English Muffin Recipe

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This homemade English Muffin Recipe is giving those store-bought ones a run for their money! They require a bit of time but are soft and oh so worth it! Enjoy with a side of eggs and bacon or turn it into a toasted ham and egg sandwich. And for special occasions, use them for this Eggs Benedict Recipe for Two.

But First, What are English Muffins?

If you’ve never had one before, you are in for a treat! English muffins are a yeasted breakfast bread that are commonly toasted then eaten with either sweet (jam, honey, butter) or savory (eggs, bacon, sausage) toppings. I especially love toasted and with some creamy peanut butter.

Why You’ll Love This English Muffin Recipe

So this homemade breakfast perfection comes from when I experimented with the English Muffin recipe from King Arthur Flour. Oh, mama were they good fresh out of the pan! Yes, I said pan! You cook English muffins in a dry skillet on your stovetop! Pretty cool, right?

After the first batch was all finished, I was surprised at how much better they tasted than the store-bought version! I mean, usually, I would expect anything you make at home would be better than anything premade at your local grocery store, but these were 1000 times better! Surprisingly wonderfully better! 🙂

Ingredients Needed For English Muffins

Since I don’t have a bread maker, my dough was made with a trusty stand mixer. I added in extra flour and made a few more modifications. Here is a list of the simple ingredients you’ll need to make homemade English Muffins:

• Milk– warmed milk helps combine and moisten the dry ingredients to form the dough. Feel free to use 1% or 2% milk or whole milk.
• Butter– room temperature and very soft. For moisture and flavor. Salted or unsalted butter is fine.
• Salt- for balancing the flavors.
• Granulated Sugar- to slightly sweeten the dough and to help activate the yeast.
• Egg– lightly beaten. For structure and texture.
• Bread Flour– for volume that fills out the English Muffins. I needed about 1 to 1 1/2 cups more flour than what was stated on the original recipe. Semolina flour or all-purpose flour would work fine too.
• Instant Dry Yeast– this is used to form carbon dioxide bubbles in the dough which gives the finished product volume and texture. Active dry and instant yeasts can be substituted for one another at a 1:1 ratio. Active dry yeast will take about 15 to 20 minutes longer to rise than instant yeast.
• Corn Meal- used to give the outside texture!

Variations

• Whole Wheat Flour: Swap some bread flour for a nuttier taste.
• Sourdough Starter: Add for a tangy flavor.
• Honey: Substitute sugar for a different sweetness.
• Raisins or Cranberries: Mix in for a fruity twist.

How to Make English Muffins

These are the best English muffins ever! So much better than store bought! For full recipe details, including ingredient measurements, see the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is how to make these easy homemade English muffins:

Step 1: Combine Ingredients for English Muffin Dough

Combine warm milk, butter, salt, sugar and egg together in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. In a separate bowl, mix half the flour and yeast.

Pro Tip: To encourage active dry yeast to start its activity without having to proof, just use very warm milk in your dough mixture. Aim for 107-110° F.

Step 2: Combine + Knead with Stand Mixer

Using a hand mixer or the dough hook attachment with the stand mixer on low, slowly incorporate the yeast mixture into the wet until everything is mixed equally. Sprinkle in remaining measured flour until dough forms and looks and feels like dough- if it looks and feels very sticky and the dough sticks to your hands, then add more flour.

You want the dough to be slightly sticky–so it will stick to your hand but hardly leave any trace of dough when you pull away quickly. Knead the dough for 7-8 minutes.

Step 3: First Rise

Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let the dough rise for 1 hour or until dough puffs up to be twice the size it was originally. Ideally, place the bowl in a warm place in your kitchen to rise.

Step 4: Shape Muffins + Let Rise Again

Remove dough gently from bowl onto a corn meal covered workspace. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin to be 1/2-3/4 inch thick and use a biscuit cutter to cut into 3-inch circles. Place dough circles onto cornmeal dusted baking sheet. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let sit for 15-30 minutes.

