McDonald’s launches Spicy McMuffin to celebrate 50 years of breakfast classic

McDonald’s spices up its breakfast menu with a limited-time Spicy McMuffin range to celebrate 50 years since the iconic nationwide launch. Credit: McDonald's

McDonald’s has launched three spicy new McMuffin options across the US today (8 July) to celebrate 50 years since its first-ever breakfast item hit menus nationwide.

The limited-time menu additions – Spicy McMuffin, Spicy Sausage McMuffin, and Spicy Sausage McMuffin with Egg – add a new twist to the iconic Egg McMuffin, which McDonald’s first introduced across its US restaurants in 1975.

Described by McDonald’s as “the Egg McMuffin you love with a fiery attitude,” the new items feature the same traditional breakfast build (buttered English muffin, cheese, egg and Canadian bacon or sausage) topped with a Spicy Pepper Sauce.

Brief history of the Egg McMuffin

The Egg McMuffin has long been hailed as a gamechanger in fast food. Franchisee Herb Peterson from Santa Barbara, California, originally created it by adapting a version of Eggs Benedict for customers.

According to McDonald’s website, Peterson decided that packaged Hollandaise sauce didn’t deliver the flavour he wanted. Therefore, he replaced it with a slice of cheese and added Canadian bacon, creating the early version of what would later become the Egg McMuffin.

In another innovative move, Peterson developed Teflon rings to cook fresh-cracked eggs into a rounded shape that perfectly fit an English muffin.

By 1972, the Egg McMuffin, then an open-faced sandwich served on a small tray with honey or jam, entered test markets before its nationwide launch three years later.

Part of broader summer US menu

The spicy rollout forms part of a broader summer campaign for McDonald’s US menu. On 10 July, the long-anticipated Snack Wrap returns to restaurants nationwide in both Spicy and Ranch flavours, following nearly a decade off the menu.

Later this month, McDonald’s will also be expanding its value-focused offerings. From 22 July, the Daily Double – a two-patty burger featuring American cheese, shredded lettuce, tomato, diced onion and mayonnaise – will join the McValue Meal Deal bundle nationwide, after testing in Chicago, Miami and Seattle.

In the sweet department, McDonald’s added the Blueberry & Crème Pie to its baked goods range on 30 June. The warm, striped dessert combines blueberry and vanilla crème fillings in a signature pie crust.

These launches follow a strategic shift in menu focus as McDonald’s ended its partnership with Krispy Kreme in the US on 2 July. The companies called it a “joint decision,” drawing a close to a trial that had seen Krispy Kreme doughnuts offered at select McDonald’s locations.

The promotions also arrive amid pressure from consumer advocacy group The People’s Union USA, which recently called for a week-long boycott of McDonald’s over alleged price gouging and other business practices.

In a statement shared with New Food, McDonald’s denied the allegations, saying it was “disappointed to see these misleading claims that distort our values and misrepresent our actions.”