Burger King Says Its Chicken Nuggets Needed A ‘Total Overhaul’

Burger King has spent the last few years reworking everything from the Whopper to its restaurants. Now, the chain is turning its attention to something considerably smaller: the chicken nugget.

Starting September 1, Burger King is rolling out a completely redesigned chicken nugget recipe after reevaluating nearly every part of the product, including the chicken, marinade, breading, dipping sauces and even the packaging.

“Our nuggets needed a total overhaul,” Amy Alarcon, Burger King’s head chef for the U.S. and Canada, said in a statement. During development, Burger King brought in customers to test and refine the recipe, including what the chain described as some of its toughest critics: kids.

The overhaul extends to the dipping situation, too. Burger King will introduce a limited-time Special Savory Sauce, while its Honey Mustard has been reformulated to taste richer and creamier and its Sweet & Sour sauce received a rebalanced flavor profile.

The nuggets will also arrive in cardboard boxes instead of bags, a move intended to keep them hotter for longer. It follows a similar packaging change Burger King made to its recently upgraded Whopper, which received a new bun and creamier mayo as part of the chain’s broader effort to improve its core menu.

That timing makes the nugget makeover particularly interesting. Burger King currently has momentum behind its ongoing turnaround and has recently outperformed McDonald’s and Wendy’s in same-store sales. Meanwhile, chicken has become another battleground among the major burger chains, with Wendy’s upgrading its chicken sandwiches earlier this year and McDonald’s continuing to invest in the category.

And because fast-food timing occasionally has a sense of humor, McDonald’s Spicy Chicken McNuggets also return September 1.

So on the same day McDonald’s brings back an established favorite, Burger King will be asking customers to reconsider its nuggets altogether.