Does McDonald's Use Fresh Or Frozen Meat For Its Burgers?

The primary point of fast food is to give consumers a convenient and quick way to get a meal, so the menu items might not always be made fresh. For instance, breakfast burritos and apple pies are a couple of McDonald's menu items that probably aren't fresh when you order. With that in mind, you might not be too surprised that the beef patties used for the chain's burgers aren't always made with fresh meat.

According to the McDonald's FAQs, most of its burgers are made with frozen patties. In fact, the restaurant doesn't use the same type of beef patty for each of its burgers. Quarter Pounder patties are made with 4 ounces of ground beef (before cooking) and are never frozen, while the chain's other burger patties only contain 1.6 ounces of ground beef and are flash frozen. However, all of McDonald's burgers really are 100% beef. They don't contain fillers or extenders and only have salt and black pepper added. Best of all, McDonald's makes this information readily available in the online allergen information for each burger on its menu.

McDonald's doesn't see a problem with flash freezing the majority of its burger patties. The chain explains that this process seals in flavor, and typically, the burgers are served within two to three weeks. In fact, the USDA notes that freezing ground beef preserves its freshness and protects it by slowing bacterial growth.

Nevertheless, other fast food chains have publicly challenged McDonald's for using frozen beef. For example, Wendy's is known for its never frozen burgers  and took a stab at its competitor on X in 2017, "So you'll still use frozen beef in MOST of your burgers in ALL of your restaurants? Asking for a friend." This comment was a response to McDonald's announcing that it would be switching to fresh beef patties on some of its burgers. McDonald's went ahead with its plan to roll out fresh beef patties for its Quarter Pounder burgers by May 2018, and they remain the only burgers at McDonald's that aren't made from frozen meat.

For diners who prefer the flavor of those larger, fresh beef patties, there's a genius Big Mac ordering trick that transforms it into a bigger, fresher burger. Just order the Double Quarter Pounder and ask for it dressed like a Big Mac, including the extra slice of bread in the middle. You can use the same ordering trick for other burgers on the menu as well. For a regular cheeseburger, ask for a Quarter Pounder with diced onion instead of onion slices. If you prefer the regular bun, you can substitute that, too.