McDonald's Fans Are Joining A Sauce Quest For A New Flavor

If you break it down to its parts, McDonald's Szechuan Sauce isn't exactly a groundbreaking condiment. Released in 1998 alongside a limited-edition Happy Meal promoting the release of Disney's "Mulan" (via USA Today), the blend of soy, ginger, garlic, and sesame oil in this McNuggets dip takes cues from a flavor profile that's common in the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan — one that's fairly simple to recreate at home. 

Nevertheless, Szechuan Sauce reached a cult status like never before when it was referenced in a 2017 episode of the wildly popular adult cartoon, "Rick and Morty," in which the show's nominal mad scientist goes to great lengths to score as much of the oft-elusive stuff as one drive-thru can spare. Suddenly, "Rick and Morty" fans with a newfound craving for the sweet and spicy sauce were standing in droves outside of their local McDonald's outposts, chanting, "We want sauce!" The demand led the fast food chain to send 20 million packets of Szechuan Sauce to its U.S. restaurants in February of 2018, per Food & Wine.

After releasing the coveted dip for a limited time in the States this past March, McDonald's is treating Szechuan fans in Australia to another drop this June, per LADbible, alongside its popular Cajun Sauce. What's more, McDonald's Australia is releasing two additional secret dipping sauces that fans can score ahead of their official release. Here's how. 

Starting June 28, McDonald's fans in the Land Down Under can score a "secret stash" of the brand's Szechuan Sauce, Cajun Sauce (a tangy Dijon condiment courtesy of the South Korean boy band BTS' McDonald's collab), and two additional secret sauces before their official release — all by finding "hidden sauce splatters" and other clues in a three-day digital Sauce Quest (via Man of Many). The first clue, as seen on the McDonald's Australia website, challenges fans to "search for a SAUCY product from an iconic Australian brand that rhymes with FudgyJuggler." Aussie fans can keep an eye on the brand's website or Instagram for the remainder of clues over the next two days. 

Considering the hype surrounding both McDonald's Szechuan Sauce and Cajun Sauce (the latter of which inspired fans to rally for its return via a Change.org petition), the spreads seem likely to go fast.