The Absolute Best Wendy's Dipping Sauce For Your Nuggets And Fries

There's truly no better trio than crispy chicken nuggets, perfectly cooked fries, and a delectable dipping sauce. They're basically the Holy Trinity of the fast food world. And one fast food chain that understands this very well is Wendy's. After all, it released an extra saucy twist on its beloved golden, crispy morsels of 100% white-meat chicken: Its Wendy's Saucy Nuggs, which were released with their own line of sauces in 2024. However, this wasn't the first time Wendy's released a new batch of dipping sauces. In its 56-year-long history, Wendy's has released and discontinued an array of sauces like the beloved S'Awesome sauce and a sriracha dip. While some of its sauces developed a cult following, others needed to be replaced. Luckily, Wendy's currently has one dipping sauce in its lineup that deserves all the love, and it's the honey BBQ sauce. 

This sauce is pure perfection — so much so that it was ranked the best Wendy's dipping sauce by the Tasting Table staff. Compared to Wendy's BBQ sauce, which has a gelatinous consistency, the honey version has a beautiful, silky smooth texture that's alluring and oddly satisfying. It also has a deep brown color, thanks to the addition of molasses and vegetable and fruit juice concentrates. Not only is this sauce visually appealing, but its rich color alludes to the luscious flavor profile that's about to coat your tongue and make you salivate after every bite. Plus, this BBQ sauce won't awkwardly cling to your chicken nuggets in a congealed way. Instead, it coats your nuggets in such a delicate manner that it feels like these two items were meant to be together.

Wendy's proudly boasts that its honey BBQ sauce has the perfect amount of smokiness and sweetness. And the company isn't lying about that. Made with a mixture of honey, pineapple juice concentrate, corn syrup, and sugar, the sauce's sweetness immediately makes its presence known as the signature smokiness of traditional BBQ sauce slowly introduces itself to your taste buds. Although this sauce contains 2% or less of natural smoke flavor, the smokiness is bold and complements the sweeter notes of the sauce. And each flavor has a moment to shine without drawing attention away from the other. 

This sauce also has an unexpected tanginess from the addition of distilled vinegar that truly elevates its flavor profile and encapsulates every bite without being overpowering. In fact, the vinegar works together with the sweet ingredients and a combination of spices, dehydrated onion, tamarind extract, and dehydrated garlic to create a complex yet flavorful dipping experience.

The honey BBQ sauce is one of the most well-rounded sauces Wendy's has recently created. It's delicious when smothered all over your nuggets and fries, light enough that your fries won't buckle underneath it, and thick enough that it won't fall off them. And it won't suppress the existing flavors of Wendy's nuggets or sea salt-seasoned fries, nor will it make them soggy. With how amazing this sauce is, it should definitely be added to a ranking of fast food sauces.