McDonald's changed the recipe for its iconic Egg McMuffins last year, and sales of the sandwiches exploded.
During a visit this week to McDonald's headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, the company's head chef, Jessica Foust, showed us how the popular breakfast sandwich is cooked and served today in restaurants across the country.
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The ingredients that go into an Egg McMuffin include English muffins, eggs, butter, American cheese, and Canadian bacon.
Foust emphasized that the American cheese is McDonald's own recipe and that it melts immediately when it hits a hot English muffin, creating a "sauce" for the entire sandwich.
McDonald's used liquid margarine on its breakfast sandwiches for many years, but last year switched to butter.
"It just didn't taste as good," Foust said of the liquid margarine.
The swap was also made because customers were unfamiliar with liquid margarine, and they felt more comfortable with real butter, McDonald's executives said.
Sales of the Egg McMuffin grew by double digits following the switch, according to the company.
The first step in making McDonald's new-and-improved Egg McMuffin, as Foust demonstrates, is to toast the English muffins and melt several sticks of butter in a microwave for 30 seconds. Then the butter is mixed with a spoon for about one minute to create a "creamy sauce."
When the butter comes out of the microwave, it should have a "chunky consistency," Foust said.
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