The Tasty Condiments That Originally Came With McDonald's Egg McMuffin

McDonald's rolled out the first Egg McMuffin, now a ubiquitous breakfast menu item, to test markets in 1972. The original iteration came with Canadian bacon, cheese, and an egg served on a toasted English muffin. Honey or jam came on the side to balance the salty, savory sandwich, which was priced at just $0.63 and served open-faced. When the fast food chain debuted the Egg McMuffin nationwide just three years later, however, customers received a more traditional, closed sandwich, sans jelly and honey, that looked virtually identical to those McDonald's serves today.

In the years since the McMuffin's introduction, McDonald's has launched several variations on the classic, like the Sausage McMuffin, which is available with or without an egg. A seemingly minor tweak in 2015 — swapping out the margarine on the English muffins with real butter — also led to a double-digit sales boost, according to executives (via Business Insider). The company outperformed market expectations that year thanks to a suite of fresh initiatives like the all-day breakfast menu, which may not have come about without 1972's salty-sweet McMuffin.

Given that McDonald's buys about 2 billion eggs per year in the U.S. (according to a 2019 press release), it seems the decision to stop serving the Egg McMuffin with the option of either honey or jam did nothing to curb its popularity. At the same time, some people still desire the original savory-sweet combination from 1972.

On Reddit, for example, one user shared a photo of strawberry jam spread over the inside of what appears to be a Sausage & Egg McMuffin. "Am I the only one who does this?" they asked. "It just doesn't hit the same without the strawberry." Most commenters endorsed the practice, with some praising a grape jelly pairing instead and others writing that they hope to try this McDonald's Egg McMuffin ordering tip for themselves.

Thankfully, many McDonald's locations still offer honey, strawberry jam, and grape jam alongside various other condiments, though the chain might charge extra for these depending on the store. Fans hoping to keep their food budgets in check can make their own breakfast sandwiches, like this five-ingredient McDonald's Sausage & Egg McMuffin copycat that you can pair with our Instant Pot homemade strawberry jam.