Undercooked Brownies – Can You Eat Them + How to Fix Them
Mmmmm… can you smell that? It smells like brownies right out of the oven!
It’s time to dig in, but when you slice into the center piece, you notice that it’s still a little bit gooey in the middle. For some people, this moment will deflate their excitement. Others might decide to just go ahead and eat it anyway.
The fact is, if the brownies are still gooey, they are probably undercooked. Maybe you undercook your brownies on purpose because you like them a little bit gooey or fudgy. Or perhaps you prefer your brownies fully cooked and fluffy.
We all have our own preferences, but it’s a good idea to at least understand whether the undercooked brownies are safe.
Can you fix and/or eat undercooked brownies? The good news is that if your brownies are just slightly undercooked, they are probably just fine to eat. The other good news is that if you don’t want them undercooked, you can still fix your brownies with no issues. It’s a win-win!
In this guide, we will share with you all of the details about eating undercooked brownies and dig a little deeper into the safety concerns of doing so.
We will also share some pro tips with you on how to fix undercooked brownies if you prefer not to eat them that way.
Stick with us to learn more about undercooked brownies and what to do next.
Can You Eat Undercooked Brownies?
In most cases, people would tell you not to eat undercooked brownies. Just like they recommend you don’t eat cookie dough or cake batter. Most likely, your brownie recipe required eggs to create the recipe before you baked the brownies.
Whether you made them from scratch or whipped up a box mix, they all call for eggs. When you eat raw eggs, you could potentially subject your body to things like E. coli or salmonella. These are obviously no fun so it’s better to avoid them.
But do you want to know a little secret? You probably are fine to eat undercooked brownies.
Here’s the thing. If you used store-bought eggs, those eggs are pasteurized. It could be another story if you’re eating farm fresh eggs, so that is a consideration. However, pasteurized eggs are far less likely to cause issues.
There is one other point to make here too. We’re talking about undercooked brownies and not about just pure, raw brownie batter. In this case, the brownies are almost fully cooked all of the way through, but we’re guessing they’re still just a little gooey in the center areas.
The batter has been mostly cooked, so in this case, you probably will not have to worry about any issues if you decide to eat the undercooked brownies as-is.
If you feel a little bit better after reading this detail but you’re still not quite ready to eat undercooked brownies, there are plenty of options to fix your brownies as well!
How to Tell if Brownies Are Undercooked
Okay, so the big question is, how can you really tell if your brownies are done or if they are undercooked?
According to the CDC, they recommend making sure the internal temperature of any dish with eggs reaches 160°F.
You don’t have to check the temperature of your brownies for safety, but you certainly can if it eases your mind. Those rules are in regards to dishes that are primarily made up of eggs, but you can apply them here as well.
There is more than one way to tell if your brownies are undercooked. The first method is a simple visual. If you look at the cake and it’s shiny or has a liquid look to it, it still has a lot of cooking to go. This is one of the more obvious signs.
However, as your brownies cook, the top will start to look done, so you really can’t tell as easily with this visual.
The top finishes cooking before the middle and the bottom of the brownies finish – that’s just the way it works. It heats from the top and somewhat from the bottom, towards the center.
So how can you tell if the center is done when the top and the bottom look like they are done?
There are still a few visual cues you can look for here. For example, if the top of the brownies starts cracking just slightly, this is a good indication they are finished. The recommended cooking times are usually pretty close so set your timer and follow those times.
Another great way to test the center is to grab a toothpick or even a slim knife. Pull your rack backward out of the oven and poke these gently through the center of the brownies.
When you pull them out, do they have gooey brownie residue on them? If so, your brownies still need some time but they are probably getting close!
If you feel like your edges are getting too done but the center isn’t finished, you can turn your temperature down by about 25°F and this will help.
If you already pulled the brownies out of the often and now you want to fix them, no worries! There are several ways to fix your undercooked brownies if you don’t want them gooey. That’s what we’re talking about next!
How to Fix Undercooked Brownies
If you let your brownies rest and cool down and then cut into them only to realize they are not as done as you want them to be, don’t sweat it!
You might be ready for that brownie treat right this second, but if you’re willing to wait just a little bit longer, you can go ahead and get the brownies cooked all the way through.
Do you want to know the best part? There is more than one way to fix brownies that are undercooked. You’re not tied to just one method to fix the issue; you have options.
Probably the easiest and most common way to fix undercooked brownies is to simply put them back in the oven, but there are a couple of other options you could try as well.
1. Fixing Undercooked Brownies in the Oven
The process that makes the most sense is to fix your brownies in the oven. You can just take the entire pan and put it back in the oven to take care of all of the parts that might be undercooked.
Even if the brownies have been out of the oven for a little while, you can still use this method. It’s simple and effective. Think of it like you just didn’t finish cooking them, so you are going to resume the baking process.
Like we said, it’s okay if your brownies have been out of the oven for a bit. This will still help finish cooking them.
