Double Decker Chicken Burger (aka: CopyCat McDonalds Chicken Big Mac)

The Chicken Big Mac has recently popped up on the news again as it returns to menus as soon as early March. But folks in the United States shouldn’t get too excited as it was announced that it will be offered in the UK, Canada, and Ireland only. We hope to see this delicious chicken sandwich on menus near us soon. Although you don’t have to wait for the Double Decker Chicken Burger, you can have a copycat version of the Mcdonald’s UK sandwich. You can make this much-loved British trend at home!

It has almost all of the components of a Big Mac – two meat patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, no onions, on a sesame seed bun. Now you’ll have that jingle stuck in your brain too! Sorry.

I like to serve the sandwich with Restaurant Quality French Fries and Southern Style Cole Slaw.

Copycat McDonald’s Chicken Big Mac

Every time I hear of anything Big Mac, it makes me chuckle and remember the car scene in ‘Pulp Fiction’. You know the one where Vince is telling Jules about McDonalds in Paris? I don’t know why, but for whatever reason, “I dunno. I didn’t go into Burger King” makes me laugh out loud every single time.

If you don’t remember, here is a clip (warning: explicit language). But, I digress.

When the UK did a test run on a chicken Big Mac, it sold out in less than two weeks! They did another test release this past March again selling out in a couple of weeks. 

McDonalds is considering testing the sandwich in Miami before releasing it throughout the US. I can’t wait that long, so I tried making my own with pretty delicious results. Fair warning. Grab tons of napkins. This is a messy meal…but so worth it!

How It Compares.

My double-decker chicken burger, like the McDonald’s version, uses two tempura fried chicken breasts, a homemade sauce, and lightly toasted, buttered buns – one whole bun AND a second bun bottom to use in the middle of the sandwich – just like the original.

Although the chicken is fried, the tempura batter is airy, yet crunchy, and not at all greasy. The chicken stays very moist and flavorful because it cooks so quickly in the fryer. The chicken makes the sandwich taste lighter than the beef version.

I did leave the minced onions off the sandwich. Somehow, onions and chicken didn’t seem to pair well in my opinion. My family never missed them.

Ingredients Needed

For the sauce:

• Mayonnaise – I used Helmann’s.
• French salad dressing
• Ketchup
• Sweet pickle relish
• Dill pickle juice – balances out the sweetness, but if you don’t have dill pickle juice, apple cider vinegar would also work.
• Dried minced onion
• Sugar
• Kosher salt

For the tempura batter:

• Egg
• Lemon juice
• Club soda
• Flour and cornstarch
• Old Bay Seasoning
• Baking soda
• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half horizontally, trimmed, and pounded into a uniform thickness OR chicken cutlets, pounded to a uniform thickness.
• Vegetable oil for frying

For the sandwich:

• Sesame hamburger buns
• Processed American cheese slices, like Velveeta or Kraft slices. I used Velveeta slices.
• Shredded iceberg lettuce
• Dill hamburger sliced pickles

It looks like a LOT of ingredients, but most of them you probably already have in your pantry or refrigerator.

Steps To Make This Recipe

1. Stir together all of the ingredients for the sauce. Cover and chill while you make the other components.
2. Make the tempura batter by stirring the egg, lemon juice, and club soda together and then whisking in the flour, cornstarch, Old Bay, and baking soda until combined.
3. Heat the oil in a deep skillet.
4. Dip each chicken piece into the batter, coating both sides, and add to the hot oil.
5. Fry the chicken on both sides until golden brown. Remove from the pan to a paper towel-lined plate and top each with a slice of the cheese.
6. Butter the inside of each bun half. Toast them in a skillet until golden.
7. Make the sandwich by spreading the sauce on the buns, and topping with lettuce, pickles, and the cheese-topped chicken.

Tips And Shortcuts

• You can buy chicken cutlets in the grocery store that are pretty uniform in thickness. It will save you some time.
• You can also buy tempura mix. Add ice water and stir. Makes it a lot easier.
• If you’re really short on time, Heinz makes a burger sauce that you could use instead of making the special sauce. Thousand Island salad dressing is another option. It will not taste like the original but will work in a pinch.
• Take the time to toast the buns. It adds a ton of flavor.
• Thinner is better on the chicken. You want it to fry rather quickly so that it stays moist. Also, using a sharp knife to trim the chicken to fit the bun looks nice and the trimmings can be used in a stir-fry.
• Use a knife to cut into one of the fried chicken cutlets to ensure that it is done all the way through. You don’t want any pink, but don’t overcook it either.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider a few of our other fast food-style sandwich recipes that I think your family will love.

• Authentic Italian Beef Sandwiches
• Baked Nashville Hot Chicken
• Philly Cheesesteak Hoagie
• Classic Patty Melt

 

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