Whether you are a beginner or seasoned baker, this is THE English Muffin Recipe you need to create the softest, fluffiest English muffins EVER. You’ll be how surprised at how easy these yeast based muffins are to make, plus they’ll be ready in around two hours!
If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you will know that my absolute favourite breakfast is the classic English Muffin Breakfast Sandwich. I have shared my Pork Breakfast Sausage Patty recipe and today is the day I am thrilled to share this homemade English Muffin Recipe with you.
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The BEST English Muffin Recipe
I am so excited to share this recipe with you today! It’s the final part of a trilogy of breakfast recipes I developed in honour of the Breakfast Sandwich. You may also recognize these golden beauties from another breakfast classic; Eggs Benedict. In fact, when I’m out for brunch (and there’s no breakfast sandwich available) I will order Eggs Benny ONLY if it comes on top of an English muffin.
Who knew homemade English muffins were this easy to make? I sure didn’t. Now that I know, I always have some on hand in the freezer. This recipe creates some of the best English muffins I’ve ever had and believe me, there’s no replacement for fresh and homemade. Once you make them, you’ll never go back to store bought!
These muffins have that signature crispy chewy golden exterior with a famously light and airy interior. When you open them up, do so by inserting a fork all the way around middle of the muffin. Pull it open and you will see the signature nooks and crannies English muffins are known for.
These empty honeycomb-like spaces are where all the melted butter and jam (or honey) congregates…are you drooling yet?
What is an English Muffin?
Obviously, you know what an English Muffin is or you wouldn’t have read this far! Generally, they are small round yeast leavened flatbreads that are cooked on a griddle. Muffins, not to be confused with American style sweet quick bread muffins, are meant to be pried apart, then eaten with butter and jam. They are great as part of an English breakfast or as a pick me up with tea.
Some fun non-traditional ways to eat English muffins are:
- Stuffed with cheese and grilled…like a grilled cheese sandwich.
- Served toasted and enjoy with soup.
- Topped with pizza sauce, cheese, and toppings to make tiny pizzas.
- Dipped in egg/milk/sugar mixture and eaten as ‘French Toast’.
Ingredients You’ll Need
I’m willing to bet that you have most, if not all of these ingredients handy in your pantry/fridge right now. So really…you COULD make these English Muffins right now! Just think: In the time it takes me to write and edit this post, I could be eating another batch of freshly baked English muffins!
- Milk
- Butter
- Salt
- Sugar
- Egg
- Flour
- Yeast
- Cornmeal
Any kind of milk will do for this recipe, in fact you could even use water in a pinch. I always make mine with 1 % milk fat milk.
Although I’ve seen other English muffin recipes with vegetable oil, I prefer to make mine with softened unsalted butter. Because…butter is better! You can use salted butter as well, just be mindful of how much salt you add to the dough. Reduce as necessary.
Sugar gives these muffins a slight but not overly sweet flavour profile. It also makes it easier to achieve the nice golden brown outer crust everyone loves. Feel free to replace the sugar with a honey, if you like. I personally like my honey ON my toasted English muffin!
Flour is the basis of every dough recipe. This recipe contains unbleached all purpose flour exclusively. However, feel free to replace 1/2 to 1 cup of the AP flour with whole wheat flour. You can also use bread flour for this recipe.
Cornmeal an important addition to English muffins. Come to think of it, I have never seen any without it. Have you? If you make this recipe, you’ll notice the dough is quite sticky during the shaping step. Coating the muffin in cornmeal makes them easier to transfer the dough to the griddle.
Last, but certainly not least…Instant Yeast has a lower moisture content and is milled finer than active dry yeast. It is faster acting and does not need to be ‘proofed’ in liquid like active dry yeast.
How to Make this English Muffin Recipe
Begin by warming up the milk (stovetop or in the microwave) until it reaches between 120 F -130 F. Do not allow it to warm up past 140 F. This is the temperature that yeast begins to die off and we need that yeast nice and active!
