Order The Best McDonald's Egg McMuffin With These 4 Tips

Nobody does breakfast on the go quite like McDonald's. Whether you're craving sweet, fluffy hotcakes, savory, cheesy breakfast sandwiches, or crispy hash browns and a steaming cup of coffee, there is something to satisfy every craving on the infamous breakfast menu. While the straight-up classics are delicious on their own, we have found some pretty creative ways to modify your favorite McDonald's breakfast items to kick your meal up a notch.

Take for example, the humble Egg McMuffin: a sandwich with layers of egg, cheddar cheese, and Canadian bacon between a warm, soft English muffin. It's simple, cheap, and goes well with any other item on the menu. But what if we told you switching up the type of egg, the sauces and condiments, or even the meat itself made all the difference in its texture and flavor? It's all in the way you order at the drive-thru or on the mobile app. Below, we share our top four Egg McMuffin ordering tricks to get the most delectable, customized sandwich possible. Your breakfast run will never be the same!

A standard Egg McMuffin at McDonald's comes with a rounded egg. This means, it's cracked into a metal ring on a griddle, cooking the white and yolk just as it is. But if you want something that tastes a little more cohesive, ask for a folded egg instead. This egg is typically featured on biscuit sandwiches and is simply premixed liquid egg that's cooked into a rectangular shape on the grill. It's light, fluffy, and adds a bouncy texture to the typical Egg McMuffin. Plus, it's a fairly easy swap for staff to make, since most folded eggs are already premade, depending on location.

According to McDonald's website, folded eggs are "pre-cooked and folded before being flash frozen by our suppliers. Once in our kitchens, they're prepared on the grill with real butter." So, while the round egg is made fresh in-house, folded eggs are premade and ready to go. Nevertheless, they still contain real ingredients. It all depends on how you like your eggs, and your overall texture preference.

Egg McMuffins tend to be a little dry. That's why adding sauces or condiments is a must. Fortunately, McDonald's has plenty of options to choose from. You could go the savory route and add ketchup, Spicy Buffalo Sauce, or McDonald's picante sauce for a bold, slightly hot flavor. Some locations also offer a new Hot Honey Brown Butter Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit, so you may be able to request the sauce on your Egg McMuffin. It's the perfect blend of sweet and heat and will remind you of homemade biscuits from any breakfast joint in the South.

Prefer the sweet route? McDonald's also has packets of strawberry preserves or grape jam that customers say tastes great on the breakfast sandwiches. Alternatively, pour some hotcake syrup or honey onto the sandwich — a sweet McDonald's add-on that gives Egg McMuffins a flavor boost. No matter the sauce you choose, these options moisten up the sandwich and impart a softer texture. This way, you don't have to wash every bite down with orange juice or coffee — though we do recommend ordering both beverages from Mickey D's, too.

This is a classic trick that many McDonald's fans figured out long ago. Order a hash brown alongside your Egg McMuffin and stick it between the layers of the sandwich for a salty, savory crunch. "I thought that's what you're supposed to do. In my head, they are served separately usually to preserve crispness," one Redditor said. "When ready to eat, slap that bad boy in the middle and enjoy." Some even order an extra hash brown: one for the sandwich, and one to enjoy on its own.

Over the years, McDonald's fans have perfected the placement of the hash brown, as in where to put it in the sandwich for the ultimate tasting and eating experience. "The hash brown should be beneath the egg, either resting on top of the sausage or below it," another Reddit user noted. "It is bigger than the egg [patty], which throws off the proportions and balance/feel of the sandwich." Talk about precision!

Okay, this one might seem a bit counterintuitive because you can order a Sausage McMuffin if you prefer another type of meat on your breakfast sandwich. But we have found that layering meat or swapping the slice of Canadian bacon in the Egg McMuffin for strips of bacon changes up the flavor profile. Order a side of bacon for about $1.99, depending on your location, and stick it into the sandwich. This adds a rich, fatty flavor and a crispy pop to the sandwich, which has an otherwise even texture throughout.

If you're feeling fancy, ask for a Sausage McMuffin and add bacon strips, or request a slice of Canadian bacon to go with it. Multiple types of meat makes for a hearty, high-protein sandwich that will keep you full all morning long. You can typically ask for these customizations at the drive-thru or get them as sides on the mobile app. So, even though plenty of menu items at McDonald's are premade, you can still get a personalized meal that feels like you stopped by a local cafe.