The Best Grocery Store Copycat For McDonald's Sausage Egg McMuffin

Picking up breakfast at McDonald's when you're headed to work or on the go is a quick and easy way to begin your day with a tasty start. The fast food giant first introduced its iconic Egg McMuffin nationally in 1975, followed by a larger morning menu two years later, forever changing the breakfast game. But when you're at home and craving another Mickey D's morning sandwich, the Sausage McMuffin with Egg, all you have to do is head to your freezer for the best grocery store dupe, Jimmy Dean's Meat Lovers English Muffin.

The two sandwiches are built with sausage patties, eggs, and American cheese on an English muffin. However, there are a couple of differences between them. Jimmy Dean's has two patties made with both pork and chicken, instead of one that's just pork. McDonald's also has the signature round egg fresh-cooked in a ring on the grill, while they are scrambled in the copycat. The Meat Lovers has 18 grams of protein compared to the McMuffin's 20 grams, and both have 480 calories.

The heating instructions for the Meat Lovers say to microwave or bake the fully-cooked frozen sandwiches. However, the best way to heat them without a microwave is on the stovetop or in an air fryer to crisp them up. Some Redditors also put the English muffin in the toaster and microwave the sausage, egg, and cheese.

While the Meat Lovers English Muffin is a good replica of the Sausage McMuffin with Egg as is, you can also zhush it up with more flavor. Top it with ketchup, mayo, a few shakes of hot sauce for some heat, or a sweet drizzle of maple syrup or honey. Add some veggies or herbs like salsa, avocado, tomato slices, jalapeño, sauteéed mushrooms, or chives, or boost the meat love even more with a couple of bacon strips.

You could even make the McMuffin yourself with Jimmy Dean's sausage patties, which are sold both fresh and fully cooked. The pre-cooked ones also come in spicy and maple-flavored versions, which would give it a tasty twist. You can recreate the McDonald's round egg like a pro with a round cookie cutter or jar lid, or follow the dupe's example and use scrambled eggs folded to fit the English muffin. Making it homemade also lets you swap the cheese if you prefer for another one like cheddar, Monterey jack, Swiss, or provolone.

Country singer and entertainer Jimmy Dean started the meat company named after him in 1969, after sausage he was eating at a diner had a big piece of gristle and he thought he could do better. He began with the same recipe his grandfather used when they made it together at his childhood Texas farm home. The company began producing breakfast sandwiches in the 1980s, the same decade McDonald's introduced the Sausage McMuffin, with and without egg, in 1984, a decade after the Egg McMuffin's debut.