Next, add the warmed milk, yeast, melted butter, egg, salt, sugar, and flour to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix the dough on low speed until it comes together, then increase speed one step up. Knead the dough on low medium speed until it forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Scrape the sides of the bowl and tidy the dough into a ball. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or beeswax wrap and place in a draught free area. I use my oven with the light left on, or use the proof setting.
Either way works. Be sure to tell everyone in the house that there’s dough proofing in the oven. Believe me, accidentally turning the oven on with dough proofing inside can have disastrous consequences!
Allow the dough to rise until it has almost doubled in size (roughly an hour). When it has done proofing, remove it from the bowl and separate it into eight equal portions. Sprinkle 1/4 – 1/2 cup of cornmeal onto a plate.
Using your hands, roll each dough portion into a ball, then flatten it on the cornmeal crusted plate. Push it down until it is the shape of an English muffin and ensure the two flat sides are lightly coated in cornmeal. Place the muffing on a parchment lined baking sheet.
To cook the muffins, lightly grease an electric griddle or griddle pan and heat it on its lowest setting. Cook the muffins on low for 7-15 minutes per side. Remember, you want a nice golden exterior and a fully cooked fluffy interior.
If you find the muffins have browned too quickly (leaving the insides raw), you can finish baking them in a 350 F oven for ten minutes or so. They will be just fine, no worries!
Make this English Muffin Recipe Ahead of Time
Just like my homemade pork breakfast sausage patties, this English muffin recipe is perfect for make ahead meal prep. While most people think Breakfast Sandwiches are best for breakfast…I love them so much that sometimes I have them for a quick lunch.
If you want to freeze these English muffins, I recommend you let them cool to room temperature then place in a ziploc bag. Alternatively, they fit nicely into a repurposed bread bag. Place the muffins inside the bag, twist the end and then fit the bag over the muffins a second time so they are ‘double bagged’.
Freeze for 1-2 months only, any longer and they will start to dry out. Thaw in the microwave for 30 seconds, then coax the muffin open using a fork. Toast the muffin, then slather on butter and jam or make a breakfast sandwich.
If you make this English Muffin recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest for my latest recipes. Also, if you do make this recipe please tag me on Instagram, I’d love to see what you guys are making! Thank you so much for reading my blog.
English Muffin Recipe
Whether you are a beginner or seasoned baker, this is THE English Muffin Recipe you need to create the softest, fluffiest English muffins EVER. You'll be how surprised at how easy these yeast based muffins are to make, plus they're ready in around two hours!
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups milk; warmed
- 3 Tablespoons butter; melted then cooled to room temperature
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 1 large egg
- 4 1/2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- cornmeal for sprinkling
Instructions
- Warm the milk until it reaches between 120 F -130 F but not past 140 F or the yeast will begin to die off.
- Add the warmed milk, yeast, butter, egg, salt, sugar, and flour to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- Beat the dough on low speed until it comes together in a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Scrape the sides of the bowl and tidy the dough into a ball. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or beeswax wrap and place in a draught free area.*
- Allow the dough to rise until it has almost doubled in size (roughly an hour). Remove from the bowl and separate into eight equal portions.
- Sprinkle cornmeal onto a plate.
- Using your hands, roll each dough portion into a ball, then flatten it on the cornmeal crusted plate. Push it down until it is the shape of an English muffin and ensure each side has a cornmeal crust.
- Next, lightly grease an electric griddle or griddle pan and heat it on low. Cook the muffins on the lowest setting for 7-15 minutes. Remember, you want a nice golden exterior and a fluffy fully cooked interior*
- Allow to cool before serving.
Notes
*I use my oven on the 'proof setting' or keep the interior light on. Just make sure everyone knows dough is proofing in the oven.
**If you find the muffins have cooked too quickly (but are still raw inside), simply bake them in a 350 F oven for ten minutes or so.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 400Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 39mgSodium: 406mgCarbohydrates: 72gFiber: 3gSugar: 6gProtein: 12g
Nutritional calculation was provided by Nutritionix and is an estimation only. For special diets or medical issues please use your preferred calculator.
