The Store-Bought Chicken Sauce That Fans Say Is A Perfect Chick-Fil-A Dupe
From sandwiches to nuggets, no Chick-fil-A chicken item is complete without a serving of the chain's legendary sauce. It's a little smoky, a touch tangy, and the perfect complement to a crispy bite of chicken. Its unique taste has earned the sauce quite the cult following among Chick-fil-A fans, nor is it a surprise that it has inspired countless copycats, from DIY recipes to store-bought alternatives. In regards to the latter, however, one bottled option seems to reign supreme as the ultimate Chick-fil-A dupe: The Great Value brand Chicken Dipping Sauce that's sold at Walmart. Take a scroll through TikTok or Reddit and you'll find a slew of foodies positively comparing the sauce to the Chick-fil-A version. TikToker @alexis.frost tried the Great Value sauce alongside the real deal with a bunch of Chick-fil-A bites, and raved that the Walmart buy tasted "identical," rating it a 10/10.
On Reddit, user @earlubes wrote of the condiment, "I continuously bought Chick-fil-A sauce at Walmart not knowing that the exact same thing was right next to it AND cheaper!! It tastes the exact same." Indeed, while you can purchase the Chick-fil-A brand sauce for about $4, the Great Value version is a bit more affordable, coming in at just $2.28 a bottle. If you don't live near a Chick-fil-A location, or can't find the chain's sauce on shelves, the Great Value one is worth stocking up on.
What's actually in the two sauces?
Although the exact ratio of ingredients is kept under wraps, we do have some idea of what's really in Chick-fil-A's namesake sauce. According to the chain, the signature recipe is a hybrid blend of barbecue sauce, honey mustard, and ranch dressing. The story goes thatan employee accidentally added barbecue sauce to a Virginia franchise owner's own batch of honey mustard dip in the early 1980s. Turns out, it tasted delicious and the famous sauce was born. Talk about a fortuitous mistake.
As for the Great Value sauce? Per the product listing on Walmart's website, it is made with "a rich honey mustard sauce and a hint of BBQ smoke flavor." OK, sounds pretty similar. But what if you were to compare all of the ingredients side by side? Well, we took a look and found that both sauces contain soybean oil, tomato paste, sugar, mustard seed, apple cider vinegar, egg yolks, and spices like garlic and turmeric. One of the only differences we can spot is that the Chick-fil-A version uses caramel to achieve its deep yellow color while the Great Value purports to use carrot extract.
Although some folks do point to minor differences in flavor (on TikTok @kayleighleon said she finds Walmart's sauce to smell and taste a bit more barbecue-y), the general consensus among Chick-fil-A fans and condiment connoisseurs is that the Great Value sauce is a spot-on alternative perfect for pairing with fried chicken, nuggets, and more.