The One Chicken Cut Chick‑fil‑A Relies On For Every Sandwich

Let's face it, the chicken at fast food restaurants is sometimes suspect. If you've ever wondered what's really in your fast food chicken order, you're not alone — McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, and many others have come under fire for selling chicken diluted with soy or other additives. Fortunately, for quality poultry, you can count on Chick-fil-A. The popular quick-service chain serves authentic, boneless chicken breast meat, according to its website. 

While white meat chicken is now pretty standard at many fast food restaurants, biting into gray, grisly, or just plain fake chicken is still a risk, particularly at chains that don't specialize in poultry. Chick-fil-A, however, prides itself on serving only chicken (no beef) and is dedicated to using breast meat, which is one of the juiciest and plumpest cuts.

The chain also assures that its chicken doesn't contain any fillers and is raised with No Antibiotics Important to Human Medicine (NAIHM) — the chain switched from No Antibiotics Ever to NAIHM in 2024. Not only are all of the chicken sandwiches made with boneless breast meat, but Chick-fil-A's chicken nuggets are bite-sized pieces of boneless chicken breast as well. 

Seeing as not all fast food chicken is 100 percent chicken, it's a good idea to know the fast food restaurants that use real chicken, like Chick-fil-A. For instance, Wendy's classic chicken sandwich is made with just 56 percent chicken breast.

Moreover, even if a chain uses real chicken, it's still possible that your favorite fast food chicken sandwich might have more ingredients than you'd think. Looking at the ingredient list for Chick-fil-A's original chicken sandwich, the first ingredient is chicken (which is always a good sign), and includes boneless, skinless chicken breast with rib meat. The rib meat is the darker meat that lies under the breast, on top of the ribs. It is typically left on the breast to increase efficiency in processing chicken and is not a filler or additive. 

Some people have criticized Chick-fil-A's chicken sandwich for having over 50 ingredients, the majority of which are for its breading and bun. A few ingredients on the list that have been called out as questionable include the flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG), sodium aluminum phosphate (a leavening agent), and dimethylpolysiloxane, an anti-foaming agent. Although these ingredients may be a turn-off for some, both the WHO and the FDA state that these additives are generally safe to consume at low levels and that individuals would need to frequently consume high amounts to experience harmful side effects.