8 International McDonald's Sauces We Wish Were In The US

Without some type of condiment — a dressing, salsa verde, hollandaise, or ketchup — food can often feel like it's missing something. Sauces allow you to customize bites on the fly, adding as much or as little as you like. They can also make an otherwise underwhelming and boring nosh transformative and greater than the sum of its parts. We all know that McDonald's is no slouch when it comes to sauces; we all have a favorite dip for our McNuggets. Many are proprietary and famous, like the utter classic, Big Mac special sauce or the Filet-O-Fish tartar-like sauce. They can even be repurposed, making customized off-menu experimentation a fun reason to visit the Golden Arches.

It's no secret that McDonald's is different around the world, with some of the American originals remaining on menus, in addition to items specific to regional tastes. The same applies to the world of sauces, often adapted to fit the markets and cultural preferences for certain food styles. For those of us who are lucky enough to travel to or live in countries with exceptional McDonald's menus, the access to — and the pleasure of — unique sauces can inspire jealousy. We've selected eight sauces are not currently available in American McDonald's restaurants — some are well-known and lauded globally, while others may be under-the-radar, with niche followings online. Take note for your next trip so you can experience what many folks around the world may take for granted.

McDonald's curry sauce is near and dear to the hearts of many McDonald's fans. It's been available at McDonald's in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, Germany, and Singapore for years. Similar to how we would consider dipping a McNugget into some Sweet 'N Sour Sauce, it's a menu staple and de facto move.

The sauce itself appeals to locals of all stripes who grew up eating curry and enjoy the bold flavors found within those delicious sauces. The flavor profile is slightly sweet (adjusted to be sweeter in the U.K.), not overly spicy, without trying to emulate a specific regional curry sauce. Notably, it doesn't contain a ton of curry-esque spices, though it does have MSG for good measure. It is ever so slightly tangy, pairing well with fries or of course, McNuggets. The combination of heat, sweetness, acidity, and coating mouthfeel makes this condiment sought after and beloved. If only McCurry sauce was available — even for a limited time — Stateside. 

Garlic mayo sauce might sound generic, but in many parts of the Middle East, a similar version called "toum" is a favored zippy condiment. Toum sauce is an emulsion combining raw garlic, oil (vegetable or olive), salt, and lemon juice, to powerful effect. Consider it aioli-adjacent, with a similar consistency and garlicky punch. If you enjoy Lebanese or Syrian cuisine, you may already be familiar with the sauce. And while it is often served with specific regional plates, it can also be integrated into the repertoire of a home cook looking to gussy up a burger.

McDonald's then did well to ensure that anyone who patronizes its locations in the Middle East will have access to an assertive and utterly delicious version of toum. Its garlic mayo goes on the McArabia Grilled Chicken Sandwich, available in Saudi Arabia and U.A.E. restaurants, pairing nicely with the meat and flatbread. In British McDonald's locations, they have their own version of the garlic condiment which is colloquially referred to as a dip. This one is for all the garlic lovers out there, and for those who dream of being able to dip their fries into an aioli style sauce — just don't forget those breath mints.

Sweet and heat go together so well that they're found in cuisines all over the world as a winning combination. Without going into the science of why your taste buds love this combo so much, we can all at least agree that it works well. The pairing wakes up your palate and can bring dishes to life, balancing savory and rich tastes. The celebrated Sweet Chili Sauce is offered at McDonald's locations in Thailand, Australia, the U.K., the U.A.E., and Singapore. Readers should note that the sauces can differ slightly from country to country, some making appearances for limited time offers, while others are permanent fixtures.

In Canada, this sauce is notably featured on the Sweet Chili Junior Chicken sandwich, adding a nice kick to the classic McChicken and the Sweet Chili McWrap. Perhaps this is why some claim that McDonald's is better up north? In Dubai, customers can get the zingy sweet chili sauce to dip their chicken nuggets into. It can also be found on menus in Asia and Down Under appeasing local palates, while showing the world just how widely revered this flavor profile is. Here's to hoping this sauce becomes available again at Golden Arches closer to home — if you know, you know.

