Add 2 Menu Items To Your Culver's Wisconsin Cheese Curds For A Major Flavor Boost

Ask an American about cheese curds, and they might not even know what they are, or have only heard of them as part of Canada's beloved french fry dish, poutine. But in Wisconsin, a center of dairy production known as "America's Dairyland," they can't get enough of them. That's why even though Wisconsin-founded Culver's is famous for its ButterBurgers, the top finisher in our U.S. burger chain ranking also features curds as a popular menu item. The golden nuggets are delicious as-is, but you can give them an extra boost by covering them with two other items from the Midwestern chain's menu: the chili and cheese sauce.

Culver's white and yellow cheddar curds are coated in seasoned breading that includes dried garlic, onion, parsley, and other spices – and are then deep-fried. The second component, George's Chili, is named after George Culver, who co-founded the chain in 1984 with his wife, son, and daughter-in-law. He developed the recipe for the medium-heat menu side that's made with beef, tomatoes, kidney beans, peppers, onions, celery, and a secret spice mix. You could also opt for more flavor elements with George's Chili Supreme, which is topped with sour cream, shredded cheese, and raw red onion. Lastly, the Wisconsin Cheddar Cheese Sauce is a blend of sharp cheddar and dairy that includes butter and dry milk.

Request your curds in the coated paper trays the Chili Cheddar Fries come in instead of their usual paper bags. Pour the chili on first, and then top them both with the cheese sauce. You'll have a delicious side that can double as a meal, depending on how hungry you are.

An easy way to explain what curds are is that they're the youngest form of cheese, created at the beginning of the production process before it can be made into the familiar blocks we all know. When coagulants like rennet are added to milk to make cheese, the solids and the whey separate. The solids are then pressed together, cut up, and salted to make curds. They have a springy texture, and fresh ones famously squeak when you bite into them.

Culver's introduced its curds in 1997, 18 years before it created National Cheese Curd Day in 2015 on October 15th. The chain gets them from Wisconsin's LaGrander's Hillside Dairy, which makes them exclusively for the chain. The third-generation, family-owned business produces them from milk that's delivered fresh daily from local dairy farmers.

The chain launched its inaugural Curdtoberfest in October 2025 to celebrate the cheesy nuggets. It debuted a jalapeño version with small pieces of the spicy pepper in the breading, and also brought back its CurderBurger, both for a limited time. Culver's initially introduced the burger for April Fool's Day in 2021, intending it to be a funny prank. But customers ended up loving it, so it's been periodically brought back since. It's a deluxe ButterBurger, which has cheese, pickles, mayo, raw onions, lettuce, and tomato, topped with a breaded and fried cheese curd patty. Customers who want the fan-fave burger when it's not available can use an easy hack to replicate it – just order curds and stack 'em on your burger.