Beef isn’t really a thing in India. It’s outright illegal to sell it in some parts of the country, so obviously, McDonald’s here is a beef-free zone.
This makes it difficult, if not impossible, for McDonald’s to sell some of its most iconic creations.
What’s a Big Mac without the beef? It’s a Maharaja Mac, which is basically what you’d expect an Indian take on the Big Mac to taste like — the flavours are bigger, bolder, and more complex.
The Maharaja Mac features two chicken patties (veggie patties are an option), habanero sauce, lettuce, tomato, red onion, jalapeno, and cheese, on a classic Big Mac sesame seed bun.
The box says that the patties are flame-broiled, which seemed unlikely — I’m not aware of any McDonald’s locations in the world that grill rather than griddle their burgers. But yeah, the patties had that slightly smoky flavour you get from the grill. The flavour actually suited the chicken patties quite well.
And the patties are actually pretty good — they’re not too dry, and they have a decent flavour.
The whole thing is like a kicked-up version of a regular Big Mac — it’s basically the same idea, but… more intense. The onions are crunchier and stronger, the sauce is zestier and less sweet, the grilling adds a distinctively smoky flavour to the patties, and the big slices of raw jalapeno add a decent amount of heat. That’s not to mention the tomato slices, which are probably the most un-Big-Mac-like thing in the whole deal.
It’s quite tasty; while it’s obviously not a Big Mac, it’s similar enough that it doesn’t just feel like they slapped “Mac” onto a random chicken burger and called it day.