Step 5: Dry-Fry Muffins

Heat a frying pan, cast iron skillet or griddle to low heat. Do not grease your muffins, but sprinkle with cornmeal. Cook four muffins at a time, cornmeal side down first, for about 7 minutes per side. Check after about 3 to 4 minutes to see that the muffins are browning gently and are neither too dark nor too light; if they seem to be cooking either too fast or too slowly, adjust the temperature of your pan or griddle. If your pan is too hot, the edges will burn and the inside will stay raw, so it’s important to find that ‘golden temperature’ that works for you. 🙂

Step 6: Cool + Cut + Serve

When the muffins are golden brown on both sides, transfer them to a wire rack to cool, and proceed with the rest. If you have two frying pans (or a large electric griddle), you’ll be better able to keep up with your rising muffins.

Pro Tip: Use an Instant-Read Thermometer to check for doneness if unsure. The inside of the English muffins should be about 200° F.

Once English Muffins are cool, break open with a fork and toast and enjoy!

Storing Directions For English Muffins

There’s nothing better than fresh English muffins right out of the oven. If you have leftover, store in an airtight container for up to 5 days. No need to store in the fridge as that tends to dry these out faster.

Freezing Directions

You can also freeze these little babies for up to three months! Be sure to allow the English Muffins to cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container then thaw in the fridge or counter when you’re ready to use them.

Pro Tip: Slice your English Muffins in half before freezing them. That way they can go straight from freezer to toaster!

Love Homemade English Muffins? Try These Bread Recipes…

• EASY Homemade Bread Recipe
• Homemade Bagel Recipe
• How to Make Pizza Dough
• Whole Wheat Rolls
• Homemade Dinner Rolls

These homemade English Muffins are perfect for any occasion. Whether you’re making eggs benedict, breakfast sandwiches, or just enjoying a toasted English muffin with melted butter, truly it’s a great recipe. The printable recipe card is below. Have a good day, friends! 🙂

If you make this recipe, I would really appreciate it if you would give it a star rating and leave your review in the comments! If you have a picture of your finished dish, post it on Instagram using the hashtag #laurenslatest and tagging me @laurens_latest.

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English Muffin Recipe

This homemade English Muffin Recipe is wonderfully better than store-bought! They require a bit of time but are soft and so worth it!

servings 16 english muffins

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 14 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 54 minutes mins

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 3/4 cups milk warmed
• ▢ 3 tablespoons butter very soft
• ▢ 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• ▢ 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 egg lightly beaten
• ▢ 4 1/4 cups bread flour*
• ▢ 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• ▢ cornmeal

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• Combine warm milk, butter, salt, sugar and egg together in the bottom of a stand mixer. In a different bowl, mix half the flour and yeast.
• Using the dough hook with the stand mixer on low, slowly incorporate dry mixture into the wet until everything is mixed equally. Sprinkle in remaining measured flour until dough forms.

  Look and feel dough- if it looks and feels very sticky and the dough sticks to your hands, then add more flour. You want the dough to be slightly sticky–so it will stick to your hand but hardly leave any trace of dough when you pull away quickly. Knead dough for 7-8 minutes.
• Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let sit 1 hour or until dough puffs up to be twice the size it was originally. Remove dough gently from bowl onto a cornmeal covered workspace. No need to punch dough down. Roll out to be 1/2-3/4 inch thick and cut into 3-inch circles. Place dough circles onto cornmeal dusted baking sheet. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let sit for 15-30 minutes.
• Heat a frying pan or griddle to low heat. Do not grease, but sprinkle with cornmeal. Cook four muffins at a time, cornmeal side down first, for about 7 minutes a side.

  Check after about 3 to 4 minutes to see that the muffins are browning gently and are neither too dark nor too light; if they seem to be cooking either too fast or too slowly, adjust the temperature of your pan or griddle.

  If your pan is too hot, the edges will burn and the inside will stay raw, so it's important to find that 'golden temperature' that works for you. 🙂
• When the muffins are brown on both sides, transfer them to a wire rack to cool, and proceed with the rest. If you have two frying pans (or a large griddle), you'll be better able to keep up with your rising muffins.
• Once English Muffins are cool, break open with a fork and toast. Slather with butter and enjoy! Store extras in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Notes

*I had to use 1-1 1/2 cups more flour (this varies based on the climate you live in)

Nutrition

Calories: 170kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 217mg | Potassium: 87mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 124IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 1mg

Course: Breads

Cuisine: English

Keyword: english muffin recipe, english muffins