McDonald’s Is Making Its Own Plant-Based Burger
McDonald's is rolling out the McPlant, its own vegan friendly plant-based burger.
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McDonald’s is the latest fast-food outlet to add plant-based options to their menu with the McPlant burger. The vegan-friendly meal includes a plant-based patty developed by Beyond Meat. It’s made from peas, rice, and potatoes. The patty is topped with all the popular fixings like tomato, pickles, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, and a slice of American cheese. The burger is served on a sesame seed bun.
When the McPlant was first announced, the fast-food giant said the burger delivers on the iconic McDonald’s taste in a sink-your-teeth-in kind of sandwich. The vegan option has been doing a trial run at eight restaurants across the United States starting on November 3rd. The burger is currently available at select outlets in Texas, Louisiana, California, and Manhattan – until supplies last.
The limited-run is supposed to help the company figure out how the new burger will impact its kitchen operations. But unlike the same meal in the United Kingdom, the McPlant will be served with non-vegan mayonnaise and American cheese. It will also be cooked on the same grill as beef patties and eggs. However, according to a statement from McDonald’s, guests can customize and request to hold the cheese and mayonnaise or any other ingredients.
If the McPlant sounds a little familiar, it’s because the burger has already been introduced in various international markets. Countries like Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Austria, and most recently the United Kingdom launched the vegan burger for a limited time to see how customers respond to the offering. So far, international consumers have likened the plant-based burger to a Big Mac.
This is quite an achievement for McDonald’s since the U.K. version took longer to develop and is completely vegan. The McPlant has also received the U.K’s Vegetarian Society vegan accreditation, meaning that it’s completely free of any animal products and is cooked and prepared separately from McDonald’s non-vegan items, according to Engadget.
Despite the slight all-vegan glitch in the ingredients and prep, customers have waited a long time for McDonald’s to launch a plant-based option. The McPlant comes months after the chain was pressed by protesters to commit to the environment and go entirely plant-based, with their competitors like Burger King and KFC leading the rush. However, McDonald’s has been praised for offering the meal at the same price as its famous Big Mac.
Burger King revealed their plant-based nuggets in select markets last month. The Impossible Nuggets are coated in a golden brown crispy breading and are tender and juicy on the inside, according to News Nation Now. Panda Express rolled out plant-based orange chicken this summer. Just like the McPlant, the chicken is made in partnership with Beyond Meat. It was crafted to mimic the chain’s chicken-based dishes. The chicken is made from fava beans and peas.
Rounding out the McPlant’s competition is Pizza Hut’s meatless pepperoni. The popular restaurant said the topping, which includes peas and rice as some of the ingredients, delivers just the right amount of subtle heat and offers the same taste as Pizza Hut’s classic pepperoni.
