Lava cake recipe with video and step by step pics. This is an Easy recipe for preparing delicious egg free chocolate lava cake. Chocolate lava cake is also known as choco lava cake and molten chocolate cake the recipe is very simple and has whole wheat flour and cocoa powder. Serve as a dessert by itself or with vanilla ice cream, chocolate ice cream, or mango ice cream.
I had got many requests for a molten lava cake recipe that can be made without eggs. Sharing a baking recipe after a long time. The recipe is adapted from my Eggless chocolate cake recipe that I had posted some years back.
To make this lava cake, you only need cocoa powder, baking soda and chocolate. The rest of the ingredients are easily available in an Indian kitchen.
I have used bitter sweet chocolate to get the molten lava. You can use sweet or semi sweet chocolate too. Just make sure to use both good quality chocolate and cocoa powder. If possible do use couverture chocolate that has cocoa butter in it.
I used mason & co cocoa powder and cocoacraft bitter sweet chocolate – 70% cocoa. The whole wheat flour is chakki ground organic whole wheat flour. If you prefer then you can replace the whole wheat flour with all purpose flour or use half half of both.
For chocolate lovers some easy Chocolate recipes
For the oil, you can use sunflower or olive oil. I have used both these oils on different occasions while preparing this choco lava cake.
It is really important to bake the cakes as soon as you pour the batter and add the chocolate chunks to the ramekin. Leaving the cake batter out for too long will affect how the cake bakes and rises and can result in a sunken cake!
You can make the recipe in ramekins or aluminium foil cups. You can also use muffin liners or a muffin tray. If using muffin liners or muffin tray, then you won’t be able to remove the lava cake from it.
This recipe can be easily doubled and makes for 3 medium sized molten lava cakes which are almost like large muffins. Thus making for 3 portions or 3 servings. One cake is enough for 1 person. If you have more family members, then you can double the recipe.
How to make Lava Cake
Preparation and sifting dry ingredients
1. First grease 3 medium ramekins with oil very well. Keep aside. Meanwhile preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius/395 degrees fahrenheit for 15 to 20 minutes.
Heat only the bottom element of the oven. In microwave oven, use the convection mode and preheat for 15 minutes at 180 degree celsius.
2. Take a bowl and place a sieve on it. Add ½ cup whole wheat flour (60 grams).
3. Then add 3 tablespoons cocoa powder and a pinch of salt.
4. Next add ¼ teaspoon baking soda. Since baking soda is the only leavening ingredient used in the recipe, do make sure that its fresh and active.
To check the freshness of baking soda, dissolve a bit of baking soda in a solution of vinegar+water. It should fizz and bubble immediately. If not, then the baking soda is not fresh and active.
5. Sift the dry ingredients directly in the bowl.
6. Keep the sifted dry ingredients aside.
Preparing wet ingredients solution for lava cake
7. In another bowl, take ⅓ cup sugar.
8. Add ½ cup cold water. Do use cold water only as it gives the best texture in the cake.
9. Using a spoon or a wired whisk mix very well till all the sugar is dissolved.
10. Now add 2 tablespoons oil. You can use sunflower oil or olive oil.
11. Using a wired whisk mix the oil very well with the sugar+water solution.
12. Now add ½ teaspoon vanilla extract . If using vanilla essence, then add ¼ teaspoon of it.
13. Add ½ tbsp lemon juice. Instead of lemon juice, you can also use white vinegar or apple cider vinegar.
14. Again mix very well.
Making chocolate lava cake batter
15. Now add the wet ingredients to the sifted dry ingredients.
16. With a wired whisk, stir and mix well. Do not over do the mixing.
17. Prepare a smooth batter. The batter for this lava cake recipe has medium-thin consistency.
18. Pour the lava cake batter in the greased ramekins till ⅔ of their volume.
19. Place chocolate squares in the batter. I have used 70% cocoa bitter sweet chocolate. Please use good quality couverture or compound chocolate which are meant for baking to get the lava effect.
