Craving McDonalds but don't want to support a US company? --Make your own Big Mac Sauce!~
Greetings! I'm a Canadian organic chemist by trade (shout-out to McMaster Uni!), with a ton of spare time on my hands!~
I thought it a unique opportunity to show my support for the US product boycott that's ongoing, fight 'big-corpo', stick it to the man, and also make something super tasty and mysterious accessible to everyone!
I cracked the code for Big Mac Sauce recently. It's for my YouTube cooking channel that I'm gonna get around to starting aaaaaaaany year now~
The recipe has been out for over a decade, BUT, not the proportions; I've spent months tweaking this!
Try it!
It's spot on, save for the 'paprika extract' they use; just use regular paprika because you aren't a lab or a huge company like McDonalds churning out metric tonnes per week of this stuff and it tastes the exact same!
You may also skip the xanthan gum; it's just a thickener / emulsifier, but it does make it that much more like the real deal. You can find it at like a bulk bin type food store (shout out to Canadian Bulk Barns!). Lastly, if you can find champagne vinegar, more power to you, but white wine vinegar will absolutely do.
Seriously, even the colour is bang on, and I didn't think that was even possible without some kind of ketchup or tomato additive!
McDonald's Big Mac Sauce ~ Jack tweaked & proven tasty AF
½ Cup of Mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons of Sweet Relish
1 & 1/2 Teaspoons of Champagne Vinegar (White wine vinegar also works fine)
1/2 Teaspoon of Onion Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Garlic Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Paprika
1/2 Tablespoon of Yellow Mustard
1/8 Teaspoon of Xanthan Gum
Whisk together VERY thoroughly, store in refrigerator, good for about 4-6 weeks. We keep some on hand in a plastic squeeze bottle because we both the kids love it so much!
Please find linked below the actual ingredient list as of November 2023 (yes, they do change things from time to time); I've experimented with adding turmeric as listed, but I don't think it's necessary for colour or flavour, but you do you! Calcium chloride is a very common pickling additive; it keeps whatever is being pickled snappy and crunchy, and is part of the sweet relish they use in the sauce. Caramel colouring is likewise not required IMO. Everything else on the list is either an emulsifier, or a preservative.
Further reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Mac
Big Mac Sauce Ingredient List (2023): https://imgur.com/a/5YAJsyC