These classic red velvet cupcakes with velvety texture and buttery soft crumbs are ridiculously easy to make and so perfect with tangy cream cheese frosting!
Why you’ll love this recipe?
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I love pretty much anything red. However, the color of this cake is not the only reason I love it so much.
And no, red velvet cake is not just a chocolate cake tinted with red color!! It’s so much more!
When done right, red velvet cake has a smooth velvet-y texture with soft buttery crumbs. It has just a hint of cocoa without overpowering chocolate flavor.
Paired with tangy cream cheese frosting, these homemade cupcakes are simply irresistible!
Why red velvet cupcakes are red?
Traditionally, red velvet cakes didn’t call for any artificial food coloring to get that bright red color. It was a natural result of combining vinegar with cocoa powder.
Cocoa powder (and other fruits and vegetables, like purple cabbage, plums, blueberries, raspberries) naturally contain anthocyanins, a pigment that changes the color due to pH level. So back in the day, when natural cocoa powder was mixed with acidic ingredients like vinegar and buttermilk,the cake batter naturally turned red.
Today, cocoa powders are processed with acid-neutralizing agent and it doesn’t react to acidic ingredients as it used to. That’s why we have to add food coloring to get that beautiful red color.
And I’m about to show you how to make absolutely perfect red velvet cupcakes from scratch.
Ingredient Notes:
To makes these soft and velvet-y cupcakes, you’ll need a few simple ingredients: flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, egg, vegetable oil, buttermilk, vanilla extract, baking soda and white vinegar.
- Cocoa powder – When it comes to cocoa powder, I recommend using unsweetened natural cocoa powder. Dutch-processed cocoa powder has a darker color, which may result darker cupcakes. Here’s an excellent article on difference between natural and dutch processed cocoa powder.
- Buttermilk is a must for that beautiful velvet-y texture, moist and soft crumbs and a slight tang, the signature taste and texture of these classic cupcakes. Oh and I prefer store-bought buttermilk over DIY version. But homemade buttermilk will work in a pinch.
- Food coloring – Either liquid or gel food coloring will work for this recipe. To achieve the level of brightness of my cupcakes, you’ll need: 1 tablespoon of liquid food coloring, or 1 teaspoon of gel food coloring.
DIY Buttermilk:
I realize not everyone have buttermilk in the fridge like we do at all times. (We sure love our buttermilk pancakes!) Here’re 2 ways you can make a quick homemade buttermilk:
- Option #1: 1/3 cup sour cream, or plain Greek yogurt + milk (or water) to make 1/2 cup. Stir well before using.
- Option #2: 1/2 cup of milk + 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice (or white vinegar). Stir and let it sit for 5 minutes for milk to curdle.
Tip
While homemade buttermilk works in a pinch, I personally prefer store-bought buttermilk for making these red velvet cupcakes.
How to make these cupcakes:
It’s really easy to make these cupcakes, you don’t even need a mixer, as I did in my video below.
- Mix dry ingredients.
- Mix wet ingredients.
- Combine dry and wet ingredients.
- Stir in baking soda/vinegar mixture.
- Bake!
And here’s the step by step frosting recipe with a troubleshooting guide.
Make-Ahead Tips:
You can make both cupcakes and frosting in advance.
- Store the cooled cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Refrigerate the frosting, covered, until ready to decorate the cupcakes.
Tip
I recommend frosting the cupcakes preferably right before serving, or 2-3 hours in advance at the most.
Storing Tips:
- Store unfrosted cupcakes at room temperature, covered, for 1-2 days.
- You can also freeze unfrosted cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days. Cover the cupcakes with a plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out.
Hope you enjoy this recipe and let me know what you think. 🙂
Red Velvet Cupcakes
Ingredients
For cupcakes:
- 1 ½ cups (190g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cups (200g) sugar
- 1 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder Note 1
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- ½ cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- ¾ cup (180ml) buttermilk at room temperature, Note 2
- 1 tablespoon liquid red food coloring or 1 teaspoon gel food coloring, Note 3
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon white distilled vinegar
For cream cheese frosting:
- 8 oz (225g) cream cheese at room temperature
- ¼ cup (55g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 cups (250g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
To make cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line muffin pans with paper cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the egg, vegetable oil, buttermilk, red food coloring, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Add prepared dry ingredients and mix until smooth, about a minute.
