The New Chicken Big Mac from McDonald's Delivers Fast Food Overkill

When it comes to fast food, I have to confess that I am a big fan of McDonald’s. Their food is very consistent, their locations are relatively clean, and they are fast in getting your order out. Also, they have no pretensions about what they are. McDonald’s is fast food (or junk food, if you prefer) through and through. Oh sure, they have put out the Angus burger in the past or the premium chicken sandwich or that sort of thing, but that’s not really what you go there for. You go there for McFood: the Big Mac, the Filet-O-Fish, the Double Cheeseburger, the Chicken McNuggets, and, of course, the fries.

As a fan of McDonald’s, two of my favorite items have always been the Big Mac and the McChicken Sandwich. The Big Mac is a fast food classic, but you can’t really call it a hamburger. It is pure junk food with its two thin meat patties (we hope that’s really 100% beef), its plastic American cheese, its goopy special sauce, along with the shreds of lettuce, pickles, and sesame seed bun. It delivers sweet, savory, and tangy flavors, and each bite makes your heart pump harder because there is nothing healthy in that sandwich. But it is still oh so good to a junk food junkie.

As for the McChicken, this is not the premium chicken sandwich with a breast filet like what they currently have on the menu to compete with Chick-fil-A. This is basically a large McNugget—ground chicken that is battered and fried—stuffed in a bun with some shreds of lettuce and a little bit of mayo slathered on. And it is another junk food classic. Surprisingly, I am not a big McNugget fan, but I really like the McChicken sandwich, especially the spicy version. And if you swap mustard for the mayo, then you have a real tasty drive-thru treat!

So, considering my love of the Big Mac and the McChicken sandwich, you would think that the new Chicken Big Mac would be junk food heaven for me. But not so much.

This is a variation on the Big Mac that swaps out the beef for McChicken patties, and it is available in stores right now for a limited time. Apart from the meat of choice, it is basically the same as the Big Mac as it has the secret sauce, American cheese, lettuce, and three-tier bun (fun fact: the middle bun is called the “club”). The only thing missing is the pickles, which is odd since those come with most chicken sandwiches these days.

The Chicken Big Mac delivers many of the flavors of the Big Mac, except the meat is different, but it’s just too dry (maybe they should have kept those pickles on). True, a Big Mac is on the dry side to begin with, but that’s where the goopy and sweet sauce and the cheese step in to moisten things up. However, it does not work as well with the chicken patties, partly because they are bigger than the beef patties and they are also on the dry side. One patty works okay in a McChicken sandwich by itself, but two plus that extra bun turns into overkill. Basically, the Big Mac and the McChicken already skate that fine line between junk food and junk; this one goes too far over.

I will say that I liked the Big Mac sauce with the chicken, but I think I would rather just order the McChicken Sandwich and ask them to swap the mayo for the sauce (you can’t do that in the app, though, and not all locations will do it if you ask). As for the Big Mac-style sandwich, I will stick to the one with the beef patties.

The Chicken Big Mac is on loan from Limited-Time-Only-Ville, and it has already been around for over a month. So, if you want to give it a try, you will need to head to the drive-thru soon. It costs $4.89 for the sandwich, and a combo with fries and a drink will set you back $8.89. Oh, and for whatever reason, you can’t get this after midnight (even though the Big Mac and McChicken are available). So, if you have late-night munchies, don’t ask for this one.

Nutrition Info:

Calories: 700
Fat: 37g (8g Sat/0g Trans)
Protein: 25g
Carbs: 61g
Sodium: 1410mg

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