'That Looks So Much Harder Than Washing A Bowl' — Should You Mix Brownie Batter Straight In The Pan?

We've all seen the recipe that TikToks, Shorts, and Reels are cashing in on — the righteous amounts of ingredients dumped into too-small containers and mixed to overflowing, like it's the casserole's world and we're all just living in it. But is mixing, say, brownie batter directly in the baking pan really a good idea? Survey says: naw, bro.

On the surface, a seemingly impromptu Instagram demo by okdormdiaries — set to Lipps Inc.'s 1980s banger, "Funkytown" — is pure 30-minutes-till-brownies-and-"Euphoria" aesthetic. Throwing back to the dump cakes of yore, sweatshirt-clad roomies stir all the parts of boxed brownie mix straight into a classic square pan, encouraging followers to "Normalize mixing brownies in the pan to minimize dishes ... Work smarter not harder." Sure, a little Betty Crocker mix jumps the pan's perimeter as the whisk fights 90-degree corners, but eventually some of the batter begins to look properly fudgy. Still, it didn't convince the comments section that this is the way.

Despite the few suspicious "Lmao I do this too"-type reactions, the comment, "That looks so much harder than washing a bowl," summed up the vibe. Others chimed in with, "Don't bake if you're not a fan of dishes," "This [is] why they say you can't eat at everyone's house," and "Mix it in your mouth." Plenty of others pointed out how scratchy utensils like metal whisks can make food stick to pans, and that mixing batter in the pan limits your ability to grease the pan or line it with parchment first. "You'll save dishes too bc idk how that's coming out of that pan," added a skeptic. You'll also normalize not enjoying your homemade brownies — and no one wants that.

Let me put aside the bubbling recipe rage I feel while watching foodfluencers dump dried pasta into a baking dish with cottage cheese and broth, claiming it's because they hate doing dishes (but are totally cool with hours of editing). Even if your ruffled sleeves engulf your bejeweled fingers as you bake — and your hair tempts fate, mere inches from a working KitchenAid — mixing brownie batter right in the pan is a "no" for several reasons. Most importantly, it's because we want our brownies to turn out great.

Just like every other poorly combined, single-dish recipe on social media, brownie batter that's mixed right in the pan complicates the intermingling of ingredients. Unless you're into eating surprise pockets of powdery Duncan Hines, mixing batter in a bowl guarantees the egg, oil, and water are evenly dispersed. For fans of Paul Hollywood's chocolate lovers' add-ins, distributing additional chocolate bits throughout the batter is much easier when folded in via a separate bowl. As for pan prep, grease the inside of the pan right before adding your (mixed!) batter, so the oil or butter stays stuck to the sides. Plus, not to promote dessert "lookism," but the key to brownies with crackly tops is getting the batter into the pan (not onto your microwave) in the first place.

Whether you dream of cutting into a pan of cakey brownies, or you're all in on Alton Brown's trick for a fudge-a-licious bake, join civilized society by mixing brownie batter in a separate bowl. Unless it's the zombie apocalypse, and they've taken all the Pyrex bowls, perfect brownies with gooey middles and crunchy edges are always worth a few extra dishes.