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I tried McDonald's Chicken Big Mac so you don't have to. Here is my review.

I tried McDonald's Chicken Big Mac so you don't have to. Here is my review.

What do you call a Big Mac that's afraid of the dark? A Chicken Big Mac!

Or that's what you call a Big Mac that has chicken patties on it instead of hamburgers. That's exactly what McDonald's rolled out in stores nationwide on Thursday. For a limited time, those who prefer chicken over beef (or simply enjoy McDonald's McChicken sandwiches) can get a Chicken Big Mac.

The sandwich consists of two chicken patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese and pickles on a sesame seed bun. Not quite as catchy as the original Big Mac jingle, but close enough.

While McDonald's is far from my favorite fast-food burger chain (Wendy's rules nationally, In-N-Out dominates regionally), there is a time and a place for the golden arches. Is it a time and place of despair and weakness? Absolutely. But in moments like this, a Big Mac and fries are a salty salve for the soul.

There is indeed something special about a Big Mac, from the double-tiered presentation to the salty combination of special sauce, pickles and onions. The quality of the burger doesn't matter; it mainly serves as a basis for spices. So I was very curious to see what it would be like to swap the beef for chicken.

It tastes exactly as I expected – like a McChicken with Big Mac sauce. Which is pretty good! You'll never confuse a chicken sandwich from McDonald's with an elite chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-a or Popeye's, but there's a certain nostalgia to this type of inferior chicken patty. And it's actually enhanced by the sauce, pickles and onions. The fact that this is technically a menu item that McDonald's could always serve—there are always Big Mac ingredients and chicken patties—makes the whole thing seem a little less special. But that doesn't make it taste any worse.

Is it better than the original Big Mac? No. The sauce goes better with beef than chicken and is hard to beat. I didn't even like the Double Big Mac that came out earlier this year as much as the classic Big Mac.

And I'm not a coward for admitting it.

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Jeremy Schneider can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @J_Schneider and on Instagram at @JeremyIsHungryAgain.

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