I did the ultimate breakfast sandwich showdown with Ina Garten, Gordon Ramsay, and Martha Stewart.
Stewart's sandwich took less than 10 minutes to make, while Garten's recipe uses a microwave.
But Ramsay's breakfast sandwich was the clear winner thanks to his incredible scrambled eggs.
I've been on the hunt for the best breakfast sandwich by a celebrity chef.
Ever since I left New York City (and my trusty local bodega), my craving for a great breakfast sandwich has been at an all-time high.
So I decided to give a few recipes by some very famous chefs a try.
For my ultimate cooking showdown, I put Ina Garten, Martha Stewart, and Gordon Ramsay's "perfect" breakfast sandwiches to the test. I've tried many fantastic dishes by all three of these chefs, so I figured they wouldn't let me down.
One sandwich took more effort than expected, and another was surprisingly dry. But the winner was easily one of the best breakfast sandwiches I've ever had — and I'll be making it for years to come.
Martha Stewart's sandwich was the most simple of the three.
The recipe, which Stewart demonstrated on "Martha Stewart's Cooking School," only has four ingredients.
All you need is an English muffin, applewood-smoked bacon, an egg, and some fontina cheese.
Stewart's recipe requires minimal work and very little cooking time.
The only prep I had to do was slice the fontina cheese. Then I just needed to cook my bacon, fry my eggs, and toast my English muffins.
Since Stewart cracks her eggs right in the bacon grease, you can cook both at the same time if you have a big enough pan. It's very minimal clean-up, which is always a huge bonus!
After my eggs were ready, I built the simple sandwich. The entire process took less than 10 minutes.
I placed my crispy bacon on the bottom halves of my English muffins and slid the fried eggs on top.
Voila! Breakfast was already done.
Stewart's breakfast sandwich is all crunch, with no creaminess to balance it out.
Between the crispy bacon, the fried egg, and the toasted English muffin, Stewart's favorite breakfast sandwich was far too dry for my taste.
The sandwich needed another texture to balance it out. Avocado slices or a creamier cheese would've helped, and some sauce could've gone a long way.
I think Stewart's sandwich could be a super quick and easy breakfast staple, but it definitely needs a few tweaks.
Get the full recipe for Stewart's favorite breakfast sandwich here.
Next up was Ina Garten's breakfast sandwich, which also only has a few ingredients.
Almost all of the ingredients in Garten's bacon, egg, and cheddar sandwich are pantry staples. You just need:
Extra-large eggs
Thick-cut applewood-smoked bacon
Sharp white cheddar cheese
English muffins
Avocado
Whole milk
What makes Garten's recipe so unique is that she actually uses a microwave to cook her eggs.
Per Garten's instructions, I microwaved the bowls with my egg mixture in 30-second intervals, stirring them each time before popping them back inside.
Garten recommends that you do this until the eggs "are puffed and almost cooked through."
It took about four minutes total to cook the eggs in the microwave.
I had never cooked eggs in the microwave before, so I was surprised to see how similar they looked to eggs cooked on the stove. They actually looked nice and fluffy!
But since I was making breakfast for the whole family, I still had to repeat the process for two more bowls — which was definitely more time-consuming than I had expected.
The eggs looked deliciously fluffy as I put my sandwiches together.
I still couldn't believe that the eggs had come out of the microwave, and they tasted deliciously creamy as well — especially with the cheddar cheese mixed in.
The thick-cut bacon was also the perfect choice for this sandwich. Its crispy texture contrasted nicely with the fluffy eggs, and it served as the perfect base with the avocado.
But I do think Garten's recipe could use just a bit more oomph. I recommend adding a bit more cheddar cheese —and some hot sauce if you like heat —to elevate the flavors even more.
Garten's bacon, egg, and cheddar sandwich is a great option if you're only making breakfast for one or two people.
Garten's breakfast sandwich takes less than 15 minutes to make, which is a huge plus in the morning. And it's a really creative way to get your egg fix when you only have access to a microwave. I wish I'd known about this dish during my dorm days.
Get the full recipe for Garten's breakfast sandwich here.
Last, but definitely not least, was Gordon Ramsay's breakfast sandwich — which has the most ingredients of the three.
Ramsay has a couple of special ingredients to take his sandwich to the next level. To re-create his recipe, you'll need:
Eggs
Brioche buns
Goat cheese
Cheddar cheese
Thick-cut bacon
Shallots
Scallions
Crème fraîche
The key to Ramsay's breakfast sandwich is his special technique for making scrambled eggs.
Ramsay's technique involves cracking your eggs into a cold nonstick saucepan, then repeatedly taking it on and off the heat while adding knobs of butter. First, I placed my saucepan on low heat and continuously stirred the mixture for one minute, per Ramsay's instructions. Then I took the saucepan off the heat while stirring my eggs for 30 seconds.
I repeated this method (one minute on, 30 seconds off) three times total until my eggs looked ready.Ramsay believes that moving the saucepan on and off the heat helps prevent the eggs from overcooking, leaving you with a "custardy and silky texture."
Then I added Ramsay's special ingredient — a dollop of crème fraîche.
I also sprinkled in the scallions and seasoned everything with salt and pepper.
I could already tell how creamy the eggs were going to be as I built my sandwich.
I added the scrambled eggs on top of my bacon on the bottom half of my brioche buns and spread goat cheese on the top halves.
I then sprinkled some cheddar cheese on top of my eggs and got ready to dig in.
Ramsay's breakfast sandwich didn't just beat Stewart and Garten's by a mile — it's also one of the best I've ever had.
Ramsay's legendary scrambled eggs definitely deserve the hype. Mine were silky, fluffy, and luscious. I was so excited after my first bite that I wrote in my notes: "The eggs are so freaking creamy. Like, the creamiest I've ever had."
But they weren't the only great thing about Ramsay's sandwich. The bacon and spring onions gave a nice crunch to each bite, and I love that Ramsay uses a brioche bun instead of an English muffin — it's so fluffy, and it's a great vehicle for his smooth and creamy eggs.
I made this sandwich for my parents and they were still raving about it days later, describing it as "juicy, light, and fresh."
When it comes to the breakfast sandwich showdown, Ramsay is definitely my clear winner.
Get the full recipe for Ramsay's breakfast sandwich here.
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