You can blame Popeyes for its viral chicken sandwich, but it seems that every fast-food burger chain has tried to find the right recipe for chicken on its menu.
This is something that McDonald’s has embraced with its McCrispy sandwich and its McCrispy Strips.
“We’ve been listening to our fans on social and beyond, and they’ve made one thing clear: they want more chicken. But not just any chicken – they want juicy, dippable perfection. So, countless taste tests later, McDonald’s is ready to unveil McCrispy Strips and the all-new Creamy Chili Dip – a flavor packed here for the first time since then. We’ve debuted a permanent menu item in the United States – available at all participating restaurants nationwide through May 5,” the chain said in a press release.
That move came after many different chicken-related failures for the chain:
Mighty Wings: Bone-in chicken wings were introduced in the 1990s and later re-released, but sales were poor, and they were quickly pulled after a promotion flop, Mashed reported.
Chicken McBites: Bite-sized pieces of chicken were launched to compete with similar products, but never gained traction and were discontinued, according to The Quick Report.
Chicken McGrill/Crispy Chicken Sandwiches (previous generations): Several premium grilled and crispy variants of the chicken sandwich from the 1990s-2000s were eventually replaced as McDonald’s revived its chicken line.
Chicken Selects: Higher quality chicken offerings that had a loyal following but fell due to declining sales; rebranded iterations (Buttermilk Crispy Tenders) also eventually disappeared, CyChicken reported.
Buttermilk Crispy Chicken Deals : A later version of chicken strips that came back in 2017 but was discontinued again in 2020 amid menu simplification, split Daily Meal.
When you look at the various fast-food chains I’ve covered, chicken has been a sort of elusive prize. When a product hits, it can change the game, but it has proven to be very difficult to stand out with chickens in a crowded market.
Now, with the success of the McCrispy line, a product that became a billion dollar brand for the company, McDonald’s went back to the chicken well for a new list of wide products.
It’s easy to see why McDonald’s wants to expand its chicken lineup.
“Chicken continues to be a rising star in the fast-food industry, with QSR chicken chains growing 8.9% year over year in 2024, while the company’s burger sales grew 1.4%, the Wall Street Journal reported. “Chicken now accounts for more than $53 billion in annual sales for US fast-food restaurants specializing in poultry.”
Restaurants have also battled rising beef prices.
“The tightening of cattle supplies has helped push beef prices to record highs, making chicken a more profitable option for restaurants and meat companies alike.”
McDonald’s is not alone in looking to sell chicken. Wendy’s recently introduced its “Chicken Tendys” chicken strips, which came in shortly after the “Saucy Nuggs” chicken nugget lineup.
“Consumers have made it abundantly clear that they want more chicken — preferably boneless, portable and crispy. The chicken category has continued to drive much of the industry’s growth of late, including a nearly 15% increase in sales for the top 500 chicken chains in 2024, according to Technomic data,” Nation’s Restaurant News reported.
McDonald’s rarely tests a wide range of menu items at the same time, but that’s not the case with its potential new chicken lineup.
“McDonald’s is going wild with their chicken menu and testing some great looking items right now,” the Snackolator Instagram page reported. “They are currently testing THREE new sandwiches – the McSpicy with spicy fillet (not just spicy sauce), plus two deluxe grilled chicken sandwiches and then Bacon BBQ!”
That’s actually just a small part of the chicken that the chain has been testing in limited locations.
“Then they have SIX new McCrispy options with both seasoned and sauced options. For the glazed options, they have Sweet Chili, Teriyaki, and Kickin’ BBQ, and then with the seasoned strips, they have Spicy Garlic, Sweet Asian, and Garlic Parm,” he shared.
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McDonald’s is also testing something where it has failed miserably (or perhaps miserably) in the past.
“Then they have BONE-IN WINGS with that McSpicy seasoning, along with the return of Big Mac dipping sauce cups,” Snackolator said.
Unfortunately, only some of these items will make it to the national menu (and there is no guarantee of this).
“Right now, they only seem to be testing in a few places in the Chicago area, but I’ll try and see if there are other cities that are testing as well,” he added.
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The Chicken Big Mac was a sales driver in the limited release.McDonald’s
McDonald’s has also used the Chicken Big Mac as a worldwide promotion.
“Germany launched exciting marketing and full-margin menu innovations like the Chicken Big Mac, which hit record high market sales during the first full week of launch,” said CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski during the company’s second quarter earnings call.
CFO Ian Borden was bullish on the opportunity in the chicken space.
“Chicken also remains a significant opportunity. It is a larger global category than beef and continues to grow at a faster rate. In the second quarter, we increased chicken market share in our top 10 markets. And we remain on track to grow our global chicken share by 100 basis points by the end of 2026, in line with the target we shared in our investor update, he explained our investor at last.
This was true in multiple markets, according to Borden.
Chicken was a key driver of sales growth and the overall increase in market share in Australia in the quarter.
The market saw its first share gains in a few years, thanks in part to the Hot Honey Chicken campaign, featuring both the McCrispy and McSpicy options, which worked alongside the strong foundation of value and affordability now in place.
Chicken also helped drive McDonald’s performance in China in the second quarter, where it gained market share, not only in the category, but also in the overall QSR.
Related: 46-year-old casual restaurant chain has closed more than 140 locations
This story was originally published by TheStreet on December 15, 2025, where it first appeared in the Restaurants section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
