WEBVTT - What Is the McRib Made Of?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren of ok obamb Here. It's a mick rib world

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<v Speaker 1>and we're all just living in it. Much like the

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<v Speaker 1>first snow of the season or spring break, McDonald's release

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<v Speaker 1>of the cult favorite mic rib sandwich is something that

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of people get behind. In case you don't know,

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<v Speaker 1>the mic rib consists of seasoned, boneless pork shaped into

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<v Speaker 1>a rib meat style patty and coated and tangy barbecue sauce,

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<v Speaker 1>then topped with sliced onions and pickles on a long bun.

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<v Speaker 1>And now it's back nationwide for the first time since

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<v Speaker 1>just what needs right. The McRib was created by McDonald's

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<v Speaker 1>first executive chef, Renee Rand, who also developed those famous

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<v Speaker 1>chicken McNuggets as a means to combat the chicken shortage

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<v Speaker 1>the curd. When those McNuggets debuted, apparently every franchise wanted

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<v Speaker 1>McNuggets and there wasn't a system in place to supply

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<v Speaker 1>McDonald's corporate with enough chicken to meet demand. So a

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<v Speaker 1>Rand developed the mcribb for the franchises that got left

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<v Speaker 1>out to debut. After a year of test marketing, that

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<v Speaker 1>first McRib appeared in McDonald's stores in two. Despite the

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<v Speaker 1>cult like appreciation for the sandwich, mcribb was actually considered

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<v Speaker 1>a failure, even with support throughout the Midwest. McDonald's discontinued

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<v Speaker 1>the micrib in five, citing a lack of dedicated pork

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<v Speaker 1>eaters in the United States, and then it made a

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<v Speaker 1>major comeback in as a promotional tie in to the

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<v Speaker 1>Flintstones movie. The sudden popularity and support for the McRib

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<v Speaker 1>sparked a movement to restock it select stores across the

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<v Speaker 1>United States and Canada, but the McRib disappeared again in

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<v Speaker 1>two thousand five. McDonald's even planned the micrib Farewell Tour,

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<v Speaker 1>featuring an online save the McRib campaign. So this all

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<v Speaker 1>begs the question, what exact is the McRib. Well, it's

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<v Speaker 1>not pork rib meat. It's mostly meat from the pork shoulder.

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<v Speaker 1>It's called restructured meat, and this food processing technique was

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<v Speaker 1>created by the US Army in the nineteen sixties to

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<v Speaker 1>lower its food costs. These new meats were added to

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<v Speaker 1>m r e s for troops and so essentially the

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<v Speaker 1>McRib is made of pig meat, including boneless pork picnic

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<v Speaker 1>shoulder pressed into the iconic micrib shape with some barbecue

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<v Speaker 1>sauce added for flavor. McDonald's did allow the late Grant Immahara,

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<v Speaker 1>former co host of MythBusters, behind the scenes in with

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<v Speaker 1>West Bellamy, then a teacher and now a department chair

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<v Speaker 1>at Virginia State University and vice mayor of Charlottesville. Bellamy's

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<v Speaker 1>tweeked about how an appetizing the meat looked had caught

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<v Speaker 1>McDonald's attention. The two watched as the pork meat was

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<v Speaker 1>processed and pressed into shape, and then flash frozen to

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<v Speaker 1>be shipped to restaurants. In the video, the vice president

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<v Speaker 1>of McDonald's u S pork supplier Lopez Foods, says the

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<v Speaker 1>only ingredients in a McRib are pork, water, dextros, and preservatives.

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<v Speaker 1>So if you are one of those who's been waiting

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<v Speaker 1>anxiously for the mac rib heads up, it's available at

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<v Speaker 1>participating restaurants as of December two, but who knows how

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<v Speaker 1>long it'll be there. Today's episode was written by Jeremy

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<v Speaker 1>Glass and produced by Tyler Clang. For more on this

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<v Speaker 1>and lots of other restructured topics, visit House to Forks

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. Brain Stuff is a production of I Heart

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<v Speaker 1>Radio For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the i

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