English Muffin
intro
Soft, crisp-crusted griddle breads dotted with signature nooks and crannies, perfect for toasting and topping with butter, jam, eggs, or portable picnic fillings.
Ingredients
Steps
Mix the shaggy dough
In a large mixing bowl, combine 240ml warm whole milk (43°C/110°F), 12g granulated sugar, and 7g instant dry yeast. Let rest 5 minutes until the surface turns foamy, then stir in 28g cooled melted unsalted butter, 5g fine sea salt, and 360g all-purpose flour. Mix with a wooden spoon until a shaggy, slightly sticky dough forms with no dry flour patches remaining.
First dough rise
Cover the bowl tightly with a damp linen kitchen towel, and set it in a warm, draft-free spot (24°C/75°F) for 60 minutes, until the dough doubles in volume and appears light, bubbly, and pillowy to the touch.
Cut muffin rounds
Sprinkle a clean work surface with 1 tablespoon (10g) of cornmeal. Turn the risen dough out onto the surface, pat it to an even ½-inch thick sheet, and use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut 8 equal rounds. Gather leftover dough scraps, re-pat to ½-inch thickness, and cut remaining rounds until all dough is used. Dust both sides of each round with the remaining 2 tablespoons (20g) of cornmeal.
Second short proof
Arrange the cut dough rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced 1 inch apart to allow for expansion. Cover loosely with a dry kitchen towel, and let rest for 15 minutes at room temperature, until the rounds puff slightly and spring back slowly when poked gently with a finger.
Griddle first side
Heat a cast iron skillet or flat electric griddle to 160°C/325°F (medium-low stovetop heat), and lightly grease the surface with 15ml (1 tbsp) neutral cooking oil. Place the muffin rounds on the griddle in batches, leaving ½ inch of space between each, and cook for 7 minutes on the first side, until the bottom is deep golden brown and the top edge looks slightly set and matte.
Flip and finish cooking
Carefully flip each muffin with the thin spatula, then cook for 6 to 7 minutes on the second side, until the second side is evenly golden brown and the internal temperature of each muffin reaches 88°C/190°F when checked with an instant-read thermometer. Transfer finished muffins to a wire cooling rack to cool for 10 minutes before splitting open with a fork to preserve their signature nooks and crannies.
Tips
2.Keep your griddle at steady medium-low heat: too high and the outside will burn before the inside cooks through, too low and the muffins will turn dense and tough instead of light and fluffy.
3.Cooled muffins can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge, or frozen for up to 3 months—just toast directly from frozen for a quick, easy meal.
Took a chance on these for my monthly neighborhood potluck and they were a total hit! I split them, toasted them, and set out butter, jam, and ham slices for people to make mini sandwiches. Even my super picky 7 year old asked for seconds. The only note is I had to let the dough rise a little longer than stated because my kitchen is pretty cold this time of year.
Solid recipe, turned out way better than I expected for a first try. I didn’t have cornmeal so I used semolina flour on the griddle and it worked fine, added a nice little crunch. My only gripe is the cook time felt a little longer than I planned for a weekday bake, but totally worth it for a weekend treat. Will make again.
Game changer for meal prep! I make a batch on Sunday, split them, and freeze them for quick breakfasts all week. Just pop one in the toaster straight from the freezer and it tastes fresh. My kids love them with peanut butter and banana slices for breakfast before school. Can’t believe I waited so long to try homemade English muffins!
Hmm, mine came out a little denser than I was hoping for, not as many nooks and crannies as the store-bought ones I’m used to. I followed the recipe exactly, not sure what went wrong? They still tasted good, just not the texture I was going for.
SO good. I’ve tried three other English muffin recipes over the past year and this is the first one that actually got that classic chewy texture and perfect crumb structure. I cooked mine on a cast iron griddle on low heat like the recipe said and they browned perfectly without burning on the outside before cooking through. Served them with homemade lemon curd and my wife said they’re better than the fancy bakery ones downtown.
Made these for my partner’s birthday breakfast alongside scrambled eggs and crispy bacon, and he said it was the best breakfast I’ve ever made! We ate them slathered in salted butter and homemade blackberry jam, and I’m already planning to make another batch this weekend. So worth the time, even with all the rising.
Just pulled my first batch out! I swapped in a cup for cup gluten free flour blend to accommodate my celiac, and they actually turned out shockingly good! I was worried they’d be gummy, but they cooked through perfectly, got those little crannies, everything. Only reason it’s not 5 stars is they stuck a little to my griddle even with the cornmeal.
I’ve been making English muffins since the 80s, and this recipe is hands down the best one I’ve ever used. The ratio of yeast to flour is perfect, the cook time on the griddle is spot on, no raw centers like so many other recipes I’ve tried. I brought a batch to my church potluck last Sunday and the ladies in my bible study all asked for copies of the recipe!
Total flop for me. The dough was super sticky, I couldn’t even shape it into rounds without it gluing to my hands and the counter. I ended up adding almost an extra cup of flour just to be able to handle it, and then the muffins came out tough. Super disappointed, I was really looking forward to these.
OMG these were such a hit! Ran a little brunch pop-up last weekend and added these to the menu, and they sold out in 45 minutes!!! People were raving about the texture, saying they tasted just like the ones from the iconic NYC brunch spots but even fresher. I charged $4 a muffin and people were buying half dozens to take home. Obsessed, this recipe is going to be a permanent menu staple for me.
My teen son has been obsessed with English muffin pizzas for after school snacks, so I decided to try making these from scratch instead of buying the packaged ones. Let me tell you, he refuses to go back to store bought! He said the homemade ones get crispier on the edges when we make the mini pizzas and hold the sauce and cheese way better. 10/10, dad win for sure.
Really great flavor, I loved the slight tang from the yeast! I didn’t have ring molds to shape them so I just formed them into loose rounds by hand, and they came out a little lopsided but totally fine. They rose up nice and tall on the griddle, which I was worried about since I didn’t have the molds. Next time I’ll pick up some molds to get that perfectly round shape, but even lopsided they were delicious.
These are perfect for trail breakfasts! I made a batch before my 3 day backpacking trip last week, toasted them over the campfire each morning, and slathered them with peanut butter and honey. They held up way better than regular sliced bread, didn’t get squished in my pack, and tasted amazing even after a few days. Total game changer for backcountry meals, I’ll be making these for every trip now.
Added 1/2 cup of sourdough discard to the dough on a whim because I had extra lying around, and oh my gosh it took these to the next level! It added that perfect subtle tang that made them taste like fancy artisanal bakery muffins. I let the first rise go for an extra 30 minutes to account for the discard, and they were perfectly fluffy with all the nooks and crannies you could want.
Made these in my tiny dorm kitchen with just a cheap electric griddle and no fancy equipment, and they actually turned out! I halved the recipe since I don’t have a ton of fridge/freezer space, and it worked perfectly. The only reason it’s 4 stars is I burned the first two because my griddle runs hotter than the recipe says, but once I turned the heat down the rest came out great.
Served these at our family Sunday dinner last weekend alongside fried chicken, collard greens, and mac and cheese, and everyone went crazy for them! My grandma even asked for the recipe, and she never asks for anyone’s recipes because she thinks her cooking is the best. That’s the highest possible praise in my book. These are going in the permanent family recipe box for sure.