Chicken McNuggets
Encyclopedia
Chicken McNuggets are a product offered by international fast-food restaurant chain McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...

 and are one of the most popular trademarked items on the McDonald's menu.

McNuggets are small pieces of chicken
Chicken (food)
Chicken is the most common type of poultry in the world, and is prepared as food in a wide variety of ways, varying by region and culture.- History :...

 that have been battered and deep fried. They are sold in packages of 4, 6, 10 (9 in the United Kingdom, Italy, Netherlands, Germany, Singapore, Indonesia, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Czech Republic, Russia, Norway, Pakistan, Sweden, Poland and Bosnia and Herzegovina) and 20. In June 2011 McDonalds brought back the 20 piece for a short time. In New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, and Australia, they are also available in 3 packs in Happy Meal
Happy Meal
A "Happy Meal" is a meal specifically marketed at children, sold at the fast-food chain McDonald's since June 1979. A toy is typically included with the food, both of which are usually contained in a small box or paper bag with the McDonald's logo....

s and Heart Foundation
National Heart Foundation of Australia
The National Heart Foundation of Australia is an independent charity established in 1959. Its vision is for Australians to have the best cardiovascular health in the world and its mission is to reduce suffering and death from heart, stroke and blood vessel disease in Australia.Over the past five...

 approved Tick healthy meals. They come with a choice of various flavors of dipping sauce (Pure Honey
Honey
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...

, Tangy Barbeque, Sweet n' Sour, Honey Mustard
Mustard (condiment)
Mustard is a condiment made from the seeds of a mustard plant...

, Spicy Buffalo, Sweet Chili
Chili
-Food:* Chili pepper, the spicy fruit of plants in the genus Capsicum* Chili powder, dried, ground red chili peppers, sometimes with cumin and other spices* Chili con carne, often referred to simply as "chili" a stew-like dish...

, and Creamy Ranch). They have recently been introduced in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, first as a part of its "Breakfast Meal" and later in the regular menu in May 2009. 50-piece McNuggets meal deals have been promoted at times for special events such as U.S. football's Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...

, but are not maintained on the menu.

Product description and origin

The Chicken McNugget is a small piece of white meat
White meat
White meat or light meat refers to the lighter-colored meat of poultry as contrasted with dark meat. In a more general sense, white meat may also refer to any lighter-colored meat, as contrasted with red meats like beef and some types of game....

 chicken that is fried with a light tempura
Tempura
], is a Japanese dish of seafood or vegetables that have been battered and deep fried.-Batter:A light batter is made of cold water and soft wheat flour . Eggs, baking soda or baking powder, starch, oil, and/or spices may also be added...

-style batter and flash frozen, then shipped out and sold at McDonald's restaurants. According to McDonald's, only white meat chicken is now used in Chicken McNuggets.

McDonald's first Executive Chef Rene Arend created Chicken McNuggets in 1979. “The McNuggets were so well received that every franchise
Franchise
Franchise generally means a right or privilege. It may refer to:*Suffrage, the civil right to vote*Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business, such as:...

 wanted them,” said Arend in a 2009 interview. “There wasn’t a system to supply enough chicken.” Supply problems were solved by 1983, when Chicken McNuggets became available nationwide.

Ingredients

, the ingredients are as follows: Chicken, water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...

, salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...

, sodium phosphates. Battered and breaded with bleached wheat flour
Wheat flour
Wheat flour is a powder made from the grinding of wheat used for human consumption. More wheat flour is produced than any other flour. Wheat varieties are called "clean," "white," or "brown" if they have high gluten content, and they are called "soft" or "weak" flour if gluten content is low...

, water, wheat flour, modified food starch, salt, spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...

s, wheat gluten
Wheat gluten
Wheat gluten can refer to:* The gluten found in wheat, a sticky substance composed of the proteins gliadin and glutenin* Wheat gluten , a food prepared from these proteins, such as seitan or wheatmeat...

, paprika
Paprika
Paprika is a spice made from the grinding of dried fruits of Capsicum annuum . In many European languages, the word paprika refers to bell peppers themselves. The seasoning is used in many cuisines to add color and flavor to dishes. Paprika can range from mild to hot...

, dextrose (sugar), yeast
Yeast
Yeasts are eukaryotic micro-organisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with 1,500 species currently described estimated to be only 1% of all fungal species. Most reproduce asexually by mitosis, and many do so by an asymmetric division process called budding...

