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These Homemade Egg McMuffins combine toasted English muffins, eggs, cheese, and your choice of meat to make easy, freezer-friendly breakfast sandwiches in just under 20 minutes.
My simple method for baking eggs lets you prepare a large batch of breakfast sandwiches without cooking each egg individually. It is ideal for meal prep and busy mornings.
Homemade Egg McMuffins at a Glance
- Yield: 6 Egg McMuffins; easy to scale
- Time Involved: About 20 minutes, with only 5 minutes of hands-on prep.
- Customizable: Use your favorite bread, meat, and cheese.
- Make-Ahead: Refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- What to Expect: This is not an exact copycat Egg McMuffin. It has similar flavors but uses baked eggs to make six sandwiches quickly and easily.
Kristen's Key Tips for Egg McMuffins
Just like with my Breakfast Sliders, I prefer to whisk and bake the eggs in one pan. This creates a uniform texture and eliminates the need to cook six individual eggs.
Beyond baking the eggs, I have learned a few tips through testing that improve the final texture.
- Toast the English muffins. This adds texture and creates a barrier that helps prevent the bread from absorbing moisture. Because the oven is already on, I find it more efficient to toast them all at once on a sheet pan.
- Don't overbake the eggs. Bake until the edges are fully set and the center is just set but still has a slight wobble. The eggs will continue to firm up as they cool, while overbaking can make them rubbery.
- Cool before storing. Trapped steam creates condensation, which is the main reason make-ahead breakfast sandwiches turn soggy. Allowing each component to fully cool will prevent that from happening.
- Make an extra batch. Because they freeze and reheat well, I often make a double or triple batch. It helps make busy mornings that much easier, without much added effort up front.
Happy Cooking! xo Kristen
Notes on Ingredients
Classic Egg McMuffins are made with eggs, Canadian bacon, American cheese, and a buttered, fork-split English muffin. You can keep it traditional or vary the components to make your breakfast sandwich your way.
- English Muffins: For classic texture, use fork-split regular or whole wheat English muffins. Thicker artisan English muffins, such as Dave's Killer Bread, are denser and often need to be sliced open rather than fork-split.
- Eggs: Rather than cooking whole eggs, I whisk them with a bit of milk, salt, and pepper and bake until set. This produces tender, evenly set eggs that are easy to cut into portions that fit the English muffins.
- Cheese: Use sliced American cheese for the most classic flavor and smoothest melt, or sliced sharp cheddar for a stronger cheese flavor. I personally love sharp cheddar.
- Meat: While Canadian bacon is the classic choice, you can omit the meat from your sandwich, swap it out for sliced deli ham (or leftover sliced Instant Pot ham), baked bacon, or a cooked breakfast sausage patty. I typically use sliced deli ham because it is easy to find and something I often have on hand. When using Canadian bacon, be sure it is fully cooked.
How to Make Homemade Egg McMuffins
Whisk and bake the eggs, toast the English muffins alongside them, and assemble the sandwiches.
Step One: Prepare Eggs
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Pour the mixture into a 7-by-11-inch baking dish lined with lightly greased parchment paper for easy removal.
Bake until the eggs are just set, then remove the pan from the oven and let rest for about 5 minutes in the pan. Then carefully lift the parchment paper out of the pan and place the eggs on a cutting board. Cut the egg slab into two rows of three rectangles. Trim the corners only if needed to fit the muffins.
Step Two: Toast English Muffins
Use a fork to split open the English muffins, or cut open with a knife if needed. Place the English muffin halves, cut side up, on a baking sheet and place them on a separate oven rack from the eggs. Bake for 5 minutes, or until lightly toasted.
Lightly butter the toasted muffins, if desired.
Step Three: Assemble Egg McMuffins
Assemble the sandwiches while warm if serving immediately. For make-ahead sandwiches, let the eggs, meat, and muffins cool fully before assembling.
To assemble, add a slice of the baked eggs, a slice of Canadian bacon or your preferred cooked breakfast meat, and a slice of cheese to the bottom halves of the English muffins. Add the top halves of the English muffins. Serve immediately, or wrap and store for later.
Note on Canadian Bacon: Fully cooked Canadian bacon can be added directly to the sandwiches, but you can warm or lightly brown it first for more flavor.
Note on Pan Size & Scaling
This recipe was designed for a 7-by-11-inch baking dish because the baked egg slab divides easily into six rectangles that closely fit standard English muffins.
- No 7-by-11-inch baking dish? You can use a 9-by-9-inch baking dish without changing the bake time. If using an 8-by-8-inch baking dish, you will need to increase the bake time by 3-5 minutes, as the eggs will be slightly thicker.
- For 12 Egg McMuffins: Whisk 12 eggs with ½ cup milk, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Pour into a 9-by-13-inch baking dish lined with lightly greased parchment paper, and bake for 12-16 minutes, or until the eggs are just set. Cut the 9-by-13-inch slab into 12 portions and assemble Egg McMuffins as directed.