Use chocolates which are firm and hard. Avoid using chocolate which are soft, semi-soft or fluid. Please do not use ready to eat chocolate like dairy milk etc.
20. With a spoon or wired whisk lightly press them so that they get immersed in the batter. If you have a chocolate slab, then chop the chocolate before you prepare the batter. The batter should immediately go in the oven as soon as possible.
Baking chocolate lava cake
21. Place the ramekins in the center rack of the oven. Bake at 200 degrees celsius for 30 to 40 minutes. In my oven the baking took about 35 minutes.
During the last 10 minutes do keep a check. Also open the oven door only after ¾th of the cakes are baked. If you open early or open many times, the lava cakes can fall flat. I generally bakes lava cakes well as I do not want my folks to eat any uncooked batter.
22. Baking time varies with various oven makes and models, so it can take less than 30 mins or more than 35 minutes. Check with a toothpick on the sides of the cake and it should come out clean.
23. Let the chocolate lava cakes cool for two to three minutes. Then with a butter knife gently loosen the edges from the top. The cake is so light and soft, you do not need to use the butter knife way to the base of the ramekins.
24. Invert the ramekin on a serving plate. Gently tap the bottom of the ramekin. The ramekins will be hot, so be careful when picking and tapping them.
25. Remove the ramekin gently and the cake gets unmolded easily. Sift some cocoa powder or powdered sugar on top through a sieve.
You can also serve molten lava cake with ice cream like vanila ice cream or chocolate ice cream or mango ice cream or some berries or fruits by the side.
Choco lava cakes have to be served hot or warm. Once they cool, the molten chocolate solidifies. But even at room temperature these lava cakes taste good.
More delicious Egg free cakes
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Lava Cake | Eggless Chocolate Lava Cake
Ingredients
dry ingredients
- ½ cup whole wheat flour (atta), 60 to 65 grams
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 pinch salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
wet ingredients
- ⅓ cup sugar, 75 grams, about 5 to 5.5 tablespoons sugar
- ½ cup cold water
- 2 tablespoons oil, sunflower or olive oil
- ½ tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract or ¼ teaspoon vanilla essence
to be added later
- 90 to 100 grams semi sweet, bitter sweet or sweet chocolate
Instructions
sifting dry ingredients for cake
- Take a bowl and place a sieve on it. Add whole wheat flour, salt, cocoa powder and baking soda.
- Sift directly in the bowl. Keep aside.
preparing wet ingredients solution
- In another bowl take sugar and cold water.
- Stir till all the sugar is dissolved.
- Then add oil and stir very well.
- Next add vanilla extract and lemon juice. Again mix.
making chocolate lava cake batter
- Now add the wet ingredients in the dry ingredients.
- Mix very well with a wired whisk. However, do not over do the mixing.
- Pour the batter in greased ramekins or muffin cups.
- Then place chocolate squares in the batter. Gently press the chocolate squares, so that they get immersed in the batter.
baking choco lava cake
- Place the ramekins in a preheated oven and bake for 200 degrees celsius for 30 to 35 minutes. Preheat oven for 15 to 20 minutes at 200 degrees celsius before you start baking.
- Once done, remove the ramekins from the oven. Let the cake cool for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Then gently invert the ramekins on a serving plate or tray. Be careful as the ramekins will be hot.
- Tap the base of the ramekins and let the lava cake slid through and fall on the plate.
- Using a small sieve, dust some cocoa powder or powdered sugar on the choco lava cakes.
- Serve choco lava cake immediately.
Video
Notes
- The recipe can be doubled.
- Instead of ramekins, muffin cups or liners can be used. Aluminium foil based muffin cups also can be used.
- Depending on the size of muffin cups, you will get less or more number of choco lava cakes.
- For the chocolate, you can use sweet, semi sweet, bitter sweet or milk chocolate.
- Do use couverture chocolate instead of compound chocolate.
- Also use a good quality cocoa powder.
- Oven temperature varies, so do keep a check on baking especially during the last 10 minutes.
- Instead of whole wheat flour (atta) you can also use all purpose flour (maida).
