Oh how I love this Chocolate Sour Cream Cake (doctored cake mix) recipe! It is super easy, amazingly moist, and delicious! Nobody would guess that it started with a cake mix!

This decadent Chocolate Sour Cream Cake has a slightly dense and velvety texture which I absolutely love. This is probably why it tastes and looks so much like a scratch chocolate cake recipe. (By the way, you can find two of our favorite scratch chocolate cakes linked below!)

If you've been searching for the perfect doctored cake mix recipe for Chocolate Cake, you just cannot top this one! I've made it countless times and it always gets rave reviews!

This decadent Chocolate Sour Cream Cake not only tastes amazing, but it is versatile also. It has a nice density for holding up to fondant, and can even be used for designs that call for light carving.

Chocolate cupcakes can be made from this recipe also, but if you are looking for a fluffier cupcake with more of a dome, I highly recommend our other tried and true Doctored Chocolate Cake recipe.

Enjoy this Chocolate Sour Cream Cake recipe, I think you'll come back to it again and again!

Chocolate Sour Cream Cake- Doctored Mix

Nobody would believe that this decadent chocolate cake all starts with a simple mix!

Ingredients

** For a deeper chocolate taste you can add 1 tablespoon cocoa powder and replace the water with 1 cup hot strong brewed or instant coffee.
1 Devil's Food Cake Mix ( I sift the cake mix, but it is optional)
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
1 cup water (We usually replace the water with 1 cup of hot brewed or instant coffee, it enhances the chocolate flavor.)
3 whole eggs
2 ½ teaspoons vanilla
½ cup (108g) vegetable oil

Instructions

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir or whisk to blend. In your mixing bowl, combine sour cream, oil, water, eggs, & flavorings. Add about ½ of the dry ingredients and blend together, then add the rest of the dry ingredients & mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Pour into three 8 x 2 inch round pans that have been greased and floured. Bake at 325 degrees for 22-25 minutes or until the middle of cake springs back when touched or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached.
*This also works well for cupcakes! Bake cupcakes at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. Remove cupcakes from the pan immediately and cool on a baking rack.

Looking for a Scratch Version of Chocolate Sour Cream Cake?

Guess what? We have a fantastic homemade version of this Chocolate Sour Cream Cake too! It is soft, moist, and works great for both cakes and cupcakes! You can find it here!: Chocolate Sour Cream Cake from scratch. (The frosting used in the photo below is our Seven Minute Frosting- so light and fluffy!)

We have another scratch chocolate cake recipe to share. This classic chocolate cake has been a favorite over the years!

Classic Chocolate Cake from Scratch.

Thanks for stopping by! Make sure to check out our Recipes Section for a full listing of our FAVORITE tried and true cake and frosting recipes!!

If you love this Chocolate Sour Cream Cake, don't miss it's sister recipe, the fabulous White Almond Sour Cream Cake (doctored cake mix recipe)! So many cakes to try, so little time! I think that you will love them both!

Thanks for stopping by! Don't miss our full collection of FAVORITE Cake and Frosting Recipes in our Recipes section!

177 Comments

Hi Dorothy, The Chocolate Sour Cream Cake doctored recipe makes 7 cups of batter. You will have a little over 2 1/4 cups batter in each of three 8" pans. The layers will be approximately 1 1/4 inches high. We often make 3 layers that are that high because we like the look of 3 layers. Your cake should still be 4 inches high once it is filled and frosted.

Is it normal for the batter to be thick or am I doing something wrong????

Yes, the batter is somewhat thick

Can you use this revipe in a bundt pan??

Hi Debbie, Yes, it will be fine to use a bundt pan. Fill the bundt pan to within 1 1/4 inches from the top of the pan and you won't run the risk of the batter baking over the sides. Bake at 350 degrees, if the interior of the pan is dark, decrease the temperature by 25 degrees. Cover loosely with aluminum foil if the top becomes too dark. Check for doneness with a toothpick or long skewer.

Does the Chocolate Sour Cream Cake recipe need any adjustments, now that cake mixes are only 15.25 ounces? Cake mixes used to be 18.25 ounces.

Hi Kathleen, The recipe has 1 cup of flour in the recipe so I do not add any additional flour.
On some recipes using a box mix with 15.25 ounces I add an additional 5 Tablespoons flour. The cake mix companies say the new weight is formulated to work without any additional flour.

Your recipe says to put the batter into prepared pans, but I can't find where you say what size pans or if they need to be oiled/floured. In the comments it looks like you do it in three 8 inch pans ...

Hi Marcia, I am sorry about that. I will make that correction. We used three 8 x 2 inch round pans that were greased and floured.

Hello,
Thank you for all your delicious recipe, it’s a success all the time any recipe is good
I just have a questions , I only have 3 9x2 inches pan would if make a different or I could just use 2 9x2 instead of 3 8x2?
Thank you

Hi Rosa, Yes, it will be fine to use two 9x2 pans to make this recipe. You will just need to lengthen the baking time a bit....check with a toothpick. Hope you will enjoy the cake.