Portillos Chocolate Cake Recipe (Copycat) - Cooking Frog (2024)

Portillo’s restaurant, located in Chicago, is famous for its Chicago-style food with an unmatched flavor, like Hot Dogs, Sandwiches, Maxwell Street Polish, and Italian Beef, but what most people don’t know about his restaurant is that they also serve a very soft, moist, mouthwatering chocolate flavored cake.

People from far-off places visit his restaurant to taste this soft, spongy chocolate cake.

Good News! You can make this amazing cake in your kitchen without visiting Portillo’s restaurant. I got this fantastic recipe recently and was so surprised when I tried it at home. Honestly, it surpassed my expectations. It tastes exactly like the original Portillo’s cake. And the good thing is its simple recipe has only a few simple ingredients.

I am so excited to share today’s easiest and simplest recipe for this fantastic cake. This Portillos Chocolate Cake Recipe is a perfect copycat of the original. You’ll love this cake recipe if you are a cake and dessert fan. Your kids are definitely going to love it.

Portillo’s Chocolate Cake

It is one of the softest, moistest, lightest, and sweetest cakes you can ever make. Its delicious chocolate taste is unmatchable. This cake is so finger-licking good. You are going to enjoy each and every bite of this cake.

I’m sharing this copycat recipe with you so that you can make this wonderful cake on your own and enjoy the delicious, rich, chocolaty flavor without going to a restaurant.

This is the simplest and the quickest recipe, and even newbies can make a wonderful cake out of it easily. This cake is so simple yet so delicious. It is appropriate for many occasions and celebrations.

You can also try it anytime, without any special occasion, just to enjoy its great flavor. So, make it for your loved ones and get ready to hear the words of appreciation.

This copycat recipe is the best of all the recipes out there, and your cake will definitely taste like the real thing. To your surprise! This cake recipe includes mayonnaise. This is the basic ingredient that makes this cake so moist and soft. Adding mayonnaise to the cake recipe may sound weird, but trust me!

Mayonnaise is nothing more than a mixture of oil and egg yolks. That’s exactly what you add to a cake recipe. Right? So don’t hesitate and try out this recipe without a doubt.

Portillos Chocolate Cake Recipe Copycat

Ingredients

  • 1 box Betty Crocker Cake Mix
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1 cup ice-cold water
  • 1 cup Mayonnaise
  • 2 cans of Betty Crocker’s chocolate frosting.

Instructions

Preparation:

  1. Gather Your Ingredients:
    • Cake mix
    • Water
    • Eggs
    • Mayonnaise
    • Betty Crocker’s chocolate Frosting
  2. Prepare Your Baking Equipment:
    • Preheat your oven to 350°F.
    • Get two 9-inch round baking pans.
    • Generously grease both pans with either oil or butter to prevent sticking.

Mixing the Batter: 3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the following:

  • Cake mix
  • Water
  • Eggs
  • Mayonnaise
  1. Start mixing the ingredients on a slow speed for about 30 seconds to ensure they’re well combined.
  2. After that, increase your mixer’s speed to high and continue mixing for 4 minutes until the batter is smooth.

Baking the Cake: 6. Evenly distribute the cake batter between the two greased pans.

  1. Place the pans in your preheated oven.
  2. Bake for 30-32 minutes. To check for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake around the 32-minute mark. If it comes out clean, your cakes are perfectly baked.

Cooling and Frosting: 9. Once baked, remove the cakes from the oven and let them rest for 5 minutes.

  1. Carefully remove the cakes from the pans and transfer them to cooling racks. Allow them to cool completely for about an hour.
  2. Take one cake and place it on a serving plate. Spread about 3/4 of your frosting evenly over the top.
  3. Place the second cake on top of the frosted one.
  4. Use the remaining 1/4 of the frosting to cover the top of the second cake.

Final Touches: 14. Now, it’s time to get creative! Decorate the cake as you wish.

  1. Once decorated, your delicious Portillo’s Chocolate Cake is ready to be served. Enjoy!

Craving more sweet moments? 🍰 If this Portillo’s chocolate cake tickled your taste buds, pin the pic below to your Pinterest board. Let’s spread the cake, love, one pin at a time!

Portillos Chocolate Cake Recipe (Copycat) - Cooking Frog (1)

Tips to Bake the Best Portillos Chocolate Cake Recipe

  • Use the eggs at room temperature.
  • Remember not to overmix the cake batter. Overmixing the batter makes the cake dry and hard. Mix the batter until all the ingredients are mixed well.
  • You can also add a bit of coffee to enhance the cake’s rich chocolaty flavor and make it even more delicious. Don’t worry; your cake won’t get the taste of the coffee. Just 1 tsp of the espresso powder is enough to do the magic.
  • Don’t open the cake during baking. Doing so alters the temperature inside the oven, and your cake may not be baked well.