- You can use vanilla essence instead of vanilla extract. In that case, just add ¼th teaspoon of vanilla essence.
Nutrition Info (Approximate Values)
This Lava Cake post from the archives, originally published in April 2017 has been updated and republished on February 2023.
I learned to make Lava Cake from my mom, she loves to bake but she uses eggs in all her recipes. I was very curious to make a Lava Cake from scratch without eggs and I am still impressed how delicious and fluffy it came out without the need for using eggs, great option for vegans!
Thanks a lot and glad you liked the recipe. Thanks for the rating too.
Hi mam .what can I add if I dnt have chocolate bar….plz suggest mam
You can add amul dark chocolate or bournville dark chocolate. But I don’t know how they will work in the recipe.
Hi, can i make them in muffin liners?
You can try, but you will need a muffin pan, in which you can place the muffin liners. The muffin pan helps in maintaining the shape and structure of the cake.
I tried this recipe with replacing refined sugar with brown sugar and added a pinch of instant Coffee powder for flavour and it was a hit! I made in pressure cooker and it took about 10-12mins to cook completely.
It really satisfied my cravings for Choco lava Cake. The texture and the taste of the Cake was perfect!
Thanks for such easy and healthy recipe Dassana 🙂
Hi Sahana, great to know and thanks for sharing the feedback and review on the recipe. Both brown sugar and a bit of coffee can be added in this recipe. Thanks for the rating too. Most welcome and happy baking.
Can you make batter ahead of time, place the chocolate in last minute and then bake?
No, the batter has to placed in the oven as soon as it made and poured in the ramekins.
Hi,
I tried this cake first time. However, Morde chocolate compound which I added for Lava component did not melt. Is any specific brand to be used for the same? Please suggest.
Never the less, cake turned out to be delicious and everyone liked it. Thanks.
Thanks for the feedback. I am not sure why the compound chocolate did not melt. For making any chocolate based cakes or desserts, it is better to use couverture chocolate as they have cocoa butter and give a really good texture and taste. Compound chocolate is made from cocoa powder, fat and sweeteners and there is a difference between the taste of compound chocolate and couverture chocolate. I hope this helps.
Hi dasanna,
Can I bake them instant pot..I usually bake cake in instant pot cake mode (pressure cook,high,40minutes).. will it be same for choco lava cake as I am planning to use greased bowls..I am not sure how much time will it take to cook as the batter is divided into small portions.
Hi Shree, I am not sure. I do have an Instant Pot but I have never baked cakes in it. About this recipe I don’t know if it will work in an IP.
Please tell if I don’t have small ramekins then can I make this in cake tin..?? For This quantity any changes required..??
Yes you can but since the baking time will be more (approx 25 to 30 minutes), the chocolate chunks may be absorbed by the batter. But nevertheless the taste will be good. There is no change in the recipe ingredients.
Very nice… I love the way u expressed each and every small thing for making choco lava cake.. thank u so much.
Welcome and glad to know that the details are helpful.
Can u please tell me , Can I use pressure cooker for this recipe.
Since the batter is not thick, I am not sure if the recipe will work in a pressure cooker. But some readers have tried and it has worked for them.
Hi, can i use Amul 70% dark chocolate for the choco lava cake .
You can try. Should work.
It makes like a dream!!! Who would have thought you can make Choco lava at home!! A couple of things though:
1. The chocolate got incorporated with the cake. There was little molten chocolate left. I used the right quantity. I used bournville because it’s easily available.
2. The cake domed a lot
What can I do to fix these things? Taste wise it was too good ????????
thank you.
1. avoid using bournville chocolate. it will be absorbed by the cake batter when getting baked. chocolates like dairy milk, bournville are ready to eat chocolates. for lava cake it is best to use baking or cooking chocolate.
2. doming could be due to excess baking soda? did you use a measuring spoon for the baking soda?
taste wise this choco lava cake recipe is very good. to avoid these issues, use baking chocolate. but do not use morde chocolate as it is a compound chocolate and is chemically processed. use couverture chocolate as it has cocoa butter in it and has a rich taste. for reducing the dome effect, it is best to measure with a measuring spoon.
