Make-Ahead Breakfast Sandwiches That Actually Reheat Well

I used a 4-inch silicone muffin-top pan. The larger wells turned out to be almost the perfect size for an English muffin, and because the silicone pan is flexible, I placed it on a regular sheet pan before adding the eggs.

I lightly sprayed each well before adding the eggs.

I put a separate pan of water on the oven rack underneath the eggs while they bake.

The eggs aren’t sitting in the water. The water simply adds steam to the oven while the eggs cook.

Since these eggs are going to be reheated later, I don’t want to overcook them during the initial bake.

My first batch turned into a little experiment.

I tried:

• A whole egg with the yolk intact
• An egg with the yolk broken and spread around
• A scrambled egg

All three went into the same silicone pan, in the same oven, at the same temperature.

At 350°F, all three were set after about 9 minutes.

But they definitely weren’t equally good.

Whole Egg

The whole egg was soft, but the white had a slightly rubbery texture. The yolk was also completely cooked through.

It worked, but it wasn’t what I wanted for a sandwich that would eventually be reheated in the microwave.

Broken Yolk

I also tried breaking the yolk and pulling it through the white.

Again, it worked, but the egg cooked unevenly and had rougher edges where the yolk had been pulled through.

There wasn’t really an advantage to doing it this way.

Scrambled Egg

The scrambled egg was easily the winner.

It was tender and tasted delicious, although my first attempt had a few thicker areas because the white and yolk weren’t completely incorporated.

For my next batch, I thoroughly whisked the eggs together before pouring them into the pan.

That fixed it.

For the final batch, I thoroughly whisked the eggs before dividing them between the 4-inch wells.

This batch was ready in about 8 minutes at 350°F.

The finished eggs were soft, evenly cooked and almost exactly the right size for an English muffin.

Ingredients

• 6 large eggs
• Salt, to taste
• Black pepper, to taste
• Cooking spray

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Place a 4-inch silicone muffin-top pan on a sheet pan. Lightly coat the wells with cooking spray.
3. Whisk the eggs thoroughly until the whites and yolks are completely combined.
4. Divide the eggs evenly among the six wells.
5. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Place a separate baking pan filled with water on the oven rack underneath the eggs.
7. Bake for about 8 minutes, or until the eggs are just set. Ovens vary, so start checking around the 8-minute mark.
8. Let the eggs cool for a few minutes before removing them from the silicone pan.

Once the eggs have cooled, assemble each sandwich with:

English muffin + cheese + baked egg

Add cooked bacon, sausage or ham if you want a heartier sandwich.

If you’re meal prepping these, I recommend assembling the entire sandwich now rather than storing or freezing the eggs separately.

I tested both methods, and there was no taste advantage to storing the egg separately. The assembled sandwiches were much more convenient.

Allow everything to cool before wrapping the sandwiches and placing them in the refrigerator.

To reheat a refrigerated sandwich, I use a trick my mom taught me years ago.

I quickly run the English muffin under the faucet—literally just for a second—before microwaving it.

Don’t soak it. You’re only adding a tiny bit of moisture.

Microwave the refrigerated sandwich for about 30 seconds, or until heated through.

I tested a refrigerated assembled sandwich against an egg that had been refrigerated separately and then put onto a fresh English muffin. Both were good, and my second taste tester couldn’t tell a meaningful difference between them.

So for me, there’s no reason to create extra work in the morning.

Assemble the sandwich ahead of time.

This was the test that surprised me most.

I froze one completely assembled sandwich and froze another egg by itself.

For the assembled sandwich, I took it straight from the freezer and microwaved it for 1 minute 5 seconds.

No thawing.

No taking the sandwich apart.

No adding water to the English muffin.

It was excellent.

The frozen egg stored by itself was a different story. I put it onto a fresh English muffin and microwaved the sandwich for the same 1 minute 5 seconds.

The English muffin was hot.

The egg was still about half frozen.

I had to remove the egg and microwave it separately for another 20–30 seconds before putting the sandwich back together.

It worked, but it was more trouble for a result that wasn’t any better.

That settled it for me.

If I’m freezing these, I’m freezing the entire sandwich assembled.

How to Reheat a Frozen Breakfast Sandwich

For the best results, wrap the frozen sandwich in a damp paper towel and microwave at 50% power for 30 seconds. Flip the sandwich and microwave at 50% power for another 30 seconds.

Check the center before eating and add a little more time if needed, since microwave wattages can vary.

I originally tried reheating the sandwich for about a minute at full power. While one sandwich reheated well, another ended up with melted cheese all over the plate while the center of the egg was still partially frozen. Lowering the microwave power and flipping halfway through gave me a much more evenly heated sandwich.