McDonald's worker shares 'secret' food hack used by 'almost every restaurant'

You might reckon you've got the full scoop on McDonald's, but a former worker has dished out the dirt on what really happens behind the golden arches.

Ex-employees have spilled the beans on the special concoctions used for Big Mac burger sauce and tips for snagging fresh-off-the-grill food .

Even punters have come forward with their own bombshells about the fast food behemoth, including secret menus that have ruffled feathers among the McDonald's faithful.

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But one past employee from a Glasgow outlet has coughed up a different sort of insider info. They've alleged that staff might get a bit creative with ingredients when the pantry starts looking bare.

The whistleblower said: "The majority of the time if we ran out of stock in specific types of onions or lettuce, we would just compromise and hope the customer didn't notice."

In a previous chinwag with The Sun, the ex-McDonald's worker revealed that these switcheroos are often with salad fixings.

They added more detail: "For example, using dehydrated onions instead of fresh ones and shredded lettuce instead of iceberg."

The informant also noted that this isn't unique to McDonald's, claiming: "This isn't really a big secret as it happens in almost every industry in the country."

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Per the latest menu from McDonald's, only a handful of items still feature iceberg lettuce, including the McCrispy, Vegetable Deluxe, McPlant, Bacon Mayo Chicken, McChicken Sandwich, and the McSpicy.

McDonald's wraps and salads shun the standard crunchy iceberg lettuce in favor of a mix that includes romaine, baby spinach, and baby kale. In the onion department, while dehydrated onions are tossed on classics like the Big Mac and standard hamburgers, the Quarter Pounder is graced with fresh diced ones.

"McDonald's uses both dehydrated onions (that have been rehydrated) as well as actual onions", Angel Livingood, an ex-manager at a Maccies in Iowa, shared her insider knowledge. A quick glance at the cut can reveal what you're eating: small chopped bits indicate rehydrated onions, whereas slivered slices point to fresh ones.

But it's not set in stone. Angel let slip that customers could specify their onion preference on any sarnie. Fancy fresh onions on your simple hamburger? Just ask.

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