Thanks for the reply. I will take care to use cooking chocolate for this. But i did use measuring spoon for baking powder, I always do. Anyway thanks for the reply.
Any recommendation for cooking chocolate.. something that wont burn a hole in my pocket.
welcome shailja. thanks for replying. so if the baking soda is not the issue as you have used a measuring spoon, then the only thing i can think of now is the size of the bowl or pan.
for cooking chocolate, you can try cocoakraft and urban platter on amazon.in. check the reviews and buy. since they are made in india, they are not expensive. for eating chocolate, you can check for mason and co. their chocolates are good.
hey
can i use tobelerone dark chocolate
sanjna, i think tobelerone dark chocolate has caramel in it. with caramel based chocolates, the lava effect is not there.
Can we use amul dark chocolate
You can.
Hi,
Can I use Aashirwad aata to make this will it come out proper.
yes you can use aashirwad atta.
Hi Dassana
Can you please tell me which brand of couverture chocolate you used in this recipe?
i have used coco kraft brand.
Hi Dassana Amit.
Which brand’s chocolate do you use or suggest? I have used Morde’s dark compound chocolate earlier for chocolate recipes.
Damini, I used Mason, Callebaut and Coco Craft. From this Mason and Callebaut are good.
Nice n good ŕeceipes
Thanks Revathi
Can i use Morde Dark Chocolate.
Meenakshi, you can use. but as far as possible, avoid using Morde. as it does not have real chocolate.
Hi
Which oven is good for baking
i am using bajaj OTG and its a good one.
Hi dassana…i am going to make caked the first time..so can you suggest which oven should i buy ..for a family of 7. Also are there any beginner cake recipes.
Thanks
nisha, i am using a 35 litre bajaj OTG and it is good enough for a family of 4 to 5. so you can go for bigger oven than 35 litres. check the reviews online and then you can buy. a beginner cake recipe that is easy are the following recipes:
1. eggless chocolate cake – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/basic-eggless-chocolate-cake-recipe/
2. orange cake – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-orange-cake/
3. mawa cake – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-mawa-cake-recipe/
4. pound cake – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-pound-cake-recipe/
5. sponge cake with applesauce – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-sponge-cake-recipe-with-applesauce/
Hi
I’m new to this site and wanted to make your lava cake. I want to make 6 cakes. If so shall I just double up the quantities of ingredients? or Will it affect the recipe?
this choco lava cake recipe is the halved version of the eggless chocolate cake recipe i had shared earlier. so you can easily double this lava cake recipe.
If I’m using cup cake liners, does the bake time change? Planing to make smaller sized cup cakes
if you use the cup cake liners in an aluminium cup cake pan, the timing will reduce as aluminium is a better conductor of heat than glass. if you use silicon moulds, then the timing will be about the same as mentioned here.
Hi dassana!!
Can I use silicone moulds instead of ramekins ???
you can try using silicone moulds. should work.
Hello .. how much time can it takes in microwave??
i do not know as i have never used microwave method for making lava cake.
Hi amit . I tried d molten lava cake . It came out really wll n soft . Thx .. but i faced 1 prob. Tat is ki after d cake is dne . Whn u cut d chocolate is not mrlted . It stays in a pc form. Kindly help..
which chocolate you used harshita? also the cake has to be removed after some seconds. if you allow the cake to become warm or cool at room temperature, then the melted chocolate solidifies.
Hi Amit
I have tried some of ur recipes n they are very good.
Need to know if I don’t have ramekins what should I do?
preeti, you can use muffin moulds or even small ceramic cups which can withstand oven heat.
Hello, I have tried some of ur recipes and they r just awesome. Thank you very much…. Actually the way you explain your recipe, it becomes easy for us. I have now 75 grams of Amul Dark chocolate. Can I get a good result only with this? Also I have no ramekins. I have used ceramic tea cups to bake souffle before. Can I use them in this recipe?
welcome farhina. you can use amul dark chocolate. i believe amul dark chocolate is meant for baking and cooking, so i guess it should work. if the chocolate has caramel in it, then the chocolate does not work. you can use ceramic tea cups provided the withstand the high heat of the oven.
