There are plenty of people out there who would argue that McDonald's World Famous Fries are
the best thing to come out of the golden arches. But how do they actually end up on your tray
or in that drive-thru bag? Let's find out.
McDonald's decided to share all about how their famous fries are made after years of
people asking if they used some sort of potato goo to get the process started. Well, there's
no goo here. According to McDonald's, their world famous fries start with whole, fresh-from-the-ground
potatoes, grown on U.S. farms.
The potatoes McDonald's uses are so ideal for their famous fries that they weren't willing
to stray from them a few years ago and move to another option. When J.R. Simplot engineered
the "Innate" potato, a variety that would bruise less and release fewer compounds when
fried, a McDonald's spokesperson said they had no intention of switching to the GMO product.
They said:
"McDonald's USA does not source GMO potatoes nor do we have current plans to change our
sourcing practice."
Long live the real potato!
McDonald's serves up a very specific shape of fry, and that comes from the way the potatoes
are cut. The potato-cutting machine looks like a giant wood chipper, shooting potatoes
into high pressure water knives at 60 to 70 miles per hour.
One McDonald's factory employee on Reddit went even further to describe the machine's
incredible strength, making it sound, well, terrifying. They said, quote,
"Somebody stepped in a water waste flume once and got sucked under and almost drowned. Somebody
passing by had to pull him out. This wasn't a flume where fries go, but it still has water
moving about the same speed. For the flumes that carry product, just imagine a few hundred
pounds of fries every minute going by at lightning speed."
“Mary Mother of God.”
If you look closely at McDonald's ingredient list for their fries, you'll notice a few
ingredients that definitely aren't potatoes. Two of those, dextrose and sodium acid pyrophosphate,
are added at the factory, essentially giving the cut potatoes a nice chemical bath.
There's no need to worry, though. According to Heathline, dextrose is a simple sugar made
from corn, which is often used as a sweetener. The Center for Science in the Public Interest
says sodium acid pyrophosphate actually reduces the levels of acrylamide, a carcinogen present
when potatoes are fried, so there might be some chemical additions we should be applauding.
As an added bonus, they also help keep those fries a delicious golden color, no matter
where in the world you order them.
Once the fries are cut and bathed, they're partially fried at the factory to speed up
the cooking process later on once they arrive in stores. According to one McDonald's Factory
employee's AMA on Reddit, the processing is all part of setting the store up for success.
"Uncooked food is harder to manage bacteria growth [...] It's also easier if the restaurants
can just reheat than actually cook."
The fries then travel about 50 yards through a flash-freezer tunnel to complete the process,
which is crucial for their uniform appearance and storage.
One of the most unique additives you'll see listed among McDonald's french fries ingredients
is their, quote, "natural beef flavor." Yes, you heard that correctly. Natural beef flavor.
And we owe it to that added beef flavor for not being able to put those beautiful french
fries down.
Years ago, McDonald's used to fry their french fries in beef fat, and it just became part
of their signature flavor. According to NPR, the company switched to a vegetable oil base
to quell concerns about saturated fat, but still incorporated essence of beef until vegetarian
groups protested.
Today, McDonald's continues to mimic that flavor with the help of their natural beef
flavor containing hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk, which makes it safe for vegetarians,
but not vegans.
During service, especially during busy times, fries are made pretty much constantly. When
it's time to put a fry basket down, the fries are actually designed to cook within three
minutes, all thanks to the preparation beforehand in the factory.
At one time, McDonald's used a partially hydrogenated oil for their fries, until they completely
switched over in 2008 to eliminate trans fats. They spent seven years on the hunt for a replacement,
testing 18 different types of oils before they ultimately decided on Clear Valley high
oleic canola oil, which allowed McDonald's to fry in an oil with no trans fats and the
lowest saturated fat content of any of the vegetable oils.
According to McDonald's, they've figured out the ideal amount of salt for their fries based
on their customers.
In answering one of their FAQs on the McDonald's UK website asking about why McDonald's fries
have so much salt on them, they responded by explaining,
"Extensive research has shown that the majority of McDonald's consumers prefer a light sprinkling
of salt on their french fries. A typical serving of a small portion of french fries contains
0.5 grams of salt."
With that standard, that puts a small order of fries serving up to 160 milligrams of sodium
and large with 350 milligrams of sodium. Compared to your daily recommended amount of sodium
of around 1500 milligrams, that's not outrageous after all, is it?
McDonald's Canada took to their website to answer the many questions their customers
have about their food, and one popular topic was how long fries sit in the heat tray before
they are finally discarded. Corporate told one enquirer,
"[...] the longest amount of time we'll keep our World Famous Fries before serving them
to you is 7 minutes. (But their popularity means they're usually on your tray and in
your mouth much faster than that.)"
"No, sorry mate, five second rule!”
“I thought it was a ten second rule.”
“No, it’s definitely five seconds.”
“Seven?”
“Right-oh, seven. Six, and seven. Time’s up.”
And what about that thing where customers think they're pulling one over on MickeyD's
by asking for fries with no salt, just to get a fresh batch? According to another crew
member on Reddit, all you need to do in order to get fresh fries is ask.
"Did you know that you can simply ask for fresh fries if that's what you wanted? They'll
actually most likely be newer than asking for no salt!"
But if you do ask for fresh fries, be sure to remember they will take a few more minutes
than normal. One employee told Reddit it takes about 3 ½ minutes to complete the order,
and that's actually not long at all to wait for that box of golden deliciousness.
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