McDonald's Beloved Egg McMuffin Led To The Invention Of This Handy Kitchen Tool

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Since its invention in 1970, the McDonald's Egg McMuffin has steadily become an iconic meal. The breakfast sandwich features two halves of a buttered English muffin piled with Canadian bacon, a slice of American cheese, and an egg. With most of the ingredients bearing a uniquely cylindrical shape, this sandwich inspired the invention of a Teflon egg ring to help streamline the preparation process according to Tasting Table's exclusive interview with David Peterson — son of the Egg McMuffin's inventor, Herb Peterson.  

The history of McDonald's Egg McMuffin began with a desire to break into the breakfast market and serve customers more than mere burgers and fries. As a friend of Julia Child, with a fondness for traditional eggs benedict, Herb Peterson sought a way to transform this dish into an accessible fast food menu item. Per David Peterson, the original kitchen tool was crafted by a blacksmith whose specialty was creating horseshoes. The ring, coated in non-stick Teflon, helped to contain the egg while cooking and shaped it into a properly-sized filling for the English muffin.

The Egg McMuffin was a revolutionary invention in itself, creating a crave-worthy fast food breakfast with an enduring legacy. In addition to this most impressive feat, the kitchen tool it spawned has its own variety of uses beyond simple egg-wrangling. For example, you can buy your own egg ring or purchase a four pack Yevior Egg Rings to make your eggs more uniform for stacking, opening up all kinds of whimsical possibilities for breakfast and more.

For those new to the world of egg rings, these kitchen tools can present something of a learning curve. One Reddit user asked, "I have tried it by cracking an egg inside a ring set on my frying pan, and it just doesn't work. The whites leak out under the edge, and the thing just doesn't cook right. How do they do it at McDonald's?" 

Users in the comments cited the flat surface of the restaurant's griddle for creating an optimal seal. A reply from a user who claimed to be a former McDonald's employee agreed that this was a factor, but also recommend adding a small pat of butter to your pan to prevent leaks and to ensure you were cracking the egg onto a hot pan. 

Another Redditor suggested, "Dip the ring into the egg and put it on, then pour in [the] remaining egg so it creates a seal first." Whichever hack you choose to prepare a copycat Egg McMuffin, an egg ring is one of the five kitchen tools to build the best breakfast sandwich. If you want to get creative with options aside from Egg McMuffins, however, you might consider using a ring mold to make picture-perfect pancakes every time. 

Egg rings can also be used to stack up hearty layered salads, prepare individual portions of poke, or give your favorite recipes a new style of presentation. From its humble beginnings as the driving force of the McDonald's Egg McMuffin, the mighty egg ring is a kitchen tool worth its weight in Teflon.