- In a small dish, mix together baking soda and vinegar. While the soda/vinegar mixture is bubbling, add it to the batter and mix it well.
- Using a large cookie scoop, divide the batter into 12 muffin cups. (Fill the cups 2/3 of the way.)
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool the cupcakes for 5 minutes in the pan. Then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make frosting:
- In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter on medium high speed until fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Add powdered sugar and beat on low speed for a minute. Then increase the speed to medium high and continue to beat until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Stir in vanilla extract and salt. Whip again until incorporated, 30 seconds.
- Transfer the frosting into a pastry bag, fitted with decorative tip (I used this Wilton M1 piping tip).
- Frost the cooled cupcakes preferably right before serving, or a few hours prior.
Tips & Notes:
– Store unfrosted cupcakes at room temperature, covered, for 1-2 days.
– You can also freeze unfrosted cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
– Store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days.
Nutrition Facts:
This recipe was originally published on December 3, 2013 and updated on July 20th, 2021.
Kaitlyn says
Pretty good, but the cupcake doesn’t have much flavor.
Heather says
Absolutely delicious! My family and I loved them (:
Shinee says
Yay, so happy you all loved it. Thank you, Heather!
Deborah says
These are amazing!!!! So easy to make. Can you freeze these with the icing on?
Shinee says
Hi, Deborah! So happy you loved the cupcakes!!! I’ve never frozen frosted cupcakes, and I don’t usually recommend it.
Frederick says
Delicious
Shinee says
Thank you!
John says
I made these and they turned out great! This is a very good recipe. Thank you for sharing it!
Shinee says
Awesome!! Thank you for your feedback, John!
Mary Claire says
It was spectacular , and tasted delicious. I will definitely be making these again.
Chrisann says
Made these today and theybwere amazing. The only thing I did differently was sift my flour and cocoa powder. Big hit! The cream cheese frosting amazing. Thank you for sharing.
Shinee says
Yay, so happy you tried and loved my red velvet cupcake recipe. Thank you so much for your feedback, Chrisann!
Kelsey says
Followed the recipe exactly. It was delish! Very moist and pretty fluffy. The icing is a tad runny but still holds it shape rather well while piping. It is also hot in Alabama so that probably didn’t help matters. A little extra powered sugar for the hot summers in the south!
Shinee says
So glad you liked this recipe, Kelsey. Thank you for sharing your feedback!!
Caitlin Welch says
Wonderful recipe!! Very pleased with the outcome! I made them in mini cupcake form for my Christmas goodie box to friends. Will definitely use this recipe again!
Shinee says
Oh, I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe, Caitlin. Thank you for your feedback!!
Robin says
Oh My Goodness. I have made alot of red velvet desserts using many different recipes. I received so many compliments when I used this recipe. I this only thing that is different from other recipes is mixing the baking soda & vinegar separately. It made all the difference in the world when it comes to taste & texture. Sooo good! For some stupid reason I did not save this recipe when I made it. I have been searching for it ever since lol 2 weeks later, I found it, saved it, printed it, laminated it & put it in a safe place lol. This will be the only RV recipe I use from now on. I did use my own CC buttercream recipe which is the best!!
Shinee says
Hi, Robin! So glad you fount the recipe after all! And thank you for your feedback. Seemingly little things sure make a big difference in baking, don’t they? 😉
Greg says
I’ve tried the recipe and its absolutely good. I wanted to double the recipe and make it a proper cake, how to do it? Should I just double everything or do I need to do some tweaks on the recipe? Thanks!
Shinee says
Hi, Greg. Yep, you can basically double the recipe. Here’s my red velvet cake version: https://www.sweetandsavorybyshinee.com/super-tall-red-velvet-layer-cake/
Madlena says
Hello.
Cupckakes was ok, they came out nice, but the frosting sucks. It is tasty. but so runny. I will use it in my next cake, but it not for cupcakes. 🙁
Shinee says
Hi, Madlena. Thank you for your honest feedback.
Paige says
Definitely didn’t like your frosting recipe – it was incredibly runny, even after refrigeratorating. Yes, I used Philadelphia cream cheese in the block – always do. Still way too runny and it greatly decreased the aesthetics of the cupcake. Back to my original frosting recipe I go.
