In a large bowl, mix the warm milk, warm water, sugar, and yeast. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes, until slightly foamy. The liquid should feel warm, not hot. If it is too hot, it can weaken or kill the yeast. Letting the mixture sit until genuinely foamy before proceeding confirms the yeast is actually active — moving forward with dead or sluggish yeast would leave the whole dough underrisen no matter how carefully every later step is handled.

Add the flour, melted butter, and salt. Mix until a shaggy dough forms, then knead for 6 to 8 minutes by hand or about 5 minutes in a stand mixer on low speed. The dough should be soft, elastic, and slightly tacky. Do not add too much extra flour. A slightly sticky dough gives better nooks and crannies. A dry dough makes tight, bready muffins. That extra moisture in a properly hydrated dough creates larger, more irregular gas pockets as it proofs and bakes — a drier dough simply doesn't have the same water content available to form those same open pockets.

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let rise at room temperature for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, until doubled. That extended rise gives the yeast real time to produce the carbon dioxide responsible for the dough's eventual open structure, while also letting the gluten network relax and develop full elasticity.

Dust a tray generously with cornmeal or semolina. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently press it into a thick rectangle, about 2cm thick. Cut into 8 rounds using a large round cutter, about 8 to 9cm wide. Re-roll scraps gently if needed. Place the rounds on the cornmeal-dusted tray. Dust the tops with more cornmeal. Press the dough out gently instead of crushing it. You want to keep some of the gas inside for a more open crumb. Gentle pressing, rather than a hard roll or crush, is what preserves the gas bubbles already built up during the first proof — those preserved pockets are directly what becomes the muffin's characteristic open crumb once baked.

Cover the muffins loosely and let proof for 30 to 40 minutes, until puffy and lighter. They should look risen but not collapsed. Under-proofed muffins bake up dense. Over-proofed muffins deflate when moved. They should feel airy but still hold their shape. This narrow window between under- and over-proofed reflects a real, genuine balance point — the dough needs enough time to build real lightness, but pushing past that point weakens the gluten structure enough that the muffin can no longer support its own risen shape.

Heat a heavy skillet, cast iron pan, or griddle over low to medium-low heat. The pan should be hot enough to toast the muffins slowly, but not so hot that the outside burns before the center cooks. That deliberately gentle heat is calibrated specifically around these thick rounds' real depth — a hotter pan would develop dark colour on the outside well before the dough's own centre has had enough time to actually cook through.

Place the muffins on the dry griddle, leaving space between them. Cook for 7 to 9 minutes per side, until deeply golden brown and set on the outside. Turn gently with a spatula. English muffins need slow heat. If the surface gets dark in less than 4 minutes, the pan is too hot and the centers may stay doughy. Leaving genuine space between the muffins, rather than crowding them, gives each one full, even exposure to the pan's heat rather than uneven cooking from pieces packed too closely together.

If the muffins are very thick or feel soft in the center, transfer them to a 180°C oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until fully cooked through. The center should reach about 94 to 96°C if using a thermometer. The muffins should feel light and springy, not heavy or wet in the middle. That optional finishing bake exists specifically to catch any muffins whose thickness genuinely outpaced what the stovetop griddling alone could fully cook through, rather than pushing the griddle time itself longer and risking a burnt exterior.

Transfer the muffins to a wire rack and let cool for at least 20 minutes. Split with a fork by poking around the edge, then gently pulling the muffin open. Do not slice with a knife if you want the classic English muffin texture. Fork-splitting creates the rough surface with nooks and crannies. A knife cuts a clean, smooth surface straight through the crumb, while a fork instead tears along the bread's own natural weak points — that tearing action is precisely what produces the characteristic craggy, uneven surface a proper English muffin is known for.

Toast the split muffins until crisp and golden. Serve with butter melting into the holes, or use as the base for Eggs Benedict and breakfast sandwiches. Toasting the already fork-split surface specifically deepens colour and crispness right into those craggy pockets, which is exactly where melted butter later collects most generously.