Chick-fil-A and Raising Cane’s are currently dominating the fast-food industry. These two restaurant chains are known for their chicken-based menus. However, the one item that sticks out on both of these menus is the signature sauces. These dips add the perfect flavor to their chicken and fries. Although, there is one question that everyone is eager to know: Which of these fast-food restaurants has the best signature sauce?
In 1983, Hugh Fleming created the signature Chick-fil-A sauce by accident. Customers demanded a side of sauce with their chicken, so Fleming tweaked a honey mustard salad dressing recipe and accidentally mixed it in barbecue. Today, the sauce is the most popular item at Chick-fil-A and now can be found in supermarkets across the United States.
Besides honey mustard and barbecue sauce, other common ingredients used in the sauce are mustard, ranch dressing, mayonnaise, soybean oil, garlic, onion, sugar, egg yolk and vinegar.
While the barbeque sauce and honey mustard allow strong accents to the Chick-fil-A sauce, the ranch adds more to the texture and less to the taste. When the ranch dressing and mayonnaise combine, it is found that the texture is very creamy. This creaminess infuses the sweet and tangy flavors that lie within the sauce.
Even after several years, Chick-fil-A’s signature sauce still remains at the top of its game. The uniqueness of the golden-hued dipping sauce has a flavor that continues to impress customers by the day.
However, a serving of the Chick-fil-A sauce has 140 calories per serving and provides 13 grams of fat and seven grams of carbohydrates. The fat content and calories are on the higher end when comparing other dipping sauces. This doesn’t compare to Raising Cane’s signature sauce though, which has 190 calories per serving and provides five grams of carbohydrates, 18 grams of fat and zero grams of protein.
Although Raising Cane’s sauce is not the healthiest, the taste has been loved by so many people throughout the United States. This dipping sauce has remained top secret since the very first Raising Cane’s in 1996.
Former employees and intrepid recipe developers have narrowed the Raising Cane’s sauce down to five key ingredients: ketchup, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, liquid smoke and ground black pepper.
Even though these ingredients are not said to be in the Raising Cane’s sauce, the taste is described as tangy with a bit of spice and full of flavor. It is also very noticeable that the texture of the sauce is a lot smoother and less dense than Chick-fil-A’s signature sauce. The consistency is very nice because it molds right into the chicken and fries. Adding on to that, the sauce is more sweet than salty and it has quite a bite.
Unlike Chick-Fil-A, Raising Cane’s doesn’t have their signature sauce by the bottle. However, some restaurant locations serve the sauce in “larger quantities.”
Hopefully, Raising Cane’s CEO and other employees reveal their signature sauce recipe. It is getting very skeptical about what lies within the sauce of this fast-food chain.
So, does Chick-fil-A or Raising Cane’s have the best signature sauce? This question can be left to debate among anyone in the United States. Both of these sauces have their own unique flavor, but there is one sauce that is the best in any circumstance: Raising Cane’s.
The combination of the flavors and texture is memorable to all who taste the Raising Cane’s sauce. The mayonnaise and ketchup have a very distinct flavor of tanginess, saltiness and sweetness. All these mixed ingredients within the sauce still taste amazing on any fried food.
Although Chick-fil-A’s signature sauce is still very delicious and rich, the taste can get too repetitive with the constant sweetness and tanginess. Even though there is salt within the dip, it is barely noticeable when there is an overload of barbeque and honey mustard.
A majority of fast-food fans would not agree with this review, but everyone’s taste buds are different. It is recommended that people who enjoy saltier foods or sauces have Raising Cane’s signature sauce, while people who enjoy sweeter foods or sauces have Chick-fil-A’s signature sauce.