If you're looking for the perfect bagel breakfast sandwich recipe, you have come to the right place! Not only is this breakfast sandwich recipe easy to create, but this blog post will guide you to make modifications for everyone in your crew.
Why You'll love this Bagel Breakfast Sandwich
Before I was blogging full time, I was a the executive chef at The Black Dolphin Inn in New Smyrna Beach. Every morning for years, I'd wake up early and cook breakfast for the entire hotel.
My bagel breakfast sandwiches were always a hit and people would literally travel all the way to New Smyrna Beach to eat one.
And although my favorite breakfast sandwich from those days were always made with simple ingredients, the guests always told me that they were the perfect way to start the day.
Loaded with cheesy goodness, pan fried ham, over medium fried eggs, avocado and a super simple creamy sriracha sauce, it was like an elevated egg sandwich on steroids.
Plus, if someone didn't like one of the ingredients, it's super easy easy to swap things out or leave them off so that they could appeal to the whole family... and by whole family, I mean all of our hotel guests!
This simple recipe will easily become one of your favorite easy breakfast recipes. And the best part is that they're so, so dang delicious and the perfect way to start your day.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Bagel: I always recommend using an everything bagel because it's got so much more flavor. But feel free to swap it for a plain bagel or another one of your favorite bagels. Some of my other go-tos are egg bagels, garlic bagels, pumpernickel, poppy seeds or sesame seed bagels, cheddar jalapeno bagels, whole wheat bagels or the thin, skinny bagels if I'm trying to watch my carb intake. If you want to get wild, try the sweet and savory approach with a cinnamon raisin bagel. If you can get your hands on some fresh bagels, these kind of bagels will make all of the difference! The grocery store bagels are fine but if you have a bagel shop near you, their homemade bagels are always my top choice. And if someone isn't a bagel lover, this recipe is delicious on english muffins or in a wrap as well.
- Eggs: In this easy bagel sandwich recipe, I love using a fried egg over medium. You still get all the goodness of a runny egg but without it totally gushing over everything when you take a first bite or press it down. If you're not into a runny yolk, try scrambled eggs, baked egg whites or crispy fried eggs over hard.
- Cheese: I think the key to making the ultimate breakfast sandwich is choosing the correct cheeses. I add a cheddar cheese slice and a slice of american cheese. That way I get that melty cheese texture while also getting flavor. You could also use regular cream cheese or a smear of flavored cream cheese but I'll talk more about that later on.
- Meat: Meat is totally optional in this breakfast bagel sandwich recipe but if you choose to go the carnivorous path, I recommend ham. It's the easiest breakfast meat to make and if you're like me, you're always looking for uses for leftover ham. If ham or canadian bacon isn't your thing, there are options! Try a few slices of crispy bacon, turkey bacon, breakfast sausage, or another vegetarian friendly alternative.
- Sauce: My go-to sauce for breakfast sandwiches is this 3 ingredient creamy sriracha sauce that I first made for my cookbook back in 2018. It's my go-to breakfast spread as it's creamy, bright, and slightly spicy. If you aren't into hot sauce or spicy things, I recommend using a garlic aioli or a flavored cream cheese such as a green onion cream cheese, bacon cream cheese, or everything bagel seed cream cheese.
- Butter: If you don't want to use butter to fry your eggs, you could absolutely swap it to another oil or fat (think bacon grease) of your choice.
- Add-Ons: Fresh avocado is one of the best ingredients on a breakfast bagel. Not only does it help the ingredients stay in place but it adds a beautiful pop of color and freshness to this sandwich. If you're not a fan of avocado, you can try some heirloom tomato slices, thinly sliced red onions, green onions, a handful of arugula, some pickled red onions, chili flakes or even a couple of pickled jalapenos.
How to make it - Detailed Instructions
To make this breakfast bagel sandwich recipe as efficiently as possible, you must pay attention to timing.
Make the Sauce: The first thing you'll want to do is to make my 3 ingredient creamy sriracha sauce which only takes a couple of minutes. All you need is a small bowl, some mayo, smoked paprika and sriracha hot sauce.
Toast your Bagel: Once that's prepped, it's time to start to get your bagel toasted. Since this recipe is so quick and easy, you'll want to start here so you can create the filling as the bagel toasts and warms up. When it comes to getting the perfect toast on a bagel, I recommend either using a standard toaster, an air fryer (what I use), toaster oven, or a regular oven to get your bagel warmed up.
Cook the Eggs: While that's happening, grab your favorite large nonstick skillet and heat it over medium-high heat. Once the butter melts, it's time to crack and add your large eggs. Sprinkle a little bit of kosher salt on top and some fresh cracked pepper if you're into it. After a few minutes, the edges of the eggs will start to get crispy and the inner white part of the egg will firm up. At this point, it's time to carefully flip the eggs.
Melt Cheese & Warm Ham: Once the eggs flip, you'll want to drop the heat down to medium heat. Let the eggs cook for a few more minutes until they reach medium-doneness. Then add one slice of cheese (first the american cheese followed by the cheddar cheese) on top of the eggs. Turn the heat to low and stack the eggs on top of each other. Then add your ham (or your crisp bacon, canadian bacon, etc) to the other side of the nonstick skillet. As the meat heats up and sears from the residual heat, the melted cheese will work its magic.