Portillo’s Chocolate Cake Shake

You can also easily make the most amazing shake literary by blending this Portillos Chocolate cake. Just blend the cake until it’s smooth, and you’re done. I’ve noticed that many folks like Portillos Chocolate shake more than the cake. 🙂

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4/5 (146 Reviews)

Portillos Chocolate Cake Recipe (Copycat) - Cooking Frog (2024)

FAQs

Why is Portillo's chocolate cake so good? ›

The cake is made with high-quality ingredients. It includes cocoa powder, butter, and real chocolate, which gives it a rich, chocolatey flavor and a moist, tender crumb. The frosting is also made with real butter and cream, which gives it a velvety smooth texture and a decadent taste.

Does Portillo's cake have mayo? ›

Ingredients. 1 cup mayonnaise (Yes, really.)

How to make portillo's frosting? ›

Whip butter and cocoa together until smooth in large bowl. Stir in vanilla and powdered sugar. Slowly stream in milk until frosting reaches desired consistency. Scrape sides and whip again until light, fluffy and smooth, 1-2 minutes.

What is the king of chocolate cake? ›

The Sachertorte is a traditional chocolate cake. While staying true to the basic, good old-fashioned recipe, passion fruit is added to apricot jam to produce a lovely aroma and tartness for a pleasant, modern flavor.

Can I substitute mayo for sour cream in a cake? ›

Mayo is a great sour cream substitute. It can be used as a 1:1 replacement in both baking and dips. You'll lose some of that tang that sour cream offers, but it still does a great job at adding moisture to baked goods. Plus, it's relatively the same texture as sour cream, which makes it a great sub in dips and sauce.

What does mayonnaise replace in a cake? ›

Yes, baking with a scoop of mayonnaise can improve your baked goods, and it can serve as a substitute for eggs and fats in a recipe.

What brand of bread does Portillo's use? ›

Portillo's uses Turano rolls which are tough enough to withstand some heavy gravy pours and dunks. If you can't find Turano, look for Gonnella rolls which are nearly identical.

What oil do portillos use? ›

Oil: Our French fries and onion rings are cooked in a blend of vegetable oil and beef tallow.

Why do you put vinegar in frosting? ›

Add white vinegar.

Although many do so to avoid cracks and to achieve a smooth appearance, I find just the tiniest bit — about 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon — also curbs the sweetness, allowing the wonderfully creamy mouth-feel of the icing to truly shine.

What is the hardest frosting to make? ›

Italian Meringue Buttercream

This is considered one of the very difficult methods for making buttercream because the sugar syrup must be cooked to a specific temperature and then, while piping hot, poured into the whipped egg whites.

Is there mayo in chocolate cake shake? ›

Portillo's Chocolate Cake Milkshake

One of the main ingredients in this glorious milkshake is mayonnaise. Yes, I said that correctly, mayonnaise in a milkshake.

How many calories in a slice of Portillos chocolate cake? ›

Portillos Homemade Desserts Portillo's Famous Chocolate Cake (1 serving) contains 90g total carbs, 90g net carbs, 40g fat, 10g protein, and 720 calories.

What does Portillo's put on their burgers? ›

Everything includes mayo, crisp lettuce, a red ripe tomato slice, sliced red onion, pickles, and ketchup on our freshly toasted old-fashioned style bun. Each juicy char-broiled burger patty weighs 1/3 pound before cooking.

What is so special about Portillos? ›

Our Food is Unrivaled

We're known for our famous Chicago-style hot dogs, Italian beef sandwiches, chopped salad, cheese fries, homemade chocolate cake, and chocolate cake shake. Our Italian beef is slow-roasted for four hours, thinly sliced, and served on freshly baked French bread.

What is the most favorite cake in the United States? ›

Top 10 Birthday Cakes In America
  • Red Velvet Cake. Let's kick things off with the all-time favorite – Red Velvet Cake. ...
  • Chocolate Fudge Cake. Calling all chocoholics! ...
  • Funfetti Cake. ...
  • Lemon Raspberry Cake. ...
  • Carrot Cake. ...
  • Tiramisu Cake. ...
  • Strawberry Shortcake. ...
  • Black Forest Cake.
Oct 2, 2023

What is so special about chocolate cake? ›

It melts in your mouth, the cocoa butter in chocolate gives it a rich, creamy consistency that also transmits the cocoa flavours perfectly. Chocolate lovers often describe this melting feeling as a true moment of ecstasy.

What is the most fancy cake in the world? ›

Diamond Cake by Debbie Wingham – $75 million

It is a great example of culinary craftsmanship as the cake is adorned with edible diamonds. The 'diamonds' on the cake reflect light like genuine gemstones. Therefore, the intricacy of the design and the detailing made the cake the most expensive cake.

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