Ordering Dairy-Free At McDonald's? Here's How To Avoid The Surprise Butter
While McDonald's isn't exactly known as a fast food chain that is great for vegans or dairy-free diets, it's still possible to modify an order to get what you want. For dairy-free menu items, it's easy enough to order something without cheese and avoid a McFlurry (the machine will probably be out of order anyway). However, a surprising ingredient may be hiding in your order: Butter.
Most fast food establishments use some type of vegetable oil to cook their food in, rather than butter, which is a more expensive ingredient. For a buttery flavor without the price of butter, margarine is a good substitute. McDonald's used a liquefied margarine for its breakfast items, up until 2015, when it switched to using real butter. Breakfast menu items, like the McMuffins or biscuit breakfast sandwiches that use English muffins, biscuits, bagels, or toast, are typically buttered and toasted.
Both the fresh scrambled eggs and folded eggs are cooked in real butter. In addition to the breakfast items, sometimes buns are buttered before being placed on the grill. Locations in other countries differ, so if traveling outside of the United States, it's possible that other menu items may contain butter.
How to avoid accidentally ordering butter at McDonald's
Although you're equipped with the knowledge of what McDonald's menu items contain butter, it doesn't hurt to ask and confirm when you go to order. McDonald's mostly operates as a franchise, not a chain, so locations may differ slightly. For those with severe allergies to dairy, know that it's not always possible to ensure that there is no cross-contamination on the grills or fryers.
In general, breakfast menu items are going to be a bit challenging to order dairy-free. You could ask for "no butter" if ordering something like the Sausage Biscuit or hot cakes, but unfortunately, the biscuits and pancakes themselves contain dairy-derived products. The Egg McMuffin contains two types of butter, salted and clarified, but it can be ordered without the butter and the cheese to make it dairy-free. Eggs can be ordered to be cooked without butter. FYI: While they may seem like a safe bet, the McDonald's hashbrowns contain dairy due to the addition of a milk-derived beef flavoring.
Ordering from the standard menu is more straightforward. While burgers can easily be ordered without cheese, be sure to ask for no butter on the bun. Even if this isn't common practice at every location, it's better to be safe. The McCrispy Chicken Sandwich gets served on a buttered potato roll, so this menu item should always be ordered without butter. Craving a sweet treat? Order the apple pie, which is naturally dairy-free and vegan and made with palm oil instead of butter.