McDonald's apple pie is vegan by ingredient in most countries including the UK, USA, Canada and New Zealand. However, in countries such as Australia, the McDonald's apple pie recipe contains milk. There may also be cross-contamination with milk products to consider.
Although the iced cream at McDonald's is not vegan, they do have one dessert item that you can shamelessly devour if you're avoiding animal products. Fortunately, the McDonald's baked apple pie is vegan! As reported by Thrillest, the tasty and very popular menu item does not contain milk, butter, or any meat.
This is down to the way the fast-food chain filters its frying oils – a statement says that there's a risk of cross-contamination from some chicken and fish items on the menu. Hopefully, the pie will be added to its vegan-certified menu sometime soon, but until then it's up to you!
McDonald's Apple Pies are made with ingredients that are suitable for vegetarians (i.e. contain no ingredients of animal origin) and they are cooked in dedicated frying vats using a non hydrogenated blend of rapeseed and sunflower oil (100% vegetable oil).
OR: Water, Apples (23%), WHEAT Flour, Vegetable Oils (Palm Oil, Rapeseed Oil), Sugar, Modified Corn Starch, Dextrose, Salt, Spices, Lemon Juice Concentrate, Caramelised Sugar Syrup, Cassia Extract. Prepared in the restaurants using non-hydrogenated vegetable oil. N.B. May contain traces of milk.
Are Australian McDonald's apple pies vegan? Unlike in other countries, McDonald's apple pies are not suitable for vegans in Australia. This is because they contain whey powder which is made from cows milk. They are, however, suitable for vegetarians.
Ingredients: Apples, Calcium Ascorbate (A Blend Of Calcium And Vitamin C To Maintain Freshness And Color).
The Filet-o-Fish® does contain eggs as an ingredient due to the Tartare Sauce, but the Apple Pie does not. .
The US McDonald's fries are not vegan, but the process still involves the highest FDA safety regulations. Besides the potatoes and salt for flavoring, the cooking involves vegetable oils like corn, soybean, and canola. They also have chemical preservatives and natural beef additives from milk and wheat.
Are McDonald's fries vegan in Australia? In Australia, the chips contain no animal ingredients and are cooked in vegetable oils, meaning they are vegan-friendly.
As well as their vegan certified products, McDonald's also have a number of other menu options that are made with vegan ingredients, but they can't all be certified vegan because of a risk of cross-contamination in their restaurants. See below for the up-to-date vegan menu at McDonald's.
McDonald's has been ramping up its plant-based options over the last few years. In May 2022, McDonald's officially added a dairy-free McFlurry to its growing list of vegan menu options.
History. In 2017, due to a petition which was signed by 220,000 people asking McDonald's for a plant-based food and an increase in US flexitarian foods which are vegan, McDonald's decided to introduce a plant-based food on the menu.
Ingredients: Apples (apples, Ascorbic Acid, Salt, Citric Acid), Enriched Flour (bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Sugar, Palm Oil, Water, Apple Juice Concentrate, Modified Food Starch, Invert Syrup, Contains 2% Or Less: Yeast, Salt, Cinnamon, Sunflower Lecithin, ...
Now obviously this popular sandwich sold at the Golden Arches isn't vegan. (Nope, not even the eggs inside. Although many people wonder if the eggs in the mcmuffin are in fact chickens' eggs. They are.)
Sauces. Vegan sauces include Heinz Tomato Ketchup, Spicy Tomato Salsa, Sweet Chilli, Sweet & Sour, Sweet Curry, and BBQ (not to be confused with the Smokey BBQ, which contains honey).
The short answer here is, no, McDonald's French Fries are not vegan. But why not, you might ask. After all, French Fries are just potatoes and potatoes are vegan, so, what's the issue? The issue is their French Fries have a natural beef flavoring that contains dairy.
The short answer here is, no, McDonald's Hash Browns are not vegan. But, why not, you might ask. After all, hash browns are just potatoes and potatoes are vegan, so, what's the problem? Simply put, their Hash Browns have a natural beef flavoring that contains dairy.
One major change to the apple pie is that, unlike when it first came out, it's no longer fried. In 1992, McDonald's switched from frying its apple pies to baking them to quell health concerns. Today, nearly every McDonald's in America serves baked apple pies that are somewhat "healthier" than the beloved fried version.
All of the pies sold at US McDonald's are made in Tulsa. For more than 50 years, all the pies sold in US McDonald's have been made exclusively at Bama Companies in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Bama also makes biscuits and hotcakes for the fast-food chain.)
The Switch from Fried to Baked Apple Pies. If you decide to try an apple pie from McDonald's today, you will unfortunately not be biting into the golden crispy outside of a fried apple pie. This is the result of a huge change in 1992. In 1992 McDonald's switched from frying their apple pies to baking them.
Packaged apples found at McDonalds or in your local produce section are usually treated with a solution of calcium ascorbate (a blend of calcium and vitamin C) or citric acid (found in citrus fruit) to maintain freshness and color. Both are very safe to use on fruit that will be consumed.
Apart from these strange ingredients, the apple pie has 230 calories per 1 serving and is high in both sodium and sugar, so there really aren't any reasons to eat this for your health. Plus, making apple pie from scratch always allows you to know exactly what is in it!
Why do McDonald's apples taste better? The McDonald's apple slices are NOT the same apples you find in a grocery store. They are tree-ripened for higher fructose content and then sprayed in ascorbic acid (vitamin C) making them taste tangy.