For all the vegetarians out there, travelling to India might be easier depending on the region, where it's great to know McDonald's has your back. The American chain offers many veggie sandwiches to appease those who don't eat meat, even offering one called the Veg Surprise Burger. It only makes sense to offer a ubiquitous and well-known sauce to local palates then, pairing nicely with the fast food sandwiches. 

Tandoori sauce is prominently featured in the McSpicy Paneer Burger, which has paneer cheese as the main protein source. Like so many McSauces that come and go, this tandoori sauce was also offered briefly to the Japanese market — with a slight sweetness to it, specifically for dipping McNuggets into — leaving many locals downtrodden upon its removal from menus. We're just sad we can't access the sauce here, period.

Cheese sauce is, well, exactly what it sounds like: a cheesy, gooey, nacho-style dipping sauce. In the Philippines, McDonald's introduced a Cheese Dunk menu, which went viral online via an exclusive video that garnered millions of views and comments. The brand was essentially encouraging customers to dunk regular menu items into this molten lava and runny cheese, despite the inherent mess, with actors laughing off the cheese dripping from their chins and cheeks. The whole thing was a bit, sorry to say, cheesy. However, we're quite jealous of its existence and local unavailability.

This one is for all the indulgent nacho lovers who love that rich, movie theatre-style cheese sauce. Imagine dunking a McDonald's cheeseburger into it like a dip, saturating and coating the sandwich entirely? Or McNuggets, for that matter? Sure, it's over the top, but cheese sauce just makes sense here. The company also launched a Chili Con Carne Dunk to go with the campaign, fittingly. Locals who've fallen for this sauce just hope it will last longer the cheese stains on their jeans! 

For those of you lucky enough to live in Japan, we are oh-so-jealous at your access to McDonald's Teriyaki sauce. The sauce, while having a vague connection to the island nation, is actually more American, with some going so far as to claim it was invented in Seattle. The story goes that the sauce (and dish) originated in Japanese-American restaurants in the mid-20th century. Without starting a debate about its origins, we can all agree that it is absolutely delicious. This is why we are champing at the bit for the occasion to try a McDonald's interpretation, which by all accounts, is a home run. If you live in Japan, Guam, or Hawaii, you have seasonal access to the McTeri Deluxe Teriyaki Burger, which comes with the sauce and some mayo.

To be able to dip McNuggets into some Teriyaki sauce would be pure bliss; chicken and this magical sauce is a just such a killer combination. Until McDonald's Teriyaki sauce is widely available throughout the Continental U.S., we'll have to hop on a flight to get it, unless teleportation soon becomes is a thing. One can dream on both counts.

If you're into cooking steaks and enjoy saucing them up, or love visiting your city's top steakhouse, you've probably indulged in peppercorn sauce before. It's one of the best sauces to pair with a steak, hands down, as the flavors work so well with beef. The assertive and punchy black pepper, with those citrus, camphor, and pine notes, and of course heat, combine well to balance the richness of the meat. There are examples online of people doing a "burger au poivre," which is a riff on steak au poivre — the classic French dish where this sauce originates. But to have McDonald's make a Steakhouse Stack burger for Canadian, Irish and British fast food fans sounds to die for. Adding this creamy black peppercorn sauce to any of the beef burgers on the American menu would be dreamy — unless we get our own version of the Steakhouse Stack sometime soon.

Over in Belgium and the Netherlands, folks enjoy dipping their fries into mayonnaise-styles sauces, with the Dutch opting for "fritessaus" — a slightly sweeter and less rich version of the mayo condiment. The McDonald's version follows suit, acting as a condiment staple, and a slightly less intense mayo. It has a more thin texture over traditional egg-based mayo, with the subtle sweetness balancing out the creaminess.

Some of you may have already tried this sauce if you've travelled to the Benelux region, or perhaps you've dipped fries in mayo on your accord as it's not unheard, if rare, Stateside. Point being, it does pair very well with the fries, adding even more creaminess to the soft potato interior, for a nice mix of sweet, savory, and saltiness. In an American context, having access to the sauce could be great for McNugget-dunking, or a nice swap for regular mayo on a McChicken. With 25% less oil, at the end of the day, it could make a heavy meal that much lighter. But if you're a tourist at an Amsterdam McDonald's exploring the menu, you'll likely be sightseeing and able to walk off the calories anyway.