As long as you store them safely in the meantime, you can finish cooking them. If you’re not sure how to store brownies, we’ve got another informative article waiting for you.
In order to bake in the oven until done, you can follow these steps:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. If you feel like your edges are going to be too done, you can reduce this to 325°F instead.
- Once the oven is heated, place the pan of brownies back in.
- Start with a 3-5-minute window for baking the brownies. Chances are they really only need a couple of minutes so we recommend checking them at the 3-minute mark. From there, you will only want to cook a couple of minutes at a time to finish cooking the brownies to perfection.
- Remove from the oven and do the toothpick check when the brownies appear to be done.
- Let the brownies cool slightly before slicing and eating.
If the brownies are just slightly soft in the middle but not really gooey or runny, they will often finish cooking right after taking them out of the oven because the heat is still working.
In fact, some bakers would tell you this is the prime time to remove them so they don’t get hard after coming out of the oven!
And if after all that you come out with the opposite problem you had before, we have another article on how to soften hard brownies.
2. Fixing Undercooked Brownies in the Microwave
Another great option if you don’t want to put the whole pan back in the oven is to just use the microwave.
The microwave works really well if the brownies are mostly done but just need a little extra help. It can also be useful when most of the brownies are cooked through but the center brownies need some help.
With the microwave, you can just put a few brownies in there at once to finish the necessary cooking and get your brownies ready to eat. It also warms them up so they’re perfectly warm and soft to enjoy!
You just need a microwave-safe plate or pan to heat them in. This process is really easy and it’s also really quick if you need a faster solution as well.
We recommend this process when you need a quick fix or really don’t need to put the full pan of brownies back in the oven.
Here are some steps that you can follow for the process:
- Place the brownies on a microwave-safe pan or plate. I use these ones from Amazon!
- If you can adjust your heat settings, we recommend adjusting them to medium heat.
- Close the microwave door and set your microwave for 30 seconds.
- Check the brownies after 30 seconds to see if they are appropriately done.
- If the brownies are done now, go ahead and remove them from the microwave. If they need additional time, continue to cook them in 30-second intervals until they are done. Don’t overcook them as they could still get burnt in the microwave.
- Remove the brownies from the microwave and let them cool slightly before eating.
In most cases, the brownies will be cooked within 30-60 seconds. If you aren’t able to change your heat to medium, that is ok.
We’ve just found that this usually works the best. You might try low heat, but the standard heat of the microwave will be fine as well. Just keep an eye on your brownies!
3. Try the Fridge or Freezer
If you want a method that doesn’t involve any cooking or heating, did you know that you can actually just put your brownies into the fridge or freezer?
This won’t cook the brownies any further but it will help firm them up if they are just slightly undercooked.
Now, if your brownies are runny, this might not work well. This is a process for brownies that are just a little bit soft or gooey. The fridge will just help “harden” that little bit of softness up. Your brownie will end up slightly chewy and dense with great flavor and not so much gooeyness.
They will take on the texture of a fudgy brownie instead, but they can be very good cold like this, just like they are good warm.
We will say that you still need to have cooked your brownies to a safe level to use this method. It’s not meant for uncooked brownies but rather for brownies that are mostly cooked and a little too gooey still.
There aren’t a bunch of steps to share here. Just make sure your brownies are sealed in an airtight container and pop them in the fridge or the freezer until you are ready to eat them.
4. Find Another Brownie Use
Our final recommendation for fixing undercooked brownies is really not fixing them at all but rather just finding another interesting way to use them. This method is another option that really requires your brownies to be mostly cooked.
It’s perfectly okay if they are just a tad bit soft or gooey, but undercooked and runny is another story. There are a ton of desserts that are made using brownies with a gooey texture.
Here are some really great ideas you should consider:
- Brownie trifle
- Brownie balls
- Turn brownie crumbs into a pie or cheesecake crust
- Cake pops
- Brownie sundaes
- Bread pudding with brownies
- Shake with brownie chunks
There are several other options out there very similar to this. You just need a little bit of inspiration to find a great way to use the brownies.
Why Are My Brownies Undercooked?
If you feel like every time that you make brownies they end up undercooked, then it might be time for a heart-to-heart.
You’re probably following the instructions and yet every single time your brownies come out gooey. In this case, you should know that not all of our ovens work exactly the same way.
It’s possible your oven is actually too hot so the edges look like they are done but the inside definitely isn’t.
If this seems to be a consistent problem, go ahead and evaluate and then try to make a plan for adjustments and see if that helps next time you make some brownies.
Here are some suggestions for adjusting your process:
- Try reducing your oven heat by about 25°F.
- Always fully preheat the oven.
- Be sure to use the right size pan for the amount of batter and adjust your cooking time if you are making really thick brownies.
- Brownies in a glass pan typically take a little bit longer to cook.
- Always try the toothpick test before taking them out to cool.
But if you feel you’ve tried everything under the sun, our last suggestion is to take a look at this video from Mashed on YouTube for insight into the mistakes you could be making.
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