McDonald’s Homestyle Crispy Chicken

McDonald’s Homestyle Crispy Chicken

McDonald’s Homestyle Crispy Chicken Review:

Price: £4.69/£6.09/£6.49.

Calories: 691 kcal.

“McDonald’s has announced a big menu shake-up” or “McDonald’s are AXING SIX MENU ITEMS and fans are upset” all sound very intriguing and full of sensationalism, but the underlying truth of the matter is that a promotion is naturally coming to its end as another begins…

From Wednesday 10th February (first rumoured by us back in December), the Homestyle Crispy Chicken will be on the menu at McDonald’s UK (along with the Grand Big Mac).

McDonald's

This is an interesting development as it brings us a new chicken burger/fillet which has not featured in this country before.

For many years (and after the McChicken Premiere), the chicken [burger] of choice for LTOs in the UK was the sound and reliable Chicken Legend patty.

This was used many times during past Great Tastes of America and/or The World promotions and other ad-hoc limited time offerings.

Then in July 2016, the Chicken BBQ Smokehouse controversially replaced the Chicken Legend patty (on promo items) and instead, McDonald’s fans had to make do with two Chicken Selects instead.

To this day, people still grumble about the change.

But now… now we have a new saviour – the Homestyle Crispy Chicken! Three cheers. Hip-hip-hooray!

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

Smart McDonald’s fans (yes YOU!!) should have already heard of the Homestyle Crispy Chicken – the chicken breast fillet [burger] was first spotted on a European menu WAY back in May 2018 in The Netherlands, and has since featured in other countries such as Switzerland, Germany, Belgium and Romania.

It’s also been on the menu in Spain (there it is known as American Style Chicken) and in Poland it is called Supreme Crispy Chicken.

Now we have it here in the UK!

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

There have been variants too and predominantly in Holland (or The Netherlands); Homestyle Crispy Chicken has come in flavours such as Honey Mustard, Tomato, Mexican Salsa and Sweet BBQ.

You can imagine that in time, we will get more variations of what is on offer for its UK debut.

That debut was actually delayed if the rumour mill is anything to trust – hey, when have we ever got it wrong!?

The pandemic/first lockdown prevented the release of Worldwide Favourites in May 2020 when the Homestyle Crispy Chicken was set for its UK premiere.

This new burger is described as “A thick succulent chicken breast fillet in a crispy coating, a hot and spicy mayo and caramelised onion compote, seasonal lettuce, bacon, red onions, a slice of cheddar cheese and a glazed poppy and sesame seed bun.”

Ignoring the new breast fillet, bun and caramelised onion compote, this all sounds like standard issue McDonald’s to me.

Bacon? Check. Onion? Check. Lettuce? Check. Cheese? Check.

It’s not really grabbing my attention or motivating me to leave BLHQ but you have to admit, after the debacle of using two Chicken Selects, the Homestyle Crispy Chicken HAS to be sampled. If only once…

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

Well. This is the first time I have been able to use McDelivery and I must say I am impressed.

I was always concerned the food would turn up looking a bit of a state but today those fears have been allayed. Didn’t get any napkins though.

What about that Homestyle Crispy Chicken?

If this is going to be the new promotional chicken “Pico Patty” of choice moving forward then McDonald’s are onto a winner.

That coating is super crispy and is much better than any other chicken offering from The Golden Arches and quite possibly on the high street.

It’s got a really satisfying crunch throughout and a beautiful seasoning which has a slightly spicy undertone which is complimented nicely by the hot and spicy mayo.

So far, so good.

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

It’s a mightily impressive size overall (the burger) with an enjoyable bun which when you open the clamshell gives off a premium feeling to it.

The caramelised onion compote is “OK” – mine seem to be splodged unevenly to one side of the build so many bites of the Homestyle Crispy Chicken evaded its smooth flavour. I’d say this is quite possibly the biggest let down. But only just.

I wasn’t keen on the bacon on the build and many McDonald’s fans are far from enamoured with McD’s bacon – personally, I would take it or leave it on here.

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

As you can see from the pictures, there was a near obscene amount of red onion including two, maybe three big chunks. This again let it down slightly but overall, should not detract from a decent promotional chicken burger.

One point I would add that the chicken almost got drowned out by the salad on-board but that is only a minor grievance – you can obviously remove some of the ingredients but you can’t add any extras.

The main talking point about the Homestyle Crispy Chicken is THAT chicken breast fillet and judging on variations we have seen in other countries, it will be a no brainer it will return with different toppings/ingredients in the future.

My money would have to be on a “safe” BBQ option.

In the meantime, if you haven’t tried it yet, it’s certainly worth sampling and definitely gives the KFC Zinger a run for its money.

Having also got McDelivery for the first time today, I can see why McDonald’s would continue to focus on core menu items/ingredients to make the cooking and delivery of food to customers as simple and quick as possible. Just don’t forget the napkins!

McDonald's

McDonald’s Homestyle Crispy Chicken will be available at participating restaurants while stocks last until Tuesday 23rd March.

We already know what is coming after that and all will be revealed in our next Podcast episode – one of the returning items we’ve already mentioned in this review…

Burger Lad®

Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/gb/en-gb.html

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

Homestyle Crispy Chicken

£4.69
7.2

Taste

8.0/10

Look

6.5/10

Price

7.0/10

Hot

  • Amazing chicken fillet
  • A new ingredient for future variations
  • Hot and Spicy Mayo

Not

  • Onion compote
  • Red onion chunks

2 thoughts on “McDonald’s Homestyle Crispy Chicken

  • 12/02/2021 at 12:54 pm
    Permalink

    i read an article like that “fans are fuming” – it’s so dumb. as you say, they were limited items, and limited items are hardly new. lazy people who pretend to be journalists or are told to find such garbage on social media. You’ll always find someone outraged about something!

  • 12/02/2021 at 3:22 pm
    Permalink

    In general I liked it and would definitely have it again.
    I too found the red onion too big and too much. The onion ratio on a Quarter Pounder is better.
    The chicken itself was good and I enjoyed the bun. I am a big fan of the mayo. Neutral on the other items.

Comments are closed.