Matcha Crinkle Cookies Recipe
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I have had a small pot of Matcha powder in my kitchen cabinet for a long time. While I love to have a matcha latte, I don’t actually take the time to make it. So the other day, when I cleared out my cabinet, I saw the little jar with a match and thought, well, there will be a lot more uses of matcha than only matcha latte, right?
So after a quick internet search, I found out about crinkle cookies! I checked out a few recipes and then came up with my own crinkle cookie recipe with matcha powder! It yields delicious, soft, and chewy cookies with a crackled top.
My recipe is a perfect beginner’s recipe that will make some cookies that look like you are a seasoned baker. So if you want to impress your guests with a cookie they don’t see very often, this is your go-to recipe!
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Why You’ll Love This Matcha Crinkle Cookie Recipe
Ingredients for Delicious Matcha Crinkle Cookies
What is Matcha and Why Use It in Cookies?
If you do a quick Google search, you’ll find that not all matcha powders are the same. You have several different grades that all have their distinct quality.
Ceremonial Grade Matcha Powder
I chose ceremonial-grade matcha when I bought my matcha powder—the highest quality available. As the name suggests, this grade is traditionally used in Japanese tea ceremonies.
Ceremonial-grade matcha stands out for its vibrant, bright green color, delicate natural sweetness, and lack of bitterness. It has an ultra-fine texture, making it incredibly smooth. This matcha powder is made from the youngest tea leaves, which will ensure you’ll get the best flavor and quality.
Premium Grade Matcha Powder
The premium-grade matcha powder is the second grade of matcha powder. On all fronts, it is a slightly lesser grade. It is slightly less vibrant green, is still smooth and flavorful, but has a mild bitterness, and is often used for making tea and matcha lattes.
Culinary Grade Matcha Powder
This is the lowest grade of matcha powder. This matcha powder is really meant to be cooked, baked, or made into smoothies. It has a darker green color, and the taste is bitter. The culinary-grade matcha powder is made with mature tea leaves, and it has a coarser powder texture than the grades above.
This grade has a few sub-grades or subcategories, you have: Premium, Classic, Ingredient, and Kitchen grade matcha powder.
Sugar
In this recipe, I used granulated sugar and powdered sugar.
Granulated Sugar
The granulated sugar has two functions in this crinkle cookie recipe with matcha powder. The first is to sweeten the cookie. The second is ensuring you get that distinct crinkle when baking this delicious cookie.
If you don’t roll your dough balls through the granulated sugar before you roll them through the powdered sugar, your powdered sugar will dissolve in the oven and you’ll just have a regular cookie (as far as regular cookies are green ;)).
Powdered Sugar
The powdered sugar in this cookie recipe will make your cookie look good and give it its signature crinkle look. In the oven, as the cookies bake, they will expand and ‘crack’ open. The cracks have a vibrant green matcha color, and the white, powdered sugar on the outside will make a beautiful contrast.
Butter
Normally, when you bake something, I would recommend making sure your butter is at room temperature or browned. With this recipe, I recommend using cold butter. When the cookie dough is too warm, the powdered sugar will dissolve, and you’ll end up with a cookie without the crinkled top.
If you’re using room-temperature butter, make sure to chill the cookie dough balls in the fridge for at least half an hour.
Luckily, I’m kind of known for forgetting to prep ahead when I’m baking or cooking—so in this case, forgetting to take the butter out of the fridge actually works in your favor!
Step-by-Step Instructions
First, start with preheating your oven to 356°F (or 180°C).
Cream the granulated sugar with the butter and salt. You can use either a wooden spoon or a spatula, a stand mixer, or a hand mixer. Do mind, when you use cold butter, your hand mixer must be a powerful one.
After the butter is creamed, add in the egg and mix well.
When the egg is incorporated into the mixture, take a sieve and sift the all-purpose flour, matchapowder, and baking powder into the mixing bowl.
Mix until you have a smooth green cookie dough. Now you can either use a cookie scoop, a measuring spoon (tablespoon), or your hands and scoop around 2 tablespoons of cookie dough. Form a small ball and put it on a plate or baking tray.