Build the Sandwich: At this point, your toasted bagel should be ready and golden brown. The other components are prepared now too so it's time to build the bagel breakfast sandwich. Grab your avocado or your schmear of choice and smear it onto the bottom half of the bagel. Next, add your ham, egg, and cheese stack to the sandwich. Then add your creamy sriracha sauce to the top of the bagel and close up the sandwich.
How to Prep it for a Crowd Or Individual Meal Prep
Since I used to make this recipe for 40 people at a time, I've got prepping down to a science. Whether you want to meal prep it for yourself or prep some of it if you're cooking for a large crowd, I've got a great way to do both at the same time.
- Cook Eggs & Store: To begin, you'll want to cook your eggs. Just grab a large skillet or a griddle top, some butter and fry as many eggs as you need. Once you're done cooking eggs, let them cool on a sheet pan. Then place them in a ziplock bag before storing in the fridge.
- Make the Sauce: While the eggs are cooling, I recommend you making the sauce. Making a big batch of my creamy sriracha sauce ahead of time is one of the best ways to save yourself some time.
- Slice the Bagels & Store: You can also pre-cut the bagels and place them right back in the plastic sleeve they came from. When it's time to reheat the sandwiches, you'll be perfectly prepared.
- Build Sandwiches for Reheating: Grab a baking sheet and (line it with parchment paper for easy cleanup). Split however many bagels you need in half and place them interior side up on the sheet pan. Next, smear both sides with the sauce. (Also, just an FYI, I don't recommend using the avocado with the meal prep method). Then top the bottom half of the bagel with the cooked egg then a cheddar cheese slice. And on the top half, add the american cheese then top it with the ham.
- Broil the Sandwiches: Place the sheet pan in the oven on the bottom rack and turn the broiler on low. Letting the sandwiches heat up this way means that the meat will caramelize while melting the american cheese underneath it. The egg will also warm up while broiling the cheddar on top of it. As this is all happening, the bagel gets perfectly toasty.
- Close the Sandwiches & Serve: Now that everything is hot and crispy, close the sandwiches up and serve. You can also wrap in tinfoil for a grab and go approach.
And just like that, you're able to make up to 6 ham, egg and cheese bagel breakfast sandwiches at once.
What sides to with a Bagel Sandwich?
If breakfast is your favorite meal of the day, I'm sure you've got some go-tos when it comes to side dishes. If not, here are some of my favorite breakfast recipes to inspire you:
- Cheesy French Onion Crockpot Potatoes
- 15 Minute Air Fryer Breakfast Potatoes
- Hawaiian Roll French Toast with Cinnamon Sugar
- Easy Sausage Gravy & Biscuits Recipe
- Bacon and Cheese Strata with Collard Greens
- Black Dolphin Inn's Salted Caramel Churro French Toast with Fresh Berries
- Dishoom's Naan Breakfast Sandwich with Bacon, Cream Cheese, Chili-Tomato Jam & Cilantro
- Easy Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit Sandwich
Other Flavor Variations to try
If you think this is the best bagel you've ever had - wait til you try my other favorite flavor combinations!
- Bacon, Egg, Smoked Cheddar, Pickled Jalapeños & Hot Honey on a Cheese Bagel
- Canadian Bacon, Muenster, Egg, Hollandaise Sauce & Spinach on a Whole Wheat Everything Bagel
- Sausage, Mozzarella, Egg, Pesto, Peppers & Onions on a Garlic Bagel
- Bacon, Egg, Smoked Gouda, Tomato Chutney, Candied Jalapenos on a Sesame Bagel
- Sausage, Egg, Cream Cheese, Raspberry Jalapeno Jam & Basil on an Egg Bagel
- Canadian Bacon, Egg, Pepper Jelly, Scallion Cream Cheese & Goat Cheese on a Everything Bagel
- Veggie Bagel Sandwich Stack with Cream Cheese & Fresh Veggies
Recipe
Ultimate Bagel Breakfast Sandwich Recipe (Egg, Cheese + Ham)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Everything Bagel
- ½ tablespoon Salted Butter
- 2 large Eggs
- 1 slice Cheddar Cheese
- 1 slice American Cheese
- 2 slices Honey Ham
- ½ large Avocado
- 1 tablespoon Creamy Sriracha Sauce
- Kosher Salt
Instructions
- Start by toasting your bagel to your desired doneness.
- As it's toasting, add butter to a large nonstick skillet and heat it over medium-high.
- Once the butter is melted, add the eggs and sprinkle them with a pinch of kosher salt. When the edges are done and the inner white is starting to turn opaque, carefully flip them and turn the heat down to medium/medium-low.
- Add the cheeses on top of the eggs and stack them on top of each other.
- Add the ham to the other side of the skillet to warm it up and slightly brown it.
- Add the ham on top of the cheese covered eggs and turn the heat off.
- Once the bagel is done toasting, smear the bottom half of the sandwich with avocado and mash it in. Add a sprinkle of salt.
- Add the ham, egg and cheese stack on top of the avocado.
- Smear the inner part of the top half of the bagel with the creamy spicy sriracha sauce and close up the sandwich.
- Serve immediately or wrap in tinfoil for later.