I am trying to make this right now. My dough is hard as a rock! Its so stiff that I can’t knead it. I can’t figure out what has gone wrong. I started it last night and ended up putting it in the fridge. I put it in a warm bowl and covered it with a damp towel.
HELP!
Oh no! It sounds like you might have an issue with your yeast. Maybe the milk was too warm or it was past due date? It doesn’t seem to have been active.
Recipe turned out great. They are delicious. So happy you shared this. Thank you.
Wonderful! I’m so glad you enjoyed this English muffin recipe. Thank you for letting me know Mandy.
My previous attempt at making English muffins didn’t go too well, but this time, your recipe worked well and they turned out great. Very nice recipe Bernice, thanks for sharing!
Excellent to hear…second time’s the charm?
This was an excellent tasting recipe for English muffins that our family will cherish for the years to come. Great tips, tricks, and instructions! Have a fabulous day!
Oh, thank you so much. I’m glad it’s a keeper!
Who would’ve thought english muffins were so easy to make. With those instructions, they come out light and airy inside but they’re crispy too. I love that golden exterior.
I never thought of making homemade English muffins but boy these are easy and so great! Perfect for the breakfast sandwich or just on their own with butter and jam.
It seems so easy to just buy them at the store, but once you’ve made them you’ll want fresh ones all the time.
Such a great recipe for English muffins, this one is definitely a keeper. They came out light and fluffy and full of flavor. Delicious! Sharing with friends.
So glad you liked them, Tristin!
My family absolutely loves english muffins and I was always so intimidated to make them! But this recipe was easy to follow and yielded perfect results. Thanks for the detailed recipe!
Excellent to hear! Always worth it to give it a go.
I love how fluffy and golden these English muffins look! I am so glad I came across this recipe as I cant wait to make these for breakfast tomorrow. Thank you for sharing!
I’m so glad you found my recipe and I hope you enjoy the process (and result).
I made them for breakfast this morning. Turned out perfect. Soft and delicious. I will definitely make these muffins again. Thanks!
Yay!! Such a great little weekend project. Thanks for trying my recipe.
These English muffins were so good! They had a great texture and tasted amazing! I’m making a big batch this weekend.
Excellent! Enjoy your weekend Kim.
I loved this English muffin recipe, they are so great toasted with butter and ham, and the rise was great!
Oh, man. I just love a classic. Thanks for stopping by Freya
I love this! I make all kinds of bread from scratch, but have amazingly never tried to make my own English muffins. These detailed directions really make me want to give it a go!
Yes!! I hope you give them a try. There just is really no comparison.
Never thought making English muffin is so easy and this one is definitely a keeper!
I didn’t know either…until I gave them a try. Glad you tried them Linda.
Wow, looks fantastic. I always buy English muffins in store. I’ll try your recipe tomorrow. Homemade certenly is better. Can’t wait.
Excellent! Happy cooking!
They are delicious; I can vouch for it!
Wonderful, so glad you enjoyed this recipe.
These muffins look really super fluffy! I’ve never made any myself! But thanks to your recipe, it’s finally time! I will dare myself over it and will bake them myself! Cheers!
Great to hear…happy baking Nora!
I’ve always been wary of making my own muffins or bread as I always thought it would be too difficult. These are so good, your instructions were so clear and easy to follow. They have such a light fluffy texture and, although you said to cool them, I love them served warm straight out of the oven.
Once you start…you’ll want to bake them all the time. It really isn’t too hard to do your own baking, once you get over that initial fear the sky’s the limit!
Wow, you are right, they are so easy to make. Love the colir on yours so crispy on the outside, and look at the inside. I am so wanting these for a lovely egg, pirk belly arugula, raspberry aioli breakfadt sandwhich! Oh wait wheres the cheese. I think a lovely Italuan soft Asiago! Thanjs for sharing,byou have spiked my breakfadt creativity!😁❤
oh my gosh, now I’m the one drooling!
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe! Will surely have this again! It’s really easy to make and it tasted so delicious! Highly recommended!
Glad you enjoyed the muffins. Once you start making them it’s so hard to go back to store bought.