Delicious Skillet-Cooked English Muffins

Ahhh, English muffins – crispy, crunchy and perfect with a little butter and jam for breakfast! I have made Sour Dough English Muffins and they are good, but they are labor intensive. I recently found a recipe that produced this delicious bread in a much quicker fashion. I had to try, and I’m so glad I did!

English muffins are not baked in the oven, but are cooked in a skillet. That gives them their beautiful golden exteriors and soft centers. Perfect for absorbing the butter you slather on! When I make one for breakfast, I like to toast it in the toaster and get them crisped up. These are perfect for Eggs benedict, or even pizza burgers! Here’s the recipe:

English Muffins

1 1/4 cups warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon instant dry yeast
2 tablespoons melted butter or oil (canola, vegetable, olive etc.)
2 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
Cornmeal, for dusting

Pour warm water into a large bowl. Sprinkle sugar, then yeast on top. Let sit and foam for 10 minutes.

Add in melted butter/oil, flour, and salt and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Once combined, drop dough onto floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, adding just as much flour as needed to make the dough stop sticking to the countertop. 

Shape the dough into ball and place into an oiled bowl. Cover and let rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. Meanwhile, sprinkle a few tablespoons of cornmeal on a piece of parchment paper or a towel. 

Once dough is doubled, knead a few times on a floured surface and then divide into 10 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball by rolling it between the palm of your hand and the countertop.

Place the balls onto the prepared parchment and press them into flattish rounds. Sprinkle more cornmeal over the tops of the rolls. Cover rolls with towel and let rise 20 minutes. 

Heat a large frying pan or skillet and grease with cooking spray. Cooking the muffins in batches, cover and fry on low heat on first side for 9 minutes, until the muffins are puffed up and golden and toasted on the outside. Flip and cook for about 5 more minutes, or until the second side is also golden and toasted. 

Yield 10 muffins

To make the pizza burgers, I toast an English muffin, then top it with pizza sauce, pepperoni slices and Mozzarella Cheese, then I set it under the broiler until the cheese is melted and golden. A fast and yummy lunch is ready in minutes!

If you’ve never made English muffins before, you need to give this recipe a try! You might not purchase the packaged ones in the store again!