How much time on convection mode?
timing differs from oven to oven. so i cannot say the exact time but an approximate time. so 20 to 30 minutes will do.
First wanna tell u though many websites r there I just follow ur recipe. U present in such a simple way. Just want to know can v bake choco lava in normal baking tray
Thanks Bindiya for your positive feedback. You may not get the melting lava effect if baked in normal baking tray. i have never tried but guessing.
Hello Mam…Can I use 2 tbsp of cocoa powder instead of 3 as my cake turned out to be very dark in color and taste..I used muffin moulds to bake in convection mode..
Smita, yes you can use 2 tbsp. the color will depend upon quality of cocoa powder.
Hi,
Your website is my homepage for recipes. Love them all.
I tried baking independently today with this recipe. Although it didn’t turn out the way I expected, I’m still hopeful. Can you please guide on how to fix the issues?
– Cake was dry
– Dairy Milk pieces hadn’t melted
– how much ml cold water did you use? My batter wasn’t as runny as yours
– the cake dint look as smooth as yours on the top. It was tough, dry and had a crack.
– I used a stoneware mug. Does that matter?
thanks celin.
– the batter was not the right consistency or cake was over baked, hence the dryness.
– avoid using dairy milk as it does not melt. one more reader has this issue. so its best to use a good quality baking or cooking chocolate.
– i have used 1/2 cup cold water, which is 125 ml. at times depending on the quality of wheat flour, less or more water will be required. if the wheat flour is coarsely ground, has a lot of fibre and bran, then it will require more water.
– the toughness and dryness is since the batter was not of the right consistency.
– stoneware does not matter.
– a few more points: also oven temperatures vary with the size, watts, model, capacity. so no two ovens have the same temperature. so always keep a check when baking any cake or bread. one more point is never open the oven door till 3/4th of the cake is done. this is applicable to any cake or muffin recipe you make.
hope this helps.
Dassana, tried this today and it was way too good, ur recipes have never let me down. Thank you
Welcome Ramya. Thanks for your positive feedback.
hello mam,
thanks for this lovely and easy recipe. my question may seem odd to you but from where do you get this beautiful liquid measuring cup….am unable to find in the market just getting ordinary plastic ones in red white yellow color.
welcome rashmi. i bought it from amazon. it is just 1 cup having around 500 ml measurements. you will get many varieties on amazon.
Hi,
Thankyou for this healthy recipe. Although most part of baked products are high on cholesterol, this is comparatively healthy. I consider this as a guilt free snack. It qualifies to be vegan chocolate lava cake, isn’t it?
Help us with a similar eggless fruit and nut cake which we can make and eat guilt free.
Welcome Jency. Thanks for your kind words. It is a vegan choco lava cake as i have used dark chocolate. I have already posted three versions of fruit and nut cake. you can check them in links below:
1. https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-christmas-fruit-cake/
2. https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-fruit-cake-recipe/
3. https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/eggless-christmas-wine-fruit-cake-recipe/
Gr8 fan of urs nd ur cooking mam..The way u explain wid pictorials is awesm! Can i use amul bitter sweet chocolate?
Thanks Nivi for your kind words. I think you can use it.
Hi Dassana,
Thank you so much for creating such a useful blog. It is all time favourite site for me whenever I want to cook something new. I have tried several recipes and they have turned out good every time. Can i bake this choco lava cake in muffin tray(I have tray for 6 muffins)? I have the muffin liners(paper ones) too. Since this will be my first attempt for muffin size cakes and I am not sure if i can use the muffin tray for this cake. Kindly let me know.
Also does the cold water in the recipe refers to water at room temperature or the chilled water from refrigerator?
Thanks in advance.
thanks a lot madhu. you can use the muffin tray and also the muffin paper liners. the cold water refers to chilled water from the refrigerator.
