Why McDonald's Uses Dehydrated Onions For Its Burgers Over Fresh

Onions might just be the unsung heroes of McDonald's burgers. If you've ever unwrapped a Big Mac, McDouble, or even a humble cheeseburger, you've definitely seen those tiny, soft, and slightly sweet bits scattered under the bun. One thing you might not know, though, is that for most of their burgers, onions are not chopped fresh in the back of the store like you would expect most restaurants to do. In fact, McDonald's onions actually start out dehydrated. In this unique process, all the moisture is removed from the onions until they're completely dry. This isn't just about flavor, although the mild sweetness pairs perfectly with pickles, cheese, and sauces. Dehydrated onions are also cost-efficient, space-saving, and consistent all year round, and considering the amount of burgers McDonald's sells every day, using dehydrated onions is a no-brainer.

According to Allrecipes, "the dry onions are shipped out to the stores and the McDonald's employees rehydrate the onions by soaking them in water." This makes them an integral part of the supply chain, which is important when you consider that McDonald's has a staggering number of stores all over the world. The sheer scale of their operation would make shipping whole onions to each store costly and ineffective — dehydrated onions weigh less, are easier to transport, and take up less space in-store. They also have a much longer shelf-life than regular onions, lasting years when stored at room temperature. This not only maximizes efficiency but also ensures uniformity across all store locations. 

Dehydrated onions aren't exactly winning any beauty contests. Compared to fresh-cut slices, they can look dry, brown, and shrivelled. This stark difference sparked plenty of online reactions in a viral TikTok, where user @tiktokhuss reacted to a video outlining the process of rehydrating onions. Donning a McDonald's name-tag and uniform, they confirmed that dehydrated onions are, in fact, rehydrated in-store using cold water. The comments under the video were divisive, ranging from horror ("I'm never having [McDonald's] again") to others who shrugged it off. 

In another TikTok, former McDonald's Corporate Chef Mike Haracz revealed that the formula for making McDonald-style dehydrated onions at home is super simple. The trick? Simply look for minced onions or onion flakes in your grocery store's spice aisle. "Soak it in cold water in your fridge for ... two hours." Although controversial, rehydrating onions at home has become a popular hack, with at least one Instagram user posting their own recipes on how to rehydrate onions to make copycat McDonald's burgers. With their concentrated and sweeter taste, rehydrated onions are the secret to giving your McDonald's-at-home an authentic taste.

If you're not a fan of dehydrated onions, there's no need to avoid McDonald's. According to former store manager Angel Livingood, who spoke to Allrecipies, the Quarter Pounder always features fresh onions (it's also the only burger cooked fresh, not frozen). Plus, she revealed that you can request fresh or rehydrated onions on most burgers to suit your taste. So whether you're Team Rehydrated or Team Fresh, McDonald's has got you covered.