McDonald’s Egg McMuffin is a cornerstone of the brand’s breakfast menu. In fact, the entire McDonald’s breakfast business was built on the back of a humble sandwich of American cheese, egg, and ham on a English muffin. It’s simple. It’s cheap. It’s kinda delicious.
I live outside the USA and McDonald’s around the world aren’t known for having breakfast consistently. Over the years, whenever I feel a little homesick (yes, even for McDonald’s breakfast), I’ve taken to whipping up my own version. Naturally, I add a few personal touches here and there. Overall the recipe is basically the Egg McMuffin taken up a notch, without the shame of going into every McDonald’s in the city and asking if they serve breakfast yet.
Plus, when you make a chain restaurant dish with top shelf ingredients, it tastes better and doesn’t leave you feeling quite as guilty.
The collection of ingredients are going to make the dish shine. I love Irish cheddar, so that’s what I use. I sometimes break the bank and go to a local cheesemonger and buy something funkier to put on, but that’s not an everyday thing and the Egg McMuffin should have a very everyday feel to it. I usually get the cheddar from the deli in my grocery store and have them slice it a little thicker than usual.
There are also a lot of Italian delis in my neck of the woods. So I usually go with Prosciutto Cotto, because I dig the slightly funky flavor with hints of rosemary and sage (between cheese and cured meats, I generally like the funk). The Cotto is also usually lined with a nice belt of fat. Plus it’s known for having one of the lowest salt contents of any cooked ham out there. At the end of the day, find a ham you really dig and use that.
I’m using a classic English muffin here because it’s an Egg McMuffin, not an Egg McBrioche. Although you can use those bread rolls if you like (a Hawaiian roll would be awesome, though high in processed sugar). I kinda like the lightness of the English muffin. It’s not too dense and that’s nice first thing in the morning.
The rest is a fresh (room temp) egg and some rucola for a little bitterness, color, and roughage.
The first thing I do is add the two slices of ham to a cold cast iron skillet and put it on the heat. It’s important that the meat is already in the skillet as it warms. This will help render out the fat better and crisp up the ham. While that’s happening I put a small pot of water on the flame with a few splashes of white vinegar (this adds acidity which helps the whites set faster). I also use this time to add a very thin layer of butter to the English muffins.
Once both sides of the ham are crisped, I fold over each piece and stack them. I then add a slice of the cheddar on top. Next, I put the muffins, butter side down, in the skillet and lower the heat so they toast.
While that’s happening, I crack the egg into a small bowl. This is pretty crucial to properly cooking any egg. First, it makes it easier to remove shell bits (they happen to the best of us). Second, you can evenly and slowly pour your egg into the gently simmering water.
I use a small food form to make a nice round poached egg. You just drop it in the gently boiling water then slowly pour your egg in. I like the egg yolk runny, but on the way to being set, so I cook it for 3 minutes.
By the time the egg is cooked, the cheese should be melted on the ham, and the muffins should be nicely toasted. Time to put everything together! I put one more slice of cheddar on the bottom. This is mostly to imitate the classic Egg McMuffin construction, but also because cheese.
Next the egg, ham, rucola, and the top muffin and you’re done! The whole process should take about ten minutes to execute.
(I don’t use any mayo, mustard, or the like because the original doesn’t and because the yolk is all the sauce you’ll need)
Slice it in half to let that yoke out to sauce your sandwich and enjoy!
