[Updated! See bottom of post.] A couple weeks after attempting to make imitation Big Mac® burgers (documented in our epic three-part series, dontcha know) we brought home some real Big Macs to compare.
The verdict? Well, everything in a true Big Mac just melts together into one cheesy, greasy, savory experience. Whereas in our burgers (even Kyle’s mini-burgers) there was more flavor but less flavor cohesion…maybe? Frankly, I preferred ours to the real thing; I don’t think it’s that hard to out-do a Big Mac. In any case, they all left us equally full.
OK, I think we’ve followed the burger trail as long as it can take us. Let’s see… we’ve covered Cinnabons, pickles, BBQ (generic)loukamathes, chicken, pancakes (sort of), beans, and of course, whipping cream. What’s next?
Update
Our neighbor and faithful Abbott Family Blog reader, Bar, just told us of the word “amplitude.” Apparently, in a food context, it refers to how well the flavors blend. So, for example, the Big Mac is high amplitude. Coca cola, high amplitude. Good pizza. Ham and cheese sandwiches. Ketchup. (Incidentally, the sum of all those foods is high-amplitude as well.)
Low amplitude foods have something that sticks out. Like our burgers, where you could taste the individual ingredients more. Cheap soda and the like. Interesting.
A quick Google search for “food amplitude” yields no relevant results, though. I wonder if we’re coining a new term here, or…?
how about french fries? so many variations, so much to compare…
Perhaps you have hit on it – what you guys made were burgers. Maybe a Big Mac is supposed to be just a cheesy, greasy, savory experience, and not a burger at all. Anyhow, judging from the final shot, they seem to have done their magic – you look as though you’ve had quite enough!
Just this morning a friend told me that she read that an addictive flavor-adding chemical concoction is added to Big Macs so that the flavor’s the same at every MacD’s and so that we keep going back for more.
Does that sound true to you? I’m not sure I believe it.
I’d say yes, although perhaps too many conclusions are being drawn. Sure, obviously the recipe is carefully controlled and has been perfected over the years in scientifically-conducted studies. That’s why every Big Mac has that reliable, familiar taste.
And, as with any positive experience, associations are drawn, Pavlov-style. “Big Mac = me happy.” In that way, Big Macs can become “addictive.” Same can go for any other product.
I highly doubt, however, that McDonalds adds a physically-addicting chemical, in the same vein as nicotine, to their burgers. Why should they? It’s unnecessary. People like food enough as it is to keep the business going strong.