Give The Filet-O-Fish A Protein Boost When You Request This One Flavorful Addition

Among the countless ways that customers have found to modify the McDonald's Filet-O-Fish sandwich, few are quite so simple as adding a couple half strips of bacon. This alteration wouldn't even qualify for "secret menu" lists, as the choice is right there in the ordering system. Any customer who bothers to open up the customization options for Mickey D's flagship seafood sandwich will see that tacking on up to four half strips of that favorite pork product gives it not just a salty flavor boost, but an extra hit of protein as well.

Without any modifications, McDonald's Filet-O-Fish sandwich — with its fried Alaskan pollock patty, tartar sauce, half slice of American cheese, and steamed bun — serves up 16 grams of protein. It is not one of the McDonald's menu items with the most protein, but it is an item with a strong following. For those who wish to get a little more protein out of each bite, those first two half strips of bacon will increase the cost of the sandwich by a bit under $2 (depending on the location) and up the protein by 25%, or 4 grams.

Those that are truly dedicated to the bacon-and-fish combo can double that and bring things up to a total of 24 grams of protein for the whole sandwich. At that point, it is on par with some of the other high-protein items like the Big Mac or a 10-Piece McNuggets, which contain 25 grams and 23 grams of protein, respectively. Of course, adding four half strips of bacon does more than just increase the protein content.

In addition to the 4 grams of protein, each pair of bacon half strips (they can only be added in twos) contains 70 calories, 6 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of carbs, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, and 220 milligrams of sodium. These salty, smoky strips create a meal akin to a delicious fried fish BLT — and are a necessary component to ordering a Filet-O-Fish diner-style — but there may be better ways to hit those protein goals than with a pile of bacon.

The simplest trick without altering the flavor profile would be to simply add another piece of fish. The double fish sandwich is available on some McDonald's menus, but even when it isn't, asking for an extra fish patty or two is a great way to customize the Filet-O-Fish. Each patty boasts 9 grams of protein, so a double is already better than all that bacon. While it may add more calories and carbs, it only increases the fat content by 5 grams, saturated fat by 0.5 grams, cholesterol by 10 milligrams, and sodium by 140 milligrams. Double those numbers for a triple, and you come out with a whopping 34 grams of protein — not too bad.

Alternatively, there are other proteins aside from bacon (and more fish) that one can choose from. Some customers like to upgrade the Filet-O-Fish by packing it with Chicken McNuggets. Others get even crazier by ordering the ever-unpopular Filet-O-Fish variant, the "Air, Land, and Sea" Burger, which features a fish patty, a chicken patty, and a burger all on the same sandwich. Whichever route you go, adding extra protein to your Filet-O-Fish doesn't have to be complicated.