This is the lushest one-bowl chocolate cake recipe I’ve tested – it’s moist, rich and SO SO chocolatey. And it keeps for days (if you can stop yourself from finishing it right away)!

If you’ve been keeping up with my Instagram stories, you’d have seen this super moist chocolate cake in Mahi’s tiffin (and our afternoon snacks too)! And let me tell you – we’re all OBSESSED. 

This is one of those fab recipes that is ridiculously simple – everything is mixed together in one bowl and gives you a cake that stays super moist for up to FIVE DAYS – literally feels freshly baked even when it’s not. And better yet, it can be made in the Air Fryer and the Oven. 

So convenient, so good! This is one of those recipes that you’ll keep coming back to. So bookmark this one for sure!

Ingredients you’ll need for One-Bowl Chocolate Cake

This is one of those recipes where I wouldn’t recommend any substitutes, it’s this proportion and combination of ingredients that create the moist texture that we want in a world-class chocolate cake.

• All Purpose Flour (Maida) – the base of our cake. I don’t recommend subbing this for atta or gluten free flour since that will affect the texture. Maida keeps our cake light, bouncy, and moist.
• Cocoa Powder – this is a chocolate cake, after all!
• Sugar – I use granulated white sugar but you can also use caster sugar or brown sugar here
• Oil – this ensures our cake stays moist for longer, any neutral flavored oil like canola, sunflower, rice bran works
• Curd – my secret ingredient! I find that the combination of oil, curd, and egg in a cake batter results in an extra moist texture which is what we want.
• Egg – for texture and binding. I don’t recommend subbing for a flax egg
• Hot Black Coffee – an espresso shot or just brewed instant coffee works super well here. Coffee enhances the flavour of the cocoa powder and makes this cake super chocolatey and yum. Don’t add plain coffee powder as the liquid from the brewed coffee helps bring the batter together
• Salt – just a pinch
• Baking Powder + Soda – so our cake rises!

Note: the batter will be runny – that’s what we want! Don’t worry about this. Once baked, it’ll be just perfect.

How to make One-bowl chocolate cake:

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to make the one-bowl chocolate cake:

1. Add all purpose flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt to a bowl. Whisk together until combined.

2. Add vanilla extract, egg, oil and curd. Whisk well until combined, about 1-2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl.

3. Pour in hot coffee.

4. Give it another mix till it’s a smooth, runny batter.

5. Pour the batter into lined and greased 6 inch cake mould.

6. Bake at 180C in a preheated oven for 30-40 minutes or till a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

7. Allow it to cool for 15 minutes. Demould, remove the parchment paper and transfer to a wire rack.

8. Allow it to cool completely before serving or frosting.

I like serving mine with a quick chocolate buttercream frosting but this also works great on its own or with a layer of Nutella and chopped berries on top. 

I think we all need our hands on a fool-proof simple chocolate cake recipe when those sweet tooth cravings come up – and trust me, this is THAT recipe! This is also the perfect activity to engage your kiddos with since the process is so simple to follow and the result is super exciting. A treat for anybody who makes it!

Watch How To Make This Easy One-Bowl Chocolate Cake

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