It’s incredibly easy (and fun!) to make homemade English Muffins, using basic pantry ingredients, and cooking them in a skillet or griddle.

If you love easy bread recipes don’t miss my Artisan No Knead Bread, or homemade white bread or wheat bread.

Three homemade English Muffins stacked on each other on a baking sheet next to a cup of jam.

Why I love this recipe:

Better than Store-Bought: You can’t beat the amazing freshness of these soft and chewy homemade English Muffins. They’re wonderful served toasted and slathered with homemade jam, in a delicious Breakfast Sandwich, or get extra fancy and make Eggs Benedict.

No Oven Required: There’s no baking required–the English muffins are cooked in a skillet on the stove, or use an electric griddle to cook many at once.

Freezer-Friendly: Make a big batch and store them in the freezer for months, to have some on hand all the time!

Did you know that English Muffins originated in the United States? They were made popular by an English emigrant –Samuel Bath Thomas– who called them “English” muffins to distinguish them from other sweet, cake-like American muffins. They’re not a traditional “muffin” at all, but a type of bread that’s split open (like a biscuit) and served toasted, with butter or jam.

How to make English Muffins:

Make Dough: Add yeast, milk, honey, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour to a mixing bowl and mix well.

Two images showing yeast, milk, honey, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour in a mixing bowl before and after it's stirred.

Rest: Add remaining flour and stir everything until very well combined, to form a soft, sticky dough. Cover bowl and set aside to rest for 20 minutes.

A sticky dough resting in a glass bowl for an easy English Muffin recipe.

Shape English Muffins: Line two sheet pans with parchment paper and sprinkle cornmeal between the two. Use a greased ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop batter into equal portioned “blobs” onto the pan. Press and shape each batter blob into a flat, round disk, around 3 inches in diameter, then flip to the other side, to coat both flat sides lightly in cornmeal. The cornmeal helps make them easier to shape and handle.

Two images showing the process of scooping and flattening the dough to shape homemade English Muffins.

Rise: Space the dough discs at least an inch apart along both baking sheets to give them room to rise. Cover the pans with a light kitchen towel or greased plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1 ½ hours. It’s important to let them rise, so that bubbles can develop in the dough, resulting in those nook and crannies in the center of the muffin that English muffins are known for.

Cook on a hot griddle or skillet for 7-10 minutes on each side, until cooked through.

Serve: To split open, poke the tines of a fork all around the outside center of each muffin, then split apart. Serve the best English Muffins toasted, with butter, jam, marmalade, or peanut butter. Use them to make Eggs Benedict, Crab Cake Benedict, or in a breakfast sandwich.

A homemade English Muffin split in half and spread with butter and jam, with a stack of more english muffins behind.

Storing and Freezing Instructions:

Store at room temperature for 3-4 days.

To Freeze: Place them in a freezer-safe bag or container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Re-warm in the toaster, or for a few seconds in the microwave.

Use these English Muffins in:

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Recipe

Three homemade English Muffins stacked on each other on a baking sheet.
Prep 30 minutes
Cook 20 minutes
Rise time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total 2 hours 20 minutes
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Equipment

Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast * (1 packet)
  • 1 3/4 cups buttermilk , warm, or regular milk
  • 2 Tablespoons honey
  • 1 egg , lightly beaten
  • 3 Tablespoons butter , melted
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup cornmeal , for coating on the outside of the muffins

Instructions
 

  • Mix dough: Add yeast, milk, honey, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour to a mixing bowl and mix well. Add remaining flour and stir everything until very well combined, to form a soft, sticky dough. Cover bowl and rest for 20 minutes.
  • Scoop onto baking sheets: Line two sheet pans with parchment paper and sprinkle cornmeal between the two. Grease a ¼ cup measuring cup with non-stick cooking spray and scoop batter into equal portioned “blobs” onto the cornmeal on the sheet pans.
  • Press and shape each batter blob into a flat, round disk, around 3 inches in diameter, then flip to the other side, to coat both flat sides lightly in cornmeal. Space the dough discs at least an inch apart along both baking sheets to give them room to rise.
  • Rise: Cover the pans with a light kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1 ½ hours.
  • Cook: Heat a griddle to about 325 degrees (or a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium/medium low heat). Use a spatula to gently pick up the English muffin disks and place them on the hot pan. Cook for 7-10 minutes. They will puff up, and the bottom will get golden. Flip to the other side (they will deflate a little) and cook for another 7-12 minutes, until golden on the bottom and when you touch the sides and gently press, it no longer feels doughy. (Or until the center of a muffin registers about 200°F on an instant-read thermometer). You can always take one off and gently test it. Cook longer if still doughy.
  • Cool and Serve: Remove English muffins to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before splitting open and eating. To spit open, poke the tines of a fork all around the outside center of each muffin, then split apart.
  • Toast them and serve with butter, jam, marmalade, or peanut butter, or use them to make Eggs Benedict, or a breakfast sandwich.
  • Store English muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

Notes

Freezing Instructions: place in a freezer-safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat for a few seconds in the microwave, then spit open and add to toaster. 
Yeast: Active dry yeast may be substituted, but needs to be “proofed” first. Mix the yeast with ½ cup warm buttermilk and a little drizzle of the honey. Stir and allow to rest for 5 minutes. It should foam on the top. Then continue with the rest of the recipe, using the remaining buttermilk and honey.
Buttermilk: Here’s an easy buttermilk substitute if you don’t have some on hand. I like the tanginess that buttermilk adds, but regular milk may also be used. You want it just lightly warm, not hot.
Whole Wheat English Muffins: You can substitute half whole wheat flour in this recipe. If you use all whole wheat flour they will be a little more dense. 

Nutrition

Calories: 157kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 5gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.3gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 169mgPotassium: 91mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 133IUVitamin C: 0.02mgCalcium: 39mgIron: 1mg

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I originally shared this recipe February 2021. Updated August 2023.

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Lauren Allen

Welcome! I’m Lauren, a mom of four and lover of good food. Here you’ll find easy recipes and weeknight meal ideas made with real ingredients, with step-by-step photos and videos.

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Comments

  1. I was searching for an English Muffin recipe because there are so many chemicals in ready made food. That’s how I landed on your page.

  2. I never knew how easy it is to make homemade English muffins. They were delicious.Thank you so much for the recipe & video. I don’t think I will be buying commercial English Muffins any time soon, if ever again.

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