If your kitchen is warm or the dough feels soft, I recommend chilling the dough balls in the fridge for at least an hour. This helps them hold their shape and gives the cookies a better texture after baking.
Once chilled, prepare two small bowls: one with granulated sugar and one with powdered sugar. Roll each dough ball first in the granulated sugar, then in the powdered sugar. This double coating helps create those signature crackly tops once baked.
Place the sugar-coated dough balls on your baking tray, leaving a bit of space between them—these cookies will spread just slightly as they bake.
Then all that’s left is to bake, cool on a cooling rack, and enjoy!
Tips for Success!
- Use cold butter – It helps the dough stay firm, so the cookies hold their shape and the powdered sugar stays visible after baking.
- Sift your matcha powder – Matcha tends to clump. A fine mesh sieve ensures your dough is smooth and the flavor is evenly distributed.
- Double-coat the dough balls – Roll them first in granulated sugar, then in powdered sugar. This creates that dramatic crinkle effect during baking.
- Chill the dough – If your kitchen is warm or the dough feels soft, pop it in the fridge for at least 30–60 minutes. Chilled dough gives thicker cookies with better texture.
- Use a cookie scoop – This keeps the cookies uniform in size so they bake evenly.
- Cool completely on a wire rack – Letting the cookies cool on a rack prevents sogginess and helps the texture set perfectly.
Tools you’ll need
This post may contain one or more affiliate links, which means I will get a small commission when you buy a product via the provided link at no cost to you! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See my full disclaimer here.
Matcha Crinkle Cookies
Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 Wooden spoon or spatula
- 1 Set of measuring cups and spoons
- 1 Sieve
- 1 Oven
- 1 stand mixer, or hand mixer optional
- 1 Cookie scoop (size of 2 tbsp) optional
- 1 Fridge optional
Ingredients
For the Matcha Cookie Dough
- ½ stick unsalted butter 58 grams
- ½ cup granulated sugar 115 grams
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1 cup all-purpose flour 175 grams
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1½ tbsp matcha powder 7 grams
For the Crinkle Top
- ¼ cup granulated sugar 58 grams
- ½ cup powdered sugar 75 grams
Instructions
- Start with preheating your oven to 356 °F (or 180 °C).
- In a mixing bowl, cream ½ a cup of granulated sugar (115 grams), ½ a stick of butter (58 grams), and ¼ tsp of salt. Use a wooden spoon, stand mixer, or hand mixer.
- Add in one egg, and mix.
- When the egg is incorporated into the sugar/butter mixture, take a sieve and sift 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1½ tbsp of matcha- and ½ tsp of baking powder. Add to the mixing bowl and mix until you have a smooth and green cookie dough.
- Either use a cookie scoop, a tablespoon, or your hands and scoop around 2 tbsp of cookie dough. Form a small ball and put it on a plate.
- Optional: Put the plate in the fridge for about half an hour to cool the dough.
- Take two small bowls, add ¼ cup of granulated sugar to one, and ½ a cup of powdered sugar to the other.
- If you put your dough balls in the fridge take them out after at least an hour.
- Take the matcha cookie dough balls and roll them first through the granulated sugar and then through the powdered sugar.
- Place the balls on your baking tray and keep a bit of space as the cookies will lightly spread when baking.
Notes
- Use cold butter – This helps the dough stay firm, so the cookies hold their shape and the powdered sugar doesn’t melt away.
- Sift your matcha powder – It clumps easily. Sifting gives you smooth dough and even matcha flavor throughout.
- Double-coat the dough balls – First in granulated sugar, then in powdered sugar. This gives that classic crinkle top.
- Chill the dough – If it feels soft or your kitchen is warm, chill the dough for 30–60 minutes. It helps the cookies bake up thicker.
- Use a cookie scoop – Keeps your cookies even in size, so they bake more consistently.
- Cool on a wire rack – This prevents soggy bottoms and helps the texture set just right.
Wrapping Up!
These matcha crinkle cookies are the perfect way to use up that matcha you’ve had sitting in the cupboard—and they’re guaranteed to impress. Let me know in the comments how yours turned out!
