McDonald’s is spicing up its sauces.
Beginning October 9, the fast food chain is adding two new dipping sauces to its menu for a limited time, joining its lineup of six sauces that include barbecue, ranch and sweet and sour.
The first new addition is a sweet and spicy sauce that McDonald’s describes in a release as a “jammy red pepper sauce with a tongue-numbing Szechuan peppercorn kick and extra heat from cayenne pepper.” It’s the first-ever “breakfast-inspired” dipping sauce to be served at its US restaurants.
The second is a “mambo sauce,” which is a tomato-based sweet, spicy and vinegary sauce that’s inspired by a type of sauce that’s popular in Washington, DC. Previously, rival KFC briefly sold a mambo sauce at some of its locations in 2021, with the chicken chain describing it as being “synonymous with Black DC food culture” since its creation in the 1950s.
Dipping sauces, which don’t require employees to add an ingredient to burgers or make a whole new menu item, are another way the company hopes to keep things simple while getting customers excited. Last year, McDonald’s brought back its Szechuan sauce for a limited time. Some celebrity meals also came with re-branded dipping sauces, or ones that had previously only been available in certain regions.
Adjusting its menu with new options has worked: Sales at McDonald’s US locations open at least 13 months grew 10.3% in the quarter ending June 30. And while other chains struggle to bring more customers into restaurant locations, McDonald’s is reporting growth in US traffic.
McDonald’s is partnering with its chefs and influencers to show off the number of combinations the new sauces can be paired with. One suggestion is pairing its new sweet and spicy sauce with a sausage McMuffin with egg or its chicken McNuggets.
“We get inspiration for the food our fans love by exploring the incredible tastes and flavors found in communities across the country,” said Tariq Hassan, Customer Experience Officer for McDonald’s US, in the release.
Earlier this year, McDonald’s sold its famous Big Mac sauce for a limited time. That followed the news that McDonald’s was adding more of the sauce to its Big Mac sandwiches as part of a broader shakeup to its menu.