, garlic powder, rosemary
Rosemary
Rosemary, , is a woody, perennial herb with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple or blue flowers, native to the Mediterranean region. It is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae, which includes many other herbs, and is one of two species in the genus Rosmarinus...

, partially hydrogenated soybean oil
Soybean oil
Soybean oil is a vegetable oil extracted from the seeds of the soybean . It is one of the most widely consumed cooking oils. As a drying oil, processed soybean oil is also used as a base for printing inks and oil paints...

 and cottonseed oil
Cottonseed oil
Cottonseed oil is a cooking oil extracted from the seeds of cotton plant of various species, mainly Gossypium hirsutum and Gossypium herbaceum...

 with mono- and diglyceride
Diglyceride
A diglyceride, or a diacylglycerol , is a glyceride consisting of two fatty acid chains covalently bonded to a glycerol molecule through ester linkages....

s, leavening (sodium acid pyrophosphate, baking soda, ammonium bicarbonate
Ammonium bicarbonate
Ammonium bicarbonate, a compound with formulaNH4, also called bicarbonate of ammonia, ammonium hydrogen carbonate, hartshorn, AmBic or powdered baking ammonia, is the bicarbonate salt of ammonia....

, monocalcium phosphate
Monocalcium phosphate
Monocalcium phosphate is a chemical compound with the formula Ca2. It is commonly found as the monohydrate, Ca2·H2O.-Fertilizer:Phosphorus is an essential nutrient and therefore is a common component of agricultural fertilizers...

), natural flavor (plant source) with extractives of paprika. Fried
Frying
Frying is the cooking of food in oil or another fat, a technique that originated in ancient Egypt around 2500 BC. Chemically, oils and fats are the same, differing only in melting point, but the distinction is only made when needed. In commerce, many fats are called oils by custom, e.g...

 in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil
Corn oil
Corn oil is oil extracted from the germ of corn . Its main use is in cooking, where its high smoke point makes refined corn oil a valuable frying oil. It is also a key ingredient in some margarines. Corn oil is generally less expensive than most other types of vegetable oils. One bushel of corn...

, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ
Tert-Butylhydroquinone
tert-Butylhydroquinone is an aromatic organic compound which is a type of phenol. It is a derivative of hydroquinone, substituted with tert-butyl group.-Applications:...

 and citric acid
Citric acid
Citric acid is a weak organic acid. It is a natural preservative/conservative and is also used to add an acidic, or sour, taste to foods and soft drinks...

 added to preserve freshness). Dimethylpolysiloxane, a silicone derivative is added as an antifoaming agent. McDonald's ingredients can vary outside of the United States.

Controversies

In a 2002 lawsuit against McDonald's, a judge commented that Chicken McNuggets are a "McFrankenstein" creation of various elements not used by the home cook. The judge threw out the lawsuit, suggesting that the plaintiffs could try again if they could prove McDonald's food was an added hazard to the average consumer, rather than just a mix of scary sounding vitamins and natural flavor extracts. The judge identified that rather than being merely chicken fried in a pan, McNuggets included elements not utilized by the home cook, including the unusual sounding ingredients like: extracts of rosemary, vitamins (niacin, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), leavening (baking soda, calcium lactate, etc).
The 2004 documentary Super Size Me
Super Size Me
Super Size Me is a 2004 American documentary film directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. Spurlock's film follows a 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 2003 during which he eats only McDonald's food...

states "McDonald's Chicken McNuggets were originally made from old chickens no longer able to lay eggs. These chickens are stripped down to the bone, and then 'ground up' into a chicken mash, then combined with a variety of stabilizers and preservatives, pressed into familiar shapes, breaded and deep fried, freeze dried, and then shipped to a McDonald's near you." Super Size Me also alleged inclusion of chemicals such as tertiary butylhydroquinone
Tert-Butylhydroquinone
tert-Butylhydroquinone is an aromatic organic compound which is a type of phenol. It is a derivative of hydroquinone, substituted with tert-butyl group.-Applications:...

 (a phenolic antioxidant used as a chemical preservative), polydimethylsiloxane
Polydimethylsiloxane
Polydimethylsiloxane belongs to a group of polymeric organosilicon compounds that are commonly referred to as silicones. PDMS is the most widely used silicon-based organic polymer, and is particularly known for its unusual rheological properties. PDMS is optically clear, and, in general, is...

 (an anti-foaming agent), and other ingredients not used by a typical home cook. This was recently restated by CNN.

