Your McDonald's McChicken Tastes Unforgettable When You Order It French Style

Of the many chicken items available at McDonald's, the McChicken is up there with McNuggets as among the most iconic. But when it starts to feel a little too predictable, there are ways to give it a makeover. A French makeover perhaps? That's right, we say it's officially time to start ordering our chicken sandwiches the French way.

While there is a French McChicken that is served with a lightly lemony sauce, today we're talking about the McDeal Poulet. This is a separate sandwich altogether, built with two chicken patties and a unique ketchup-and-ranch combination. And to order it in America is actually quite straightforward, although the exact ordering method can depend on the restaurant. Simply order your McChicken to come with an extra chicken patty, and then ask them to hold the mayonnaise and instead add ketchup and Creamy Ranch Sauce. If the restaurant cannot add the sauces, order the sandwich without any sauce, then order the ketchup and ranch on the side to add yourself.

That extra patty will do a lot to make the meal feel that much more substantial and meatier, while the sauce swap takes things in a different direction, flavorwise. The American McChicken is a very simple combination, but the McDeal Poulet has a little extra sweetness and acidity from McDonald's own-version ketchup, which is balanced out by the creamy, tangy garlickiness from the ranch. 

The McDeal Poulet makes more sense once you look at what else is on the French McDonald's menu — it is not simply the American lineup with French names slapped on top. In fact, France has some of the more interesting international McDonald's menu items everyone should try, including the Croque McDo (a burger take on the croque monsieur made with ham and melted white cheddar) and the Royal Deluxe, made with fresh onions, tomato, lettuce, and whole-grain mustard sauce. Mustard, particularly Dijon-style mustard, is obviously deeply associated with French cooking, so of course McDonald's France would make it part of a permanent burger.

So why the combination of extra chicken with ketchup and ranch? The safest answer is that the McDeal Poulet was created as part of the McDeal value meal that pairs the sandwich with small fries, a small drink, and an extra choice of a small sundae, small milkshake, espresso (very European), or mini donuts (called McPops) for just €5 ($5.79 in U.S. dollars). The two chicken pieces make the sandwich seem substantial enough that it really feels like a great deal, while the sweet ketchup and creamy, tangy ranch are probably just there to give an otherwise simple chicken-and-lettuce filling some more flavor.