McDonald?s Burgers Food Styling Process Revealed In Video, Answers Why Burgers Are Bigger In Ads

By Nadine DeNinno | June 22 2012 10:26 AM

Apparently, McDonald's spends as much time and effort styling their Big Mac's as celebrity stylists do when prepping red carpet looks. Thanks to a video supplied by McDonald's Canada, the world now knows what goes into the food styling process behind how the fast food chain makes the burgers seen in advertisements much more appetizing - and bigger -- than the real deal.

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Apparently, McDonald's spends as much time and effort styling their Big Mac's as celebrity stylists do when prepping red carpet looks. Thanks to a video supplied by McDonald's Canada, the world now knows what goes into the food styling process behind how the fast food chain makes the burgers seen in advertisements much more appetizing -- and bigger -- than the real deal.

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So how exactly does McDonald's get its burgers so, well, perfect in those ads? Could it be they plump the patty with air to fatten it up? Or do they use some sort of chemically enhanced-to-perfection slices of cheese? Or pickles from cucumber trees injected with anabolic steroids?

Dream on, this isn't Mondo Burger.

McDonald's Canada revealed its process of food styling when making burgers for advertisements, which director of marketing for McDonald's Canada Hope Bagozzi said requires the exact same ingredients as the burger you order from the menu.

I think that it's important to note that all the ingredients are the exact same ingredients that we use in the restaurant, Bagozzi said in the video. So, it is the exact same patty, it's the exact same ketchup, mustard and onions, and same buns.

The key is, however, arranging those ingredients carefully in a way so that each is visible to the viewer of the ad, a process which can take several hours according to Bagozzi in comparison to the whole 60 seconds it takes at the fast food joint.

This way we can at least tell people you have ketchup, you have mustard, you have two pieces of cheese and you know what you're getting, Noah, the food stylist, said in the video.

After the cheese is carefully melted to perfection with a hot iron, the other ingredients are placed strategically on the outer circumference of the burger and the ketchup is injected with a syringe. The only unreal aspect of the advertisement, Bagozzi said, is the retouching of the photos, like removing imperfections and discolorations.

Bagozzi even debunked rumors about the size of the burgers in ads, which many believe can be attributed to plumping. However, the burgers ordered straight from a menu are smaller only because of science.

'The boxes that our burgers come in keep the sandwiches warm, which creates a bit of a steam, and it does make the bun contract, Bagozzi said.

So there you have it. View the video, which has over three million views since Tuesday, from McDonald's Canada below.