- For 18 Egg McMuffins: Whisk 18 eggs with ¾ cup milk, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and ¾ teaspoon pepper. Pour into an 18-by-13-inch rimmed half sheet pan lined with lightly greased parchment paper, and bake for 12-16 minutes, or until the eggs are just set. Cut the 18-by-13-inch slab into 18 portions and assemble Egg McMuffins as directed.
How to Customize Your Egg McMuffin
Beyond changing the meat and cheese, try one of these easy variations.
- Swap baked scrambled eggs for oven-poached eggs. My oven-poached egg method lets you cook six eggs at once using a muffin tin and delivers a round whole egg similar to the one used in the original McDonald's Egg McMuffin. Keep in mind you will want to increase the bake time to 15-17 minutes so that the eggs are fully set.
- Swap out the English muffin. Slice a homemade buttermilk biscuit in half and layer with eggs, meat, and cheese. Do not toast the biscuits, as they can dry out.
- Put leftover egg bakes to use. Cut leftover frittatas, egg casseroles, baked cottage cheese eggs, or crustless zucchini pie into portions that fit the toasted muffins. Add ham or cheese if desired.
- Bake cheese into the eggs. If you do not have sliced cheese, stir shredded cheese into the egg mixture before baking. Freshly grated cheese melts more smoothly than bagged shredded cheese.
Make-Ahead Instructions
To preserve the best texture and prevent soggy breakfast sandwiches, let the toasted English muffins, eggs, and meat cool fully before assembling and storing.
- Refrigerate: Wrap each Egg McMuffin in a layer of parchment paper, then place the sandwiches in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Wrap each Egg McMuffin in a layer of parchment paper, then wrap it again in a layer of aluminum foil. Place the wrapped sandwiches in a freezer-safe storage bag to further protect them from freezer burn, then freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat in Microwave: Unwrap the refrigerated or frozen breakfast sandwich. Wrap loosely in a paper towel to absorb excess moisture, and place on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave refrigerated sandwiches for 30-45 seconds at full power. For frozen sandwiches, microwave for 1 minute at 50% power, flip, and continue microwaving at 50% power for 1-2 minutes, or until heated through. Let rest for 1 minute before serving.
- Reheat in Oven or Toaster Oven: Remove the parchment paper, wrap the sandwich in foil, and place it on a sheet pan. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes from the fridge, and 25-30 minutes if frozen. Unwrap the sandwich. If it is not heated through, return it to the sheet pan and bake uncovered for 5 minutes.
More Easy Make-Ahead Breakfast Recipes
- Breakfast Burritos
- Green Chile Egg Casserole
- Baked Oatmeal Cups
- Healthy Overnight Oats
- Sausage Balls without Bisquick
- Crockpot Breakfast Casserole
Did you make this recipe?
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Homemade Egg McMuffins
Video
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- 6 large eggs
- ¼ cup milk, or cream
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 6 English muffins, any variety
- 6 slices sharp cheddar cheese, or Swiss, Colby, American cheese, etc.
- 6 slices Canadian bacon, or deli ham, cooked bacon, or cooked sausage patty
- unsalted butter, optional for Enligh muffins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Line a 7-by-11-inch baking dish with parchment paper, lightly grease with cooking spray, and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with milk, salt, and pepper until fully broken down. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 12-16 minutes or until the edges are fully set and the center is just set (a little tiny wobble in the center is fine). I typically need to bake for 13 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for about 5 minutes so residual heat can finish setting the center.
- While the eggs are baking, split or cut open the English muffins and place, cut side up, on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake on a rack below or above the eggs for 5 minutes, or until lightly toasted. If desired, butter the toasted halves.
- Carefully lift the parchment paper out of the pan and place the eggs on a cutting board. Cut the egg slab in half widthwise and in thirds lengthwise to form two rows of three rectangles.
- If not enjoying immediately, let the components cool fully before assembling the sandwiches. Otherwise, assemble immediately by adding a slice of the baked eggs, a slice of Canadian bacon or your preferred cooked breakfast meat, and a slice of cheese to the bottom halves of the English muffins. Add the top halves of the English muffins. Serve immediately, or wrap and store for later.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
we love egg mcmuffins! i love the idea of making them at home. thanks!
You bet April. Making Egg McMuffins at home just makes busy mornings SO SO much easier.
I love that you can freeze them and then just pop them in a microwave for a quick breakfast on the go! Excellent idea! 🙂
Thansk Julia--it really does make breakfast a breeze!
This looks like everyone's ideal breakfast! Healthy AND delicious!
Those are musts in my book Cliona
This is so smart! And no more stopping by the fast food chains in the morning for a breakfast sandwich, brilliant!
Nope, no fast food run needed
What a genius way to make sandwiches for a whole week. Saves so much time in the morning. Delicious!
Thanks Sharon! Anything for letting me sleep a few minutes in the morning helps!
Yummy thats sounds like a perfect breakfast sandwich... i would love to try some of these... they looks a delicious... thank you so much for the lovely recipe
You bet Helene! I hope you try them!
What a great quick and easy breakfast on the go. I love that these are freezeable too
Yes, freezable breakfasts are a great thing to have on hand!