Hello Dassana jii I have now become a regular follower of your never failing recipes I made these muffins in airfryer and set 25 mins they tasted very good but it were hard from top and no lava came should I reduce time to 10 -15 mins ?
amandeep, looks like they have got cooked too much. you can reduce the time.
The chocolate lava cake is dry from inside , though the cake is good, I have used dairy milk and that too when it was not melted as per your instructions, then why am I facing this problem?
if you use dairy milk chocolate, then you have to add more pieces of it as dairy milk chocolate is thin in width than baking chocolate bars. its best to use baking or cooking chocolate to make this recipe.
Hi Dassana,
If I need to add egg, at which step I can do that
remya, with egg the recipe will change. i do not know at which step egg needs to be added as then the ingredients will also change.
What is the difference between Couveture chocolate and compound chocolate?
you can check here – http://blog.wholesalemeltingchocolate.com/difference-between-chocolate-compound-or-couverture/
hi,
can i used salted butter instead of oil
you can use salted butter. use same quantity as that of oil.
Hi
Can I bake it in gas stove ?
you can try.
Hi,
Can we add chocolate compounds for this receipe?
gouri, you can add compound chocolate.
This one is my fav. Thanks a Lot for this one!! Everyone loved it
thanks smrati for sharing this feedback. nice to know.
one of the best recipe so far i replaced wheat flour with all purpose flour and instead 3tbsp cocoa powder i added 5tbsp it gave much richer taste. Thank you such a wonderful and easy time-saving recipe. I used cupcake liner as I didn’t have ramekins. It works well.
received your previous comment riya. have already replied to them. refresh the page and you will see the comments. thanks for taking the time to comment again. cup cake liners can be used instead of ramekins and as you mentioned they work well.
It showed http 503 error; whenever I used to post comments that error showed up. So this made me post comments more than once.
thanks riya for letting me know. will check out.
Instead of whole wheat I used all purpose flour and instead of using 3tbsp of cocoa I used 5tbsp of cocoa. This cake turned out to be way too delicious. THank you for such delicious easy recipe.
thats a rich chocolaty cake. thanks for sharing the minor variation riya as well as the feedback. happy baking ????
Superb recipe loved by all. Add 5 tbsp of cocoa powder for dense rich taste. THank you for this recipe. It was very easy and quick.
Welcome Riya. Thanks for sharing this info.
You didn’t mention cooking time for microwave oven
Nafisa, you can bake in convection mode of microwave only, but not in microwave mode. timing will vary from oven to oven. so not possible to give the exact time.
I’m so glad that you started posting videos! and i especially like that they are fast-paced.. (recipe videos of slow/normal speeds always bore me to sleep by the end :P)
thanks a lot ruchi. you can subscribe to the channel on youtube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCZYoHdqAOXf8WK9oawMCPg
i have added quite a number of videos for old recipes as well as for new recipes. do check in your free time. even i get bored with slow videos ????
Hi
Can we use carob powder instead of Cocoa powder….if not could u help me with a recipe using carob powder.
you can use carob powder. carob powder can be substituted for cocoa powder.
Can we make this lava cake in cooker. If yes then how much time we have to bake them.
you can try to make lava cake in cooker. i think it should take 30 to 40 minutes on a low flame.
Hii Dassana….Today I tried this choco lava cake using dairy milk inside in convection mode of microwave fr 25mins…but d cake was completely dry from inside ,means no chocolate was flowing ….what went wrong ?????
okay. once i had used dairy milk chocolate and it did work well. how many squares you added. for dairy milk, you will need to add more squares as they are smaller in size compared to the chocolate block used which we slice. i have forgotten to mention the quantity of chocolate to be added. it should be 90 to 100 grams chocolate for this recipe. but i hoped you liked the cake even if there was no molten chocolate lava flowing. also when adding dairy milk chocolate, it has to be chilled or cold. it should not be at room temperature. basically the chocolate has to be hard when added in the batter. it should not be soft. if it is soft, it won’t melt as it already melted. it will cook further and be absorbed by the batter.
Can we bake chocolate lava cake in pressure cooker?
you can try the baking in pressure cooker. it should work i guess.