You Can Now Get McDonald’s Big Mac Sauce To-Go

Love it or hate it, McDonald’s is an iconic American institution. Since 1955, the popular restaurant chain has been serving up crispy McD’s fries, sky-high burgers and, yes, a couple of hilarious fails. What started out as a humble barbecue joint has now grown to become a 200-billion-dollar corporation.

Understandably, plenty has changed since that very first menu when McDonald’s first opened, including the introduction of the iconic Big Mac. Now, the McDonald’s menu is getting yet another history-making addition: the Big Mac sauce dip cup. That’s right: for the very first time, customers will be able to order their own side of special sauce to pair with any menu item they’d like.

Here’s everything to know about the new Big Mac sauce dip cup, as well as a peek into the development of that oh-so-special sauce.

The new Big Mac sauce dip cup

According to an announcement from the company on April 19, 2023, the Big Mac sauce portable dip cup will be available at certain McDonald’s locations starting on April 27. Formerly available only as part of the Big Mac sandwich, this side of sauce can now be ordered just like any other dipping sauce, such as Honey-Mustard or Ranch, and comes free with the McDonald’s Chicken Nuggets. However, special sauce fans will need to download the McDonald’s app to order it, and it will cost them a few cents, depending on the location.

my saucy secret is out, starting on 4/27 you can put Big Mac Sauce on everything pic.twitter.com/7mirxP8YKS

— McDonald’s (@McDonalds) April 19, 2023

The history of the Big Mac sauce

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

The new Big Mac sauce dip cup was intentionally designed to evoke the nostalgic history of the brand. Like the original packaging for the Big Mac, the dip cup features silver and royal blue accents—a fitting choice to celebrate the sauce’s 55th anniversary this year.

The Big Mac and its accompanying “secret sauce” made their national debut in August of 1968. What started as a sandwich for extra-hungry steelworkers in Uniontown, Pennsylvania quickly became a coast-to-coast hit. During the first few years of the Big Mac reign, franchise owners experimented with two different iterations of the sauce. For consistency, they combined elements of both sauces in a recipe known as “Big Mac Sauce ’72.” Though the sauce garnered a new nickname in 1974—”special sauce“—the recipe wasn’t altered again until 1991. The change didn’t stick, though, and in 2004, then-CEO Fred Turner ordered it to be changed back to the original version.

More McDonald’s fun facts

Real double-arch aficionados should be sure to check out more fun Big Mac facts, as well as McDonald’s all-time best-selling menu items. And for the morbidly curious, don’t forget to investigate these  McDonald’s employee secrets and popular McDonald’s rumors.