How long should you refrigerate cookie dough before baking?
Popping your dough in the fridge allows the fats to cool. As a result, the cookies will expand more slowly, holding onto their texture. If you skip the chilling step, you’re more likely to wind up with flat, sad disks instead of lovely, chewy cookies. Cookies made from chilled dough are also much more flavorful.
Most recipes recommend chilling cookie dough for several hours in the refrigerator, but the good news is that you can use your freezer in a pinch. Better Homes and Gardens says that you can freeze cookie dough for one-fourth of the recommended refrigeration time with good results.
Frozen or chilled dough will take longer than room temperature dough to bake. Just keep an eye on the cookies as they bake and remove them when they start to color around the edges and lose their raw shine in the middle. Dessert Cookie: Bake until just cooked through and no longer raw in the middle.
How does temperature affect cookie dough?
The higher the temperature, the less your cookie will spread. Because the higher temperature causes the cookies to firm faster (aka set faster) and this prevents spreading. Cookies baked at 375 degrees F will have a thicker, chewier bottom.
Should refrigerated cookie dough be brought to room temperature before baking?
So chilling the dough before baking means fluffier cookies with better consistency. Plus, if you have a bowl of dough ready in the refrigerator, it’s much easier to scoop while chilled than at room temperature. So not only is the cookie’s consistency going to be more even, but the actual flavor will be better, too!
As a general rule of thumb, you should refrigerate cookie dough for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. More than that and you won’t see a noticeable difference in the final product, says Haught Brown.
Chilling cookie dough before baking solidifies the fat in the cookies. As the cookies bake, the fat in the chilled cookie dough takes longer to melt than room-temperature fat. And the longer the fat remains solid, the less cookies spread.
How long should refrigerated cookie dough sit out before baking?
As a general rule of thumb, you should refrigerate cookie dough for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
Should you put cookie dough in the fridge before baking?