The Perfect Cocktail Companion To McDonald's McChicken Is A True Classic

Creating a menu with cocktails paired to each course is a delicious way to spend an evening, but it is also a lot of work. For those that prefer the mixology side of the bargain over spending time stooped over the stove, stirring up a few drinks to match takeout is an easy way to enjoy the same sort of experience — and it's doubly fun when the pairing incorporate an unexpected match, like carefully curated cocktails paired with McDonald's fast food. It might sound a bit silly — and it is — but a good pairing is a good pairing. When you chase a bite of a McChicken sandwich with a sip from a Tom Collins, you'll understand exactly what we mean.

The McChicken is a simple McDonald's offering, just a fried chicken patty topped with shredded iceberg lettuce and plenty of creamy mayonnaise on a sesame seed bun, but the delicate flavors match up beautifully with a classic Tom Collins. If you've never mixed up a Tom Collins before, it is a gin-based cocktail with simple syrup, lemon juice, and club soda. Similar to a fizzy lemonade, it is a light and refreshing drink whose every component pairs with this simple fried chicken sandwich. Lemon and chicken are a flavor pairing that needs no explanation, but the botanicals in the gin add an herbal complexity to the drink and the sandwich, and the brightness of the drink cuts through the fat of the fried chicken and mayonnaise to great effect.

For your first McChicken pairing, we suggest starting with a classic recipe, or venturing out just a little bit, as with this Meyer Lemon Tom Collins recipe. But once you've explored that pairing, there are many more in the same ballpark that you might want to try as well.

The botanicals of the gin work very well with the delicate flavors of this fast food chicken sandwich, but to add a more direct herbal kick to this pairing, try a basil Meyer lemon vodka Collins. The complexity of the gin is lost, as this particular recipe uses vodka, but basil and chicken are another classic pairing that certainly will not disappoint.

To add another layer of complexity while staying on the same theme, consider this blackberry sage vodka smash recipe. The lemon is traded for lime in this recipe, but chicken goes well with all citrus, and the sage adds a different herbal note to the pairing. Muddled blackberries, in turn, give a punch of color to the drink as well as some additional tart, sweet flavor. A well-made drink and a fast food chicken sandwich already make a fun pair, but if you want to really highlight the disparity, fried chicken and champagne are a surprising culinary duo. A glass of bubbles alongside your McChicken is a good choice, but a French 75 is a better one. The ingredients list is quite similar to a Tom Collins, featuring sparkling wine mixed with gin, simple syrup, and lemon juice. All the same flavors, with an added dash of luxury.