Shinee says
Hey, Paige. I’m sorry your frosting didn’t turn out. You didn’t decrease the sugar amount, right? This’s a no fail cream cheese frosting recipe that I always use. I even used it for a friend’s wedding cupcakes, and they were beautiful, just like the cupcakes on the picture here.
Ginni says
I left the whipping cream out and had the perfect frosting for piping. You can always use a tiny bit of milk if it’s too thick.
Charmain Aranha says
I made it and everyone loved it. I want to do more but I’m afraid to double the recipe. Have you ever doubled it, and if so did you get the same results?
Shinee says
I’ve doubled the recipe and it works fine. I have once made this for a friend’s wedding, so I needed to double. But I wouldn’t recommend tripling. 🙂
And I saw your photo of your cupcakes. They’re gorgeous. Thanks for sharing it!
Charmain Aranha says
Thank you! I will most definitely try more of your recipes. I love the simplicity of this one.
Rhonda Perry says
Hello I have made this recipe several times and I must say it gets better every time! My family loves them! I have a question. Can this recipe be doubled and made as a cake instead of cupcakes and still have the same moist flavor and texture?
Shinee says
Hi, Rhonda! So happy you love these cupcakes!! Yes, you can do that. I actually shared the cake version here too. https://www.sweetandsavorybyshinee.com/super-tall-red-velvet-layer-cake/. And thank you for sending the photo of your beautiful cupcakes!
Josephine says
I was so excited to try this recipe because Red Velvet is my absolute favorite! I was disappointed with these 😔 I followed the recipe 100% and I have to say my family and I all agree this tasted nothing like red velvet ! It was more like a vanilla dyed red and the frosting was delicious but did not hold.
Shinee says
Hi, Josephine! I’m sorry to hear you were disappointed with the cupcakes. I’m surprised that they taste more like vanilla, despite the addition of cocoa powder. Anyway, I appreciate your feedback and thanks for trying my recipe!
Fatuma kaviiri says
I’ve just made these cupcakes for my daughters cake sale in school,everyone loved them to the point of asking for mums number…thank you so delish
Shinee says
Aww, Fatuma! Thank you for your feedback, it made my day! I’m so happy to hear the cupcakes turned out great. Hope you won’t get too many calls, asking for more cupcakes. 😉
Anastasia says
Frosting tastes awesome! The cupcakes themselves came out looking great but were a bit heavy, not as light as I’d want a cupcake to be. The egg and buttermilk I used were not at room temperature, could this have been the cause? Otherwise the recipe was awesome, great instructions and super easy to follow for a beginner like me!
Shinee says
Hi, Anastasia! So glad you tried my recipe and thank you for your honest feedback. Having egg and buttermilk at room temperature aids the batter to blend better, thus it does affect the texture of the cake. Next time try to bring those ingredients to room temperature before baking and see if there’s difference. Also, don’t mix the batter for too long after you add flour, otherwise too much gluten will form and will make the cake denser.
Sarita says
Hi Shinee,
I’ve been searching for a red velvet rfor cite for ages… and yours seems perfect! Just one question though… I live in Portugal and do not get any other vinegar other than white wine vinegar! Can white distilled vinegar be substituted with white wine vinegar? If not can you give me another alternative, I did notice your comment earlier about baking soda and white distilled vinegar replacing baking powder!
Awaiting your reply as I want too make these soon….they are so yummy!
Thank you very much xx
Lauren says
Hi Shinee,
It has taken me so long to find a perfect red velvet recipe and this one is it! The cupcakes came out incredibly moist and delicious. Thanks for sharing
nina says
How did you achieve the bright red color of the cupcakes? Mine turn almost brown everytime 🙁
Shinee says
Hi, Nina! What kind of food coloring are you using? I use this McCormick liquid red food coloring and I get that beautiful bright color every time.
Kathy says
Hi! I made the cupcakes and they turned out amazing! I want to bake a birthday cake in round 9inch pan… Would this recipe work? What are your thoughts on how to bake in oven and temp? Thanks!!
Shinee says
Hi, Kathy! I’m so glad you tried the cupcakes. I’ve never tried making the cake version out of this recipe though. But I don’t see why you couldn’t. I’d bake the cake at 350°F for 20 min and check for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the center. Hope this helps.