Marion Nestle, a New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...

 professor and author of What to Eat, says the tertiary butylhydroquinone and dimethylpolysiloxane in McNuggets probably pose no health risks. As a general rule, though, she advocates not eating any food with an ingredient you can’t pronounce.

As of October 9, 2010, dimethylpolysiloxane and Tert-Butylhydroquinone
Tert-Butylhydroquinone
tert-Butylhydroquinone is an aromatic organic compound which is a type of phenol. It is a derivative of hydroquinone, substituted with tert-butyl group.-Applications:...

 (TBHQ) are listed as ingredients in the McNuggets cooking process. According to Lisa McComb, a media relations
Media relations
Media relations involves working with various media for the purpose of informing the public of an organization's mission, policies and practices in a positive, consistent and credible manner. Typically, this means coordinating directly with the people responsible for producing the news and features...

 representative for McDonald's, dimethylpolysiloxane is used as a matter of safety to keep the frying oil from foaming. The chemical is a form of silicone
Silicone
Silicones are inert, synthetic compounds with a variety of forms and uses. Typically heat-resistant and rubber-like, they are used in sealants, adhesives, lubricants, medical applications , cookware, and insulation....

 also used in cosmetics
Cosmetics
Cosmetics are substances used to enhance the appearance or odor of the human body. Cosmetics include skin-care creams, lotions, powders, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail and toe nail polish, eye and facial makeup, towelettes, permanent waves, colored contact lenses, hair colors, hair sprays and...

 and Silly Putty
Silly Putty
Silly Putty , is the Crayola-owned trademark name for a class of silicone polymers. It is marketed today as a toy for children, but was originally created by accident during research into potential rubber substitutes for use by the United States in World War II...

. A review of animal studies by the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...

 found no adverse health effects associated with dimethylpolysiloxane. TBHQ is a common preservative
Preservative
A preservative is a naturally occurring or synthetically produced substance that is added to products such as foods, pharmaceuticals, paints, biological samples, wood, etc. to prevent decomposition by microbial growth or by undesirable chemical changes....

 for vegetable oils, cereals, nuts, cookies, chips, and animal fats, found in everyday foods like Girl Scout Cookies and Quaker Chewy Granola Bars
Chewy Granola Bars
Chewy Granola Bars is a subsidiary of the Quaker Oats Company which consists of a number of varieties of snacking granola bars. Flavors include Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chunk, S'mores, Honey Nut, Apple Cinnamon, and Oatmeal Raisin....

. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...

 sets an upper limit of 0.02% (0.0002) of the oil or fat content in foods, which like other foods, applies to the oil used in McNuggets. Effective use of TBHQ is 1 gram per 5000 grams of cooking oil (1 gram per 11 pounds of cooking oil). One gram (one-thirtieth of an ounce) can cause "nausea
Nausea
Nausea , is a sensation of unease and discomfort in the upper stomach with an involuntary urge to vomit. It often, but not always, precedes vomiting...

, vomiting
Vomiting
Vomiting is the forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose...

, ringing in the ears
Tinnitus
Tinnitus |ringing]]") is the perception of sound within the human ear in the absence of corresponding external sound.Tinnitus is not a disease, but a symptom that can result from a wide range of underlying causes: abnormally loud sounds in the ear canal for even the briefest period , ear...

, delirium
Delirium
Delirium or acute confusional state is a common and severe neuropsychiatric syndrome with core features of acute onset and fluctuating course, attentional deficits and generalized severe disorganization of behavior...

, a sense of suffocation
Suffocation
Suffocation is the process of Asphyxia.Suffocation may also refer to:* Suffocation , an American death metal band* "Suffocation", a song on Morbid Angel's debut album, Altars of Madness...

, and collapse
Collapse (medical)
Collapse is a sudden and often unannounced loss of postural tone , often but not necessarily accompanied by loss of consciousness.If the episode was accompanied by a loss of consciousness, the term syncope is used. The main causes are cardiac , seizures or a psychological cause...

," according to A Consumer’s Dictionary of Food Additives, though the book neglects to indicate you would need to ingest 11 pounds of cooking oil in one sitting in order to achieve this. Application to the skin may cause allergic reactions and industrial workers exposed to the vapors suffered clouding of the eye lens
Lens (anatomy)
The crystalline lens is a transparent, biconvex structure in the eye that, along with the cornea, helps to refract light to be focused on the retina. The lens, by changing shape, functions to change the focal distance of the eye so that it can focus on objects at various distances, thus allowing a...

, without other obvious systematic effects.
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