Why McDonald's Is Offering 'Spicesurance' For Its New McNuggets

McDonald's really wants you to be happy with its first new chicken McNugget flavor since the item was introduced, in 1983. That's why the fast-food chain is offering "Spicesurance" when you order the new Spicy Chicken McNuggets on its mobile app on the day the new flavor comes out: Wednesday, September 16 (via USA Today). Here's the deal: Order the six-piece Spicy Chicken McNuggets and get another six-piece of the new, spicy flavor, or six of the original nuggets, for free.

The new McNuggets stand out with their tempura coating, infused with enough cayenne and chili pepper to get your attention. But McDonald's doesn't want to scare off more timid palates with its new flavor. A taste-tester at TimeOut tried the spicy nuggets after finding a McDonald's that was offering them a little early, and declared them to be just right in terms of heat. For those who want extra kick, McDonald's is also introducing a new dipping sauce, Mighty Hot Sauce, which is now the hottest sauce in the McDonald's lineup. The TimeOut taster thought the spicy nuggets plus the hot sauce was a bit much and suggests anyone willing to try the Spicy Chicken McNuggets should opt for the ranch or honey sauces.

Meanwhile, to douse the heat, McDonald's is also introducing a new McFlurry flavor: Chips Ahoy! 

Spicesurance really isn't complicated. It's basically a buy one, get one free deal on six-piece McNuggets, available only through the McDonald's app. But if it's insurance, then it has to be complicated, right? So McDonald's got some lawyer with a sense of humor, or some comedian who has watched lawyers on TV, to write nearly 9,000 words of fine print to explain more fully what Spicesurance entails. McDonald's then got former NFL player and actor Anthony "Spice" Adams to read the whole thing in a 40-minute video posted to Instagram. You can read it for yourself on the McDonald's website, too.

The fine print allows for the possibility that Spicy Chicken McNuggets may be referred to by certain slang terms, such as "Spicy Bockbocks" or "Kicky Chickys." Further down, the fine print makes the very important point that Spicesurance is available for one day only.

The fine print goes on: "If the weather is too bad or there is a cataclysmic event that precludes anyone from being able to order Spicy Chicken McNuggets on September 16, 2020, that is unfortunate but, let's face it, par for the course for the year of 2020." Barring cataclysm, September 2020, at least, is shaping up to be pretty good at McDonald's. The chain scored a hit on September 8, when it introduced the popular Travis Scott meal.