Preheat your oven to 350°F and generously grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan with butter. Lightly dust with cocoa powder instead of flour for extra chocolate flavor and to prevent white streaks on your finished loaf.

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Sifting the cocoa powder prevents lumps and creates a silkier texture. The mixture should look uniformly chocolatey with no light streaks.

In a separate bowl, whisk melted butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth. The butter should be warm but not hot enough to scramble the eggs.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture and gently fold together until just combined. The batter should look slightly lumpy – overmixing creates tough, dense bread. Fold in chocolate chips, reserving a handful to sprinkle on top.

Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on surface. Bake for 45-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. The top should spring back lightly when touched.