Easy Pain Au Chocolat (Chocolate Croissant)

Enjoy flaky, buttery pain au chocolat without the hassle of lamination. This easy chocolate croissant recipe is beginner-friendly and perfect for homemade bakery-style treats.

📝 Ingredients

• 300 gr all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 30 gr sugar
• 1 tsp active-dry yeast
• 160 gr milk
• 20 gr unsalted butter (softened)
• 150 gr unsalted butter (softened)
• 113 g chocolate (40-50% dark chocolate. see notes)
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 tsp milk

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Prepare the dough: ---
2. 2I suggest that the room temperature you are at be around 70 F (21 C) or a bit lower, when you make croissants. Turn on the A/C if needed. This is important so the butter doesn't melt. When it melts, you won't get nice flaky layers
3. 3The butter that you use to spread on the dough later should be soft but not melting
4. 4Mix the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. You can also knead by hand of course. Stir the dry ingredients to combine. Add the milk and the softened butter
5. 5Knead the dough on the lowest speed to combine and then increase the speed to 2 and continue to knead until the dough comes together and smooth. You don't need to reach a windowpane stage here. If you knead by hands, knead for about 5-8 minutes until the dough is smooth
6. 6--- Rest the dough: ---
7. 7Put the dough in a bowl, lightly sprayed with non-stick spray or brush with some oil to prevent sticking. Rest the dough at room temperature for 30 minutes. It's a short proofing and the dough will not double in size. It's easier to layer the dough with butter when the dough is not full of air
8. 8--- Applying butter: ---
9. 9After 30 minutes, dust your work surface with some flour, dust off any excess flour. Roll the dough out into about 12 x 40 inch rectangle using a rolling pin and try to deflate any air bubbles at the same time while you are rolling if any. If the dough tears, you can dust with a bit of flour to prevent stickiness
10. 10I suggest wearing a glove so our hand doesn't touch the butter directly. The butter for the filling should be soft but not melting. Use a dough scraper or an offset spatula to help you spread the butter.
11. 11Make sure it's an even layer all over the surface. You want to apply quickly so butter won't melt
12. 12Roll the dough up tightly from the short side, like a Swiss roll. Wrap with a plastic wrap so the dough doesn't dry out and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes
13. 13--- Shaping: ---
14. 14Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dust your work surface with some flour. Take the chilled dough out, put the long side near you and use a rolling pin to gently flatten the dough a little bit. You don't want to break the dough and the butter leaks out later.
15. 15Then start rolling out into a rectangle again, about 10 x 20 inches (just roughly), and about 4 mm in thickness. Use a dough scraper to help you make the edge of the dough as neat as possible
16. 16If at any point during this time you notice the butter starts to melt, put the dough back in the fridge for a few minutes to let the butter hardens and then continue rolling it out again
17. 17Cut the dough into 8 rectangles, cover and let them rest about 5 minutes
18. 18Work with one rectangle at a time, roll the dough out a bit longer. Place the chocolate baton at the short end
19. 19Start rolling up the dough to encase the chocolate.
20. 20Place the seam side down on the baking pan. Place them about 2-3 inches apart
21. 21--- Proofing: ---
22. 22Proof the croissant at around 75-77 F (21-25 C). You do not want to proof them at a warm place because we don't want the butter to melt (you will lose the flaky layers inside if it melts!). I just cover them with a clean cloth and put them inside the oven with the light on. This may take 2-3 hours for them to double in size
23. 23When you gently press on the dough, it will bounce back very slowly. That's one of the signs that the dough is done proofing. They feel light and puffy too
24. 24--- Chill the shaped dough: ---
25. 25Place the tray in the fridge to let the dough chill when you preheat the oven
26. 26--- Preheat the oven: ---
27. 27Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C) for a conventional oven and lower the temperature by 15 F /20 C for convection oven. Position the oven rack in the middle of the oven.
28. 28--- Apply egg wash: ---
29. 29When the oven is ready, remove the dough from the fridge and apply egg wash
30. 30--- Baking: ---
31. 31Put the baking sheets in the positioned racks. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until deeply golden brown
32. 32--- Cool down: ---
33. 33Remove from the oven and let them cool down on the tray for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack. Let them cool down completely before consuming.