The Filet-O-Fish is one of the most famous items on the McDonald's menu. How many Filet-O-Fishes did you eat? That's over several months, Ryan, before the advent of its fishy stick. The fast food giant only sold burgers, fries, milkshakes, and

various drinks like Coke, root beer, milk, and coffee. These classic items served the chain well for over a decade. But as the franchise expanded, so did the needs of the fast food loving public. And the Filet-O-Fish caught our collective attention, hook, line, and sinker. But how

much fish is actually in a Filet-O-Fish? And is it even fish? Well, today we're trolling the depths to figure out what's actually in a Filet-O-Fish. But before we dive into today's video, be sure to subscribe to the Weird History Food channel. And let us know in

the comments which historic fast food menu item you would like to hear about next. Okay, time to get to the bottom of this fish tank. Lou Groen was a World War II veteran and restaurateur who opened the Cincinnati area's first ever McDonald's location on January 13th, 1959. By that

point, Groen had already managed a successful cafe and served as the president of the Restaurant Association of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. So he should have had what it took to bring Mickey D's to a whole new market. But, much to Groen's dismay, business

was slow to start. With the help of his wife and children, his humble fast food joint treaded water for two years, but just couldn't make enough money to stay afloat. Their worst business day of the week was Friday. And not because the entire town was following some diet.

Trend, although that was technically kind of the case. Gron McDonald's only made around $75 every Friday because 87% of the population in his corner of Cincinnati was Catholic, and Catholics abstained from eating red meat on Fridays. Unsurprisingly, this was bad news

for a burger restaurant. If Gron wanted to keep his head above water, he'd have to come up with a way to reel in crowds on their holy days. Luckily for him, he wasn't the only fast-food restaurant in town. Another local chain, Frisch's Big Boy,

was thriving, and Gron determined that the uptick in business had to do with the fish sandwich the place was serving to its Catholic patrons. It became his mission to net himself some of that business, so he went to work cooking up his own recipe for his newly dubbed

Filet-O-Fish sandwich. In 1961, Gron took his sandwich all the way to the top, traveling to the McDonald's corporate office in Chicago to meet legendary owner Ray Kroc. But Kroc didn't take the bait. In a 2006 interview, Gron told

Business Courier that Kroc was opposed to the idea because he didn't want his McDonald's restaurants stunk up with the smell of fish. As it happened, Kroc thought up his own meatless alternative for practicing Catholics: enter the Hula Burger. Kroc's innovative

vegetarian burger was--wait for it--a slice of pineapple and cheese on a hamburger bun. Eh, points for creativity. The renowned businessman was confusingly confident that his sweet and cheesy treat would have mass appeal, but he didn't want to dismiss Gron's idea.

outright, apparently in the mood for some friendly competition, Croc left the ultimate decision up to the public. On Good Friday, 1962, Gr's Filet-O-Fish sandwich and Croc's Hula Burger battled it out in a few select McDonald's locations. The terms of the deal were simple:

whichever item sold the most by the end of the day would earn a permanent spot on the menu. Unfortunately for Croc, it wasn't so much a battle as it was a slaughter. 350 Filet-O-Fish sandwiches were sold on that Good Friday, while the Hula

Burger floundered with a measly six. Talk about shooting fish in a barrel! After swallowing his pride, and presumably a fish sandwich, Croc kept his word. Throughout the next few years, the Filet-O-Fish was rolled out at McDonald's franchise locations across the country,

and in 1965, it officially became the first new item added to McDonald's national menu since Ray Kroc took over the chain. Kroc joked that after all that work, the Pope would change the rules, and sure enough, the same year the Filet-O-Fish

went national, the Second Vatican Council announced that red meat was no longer off the menu on all Fridays. Now, carnivorous Catholics only had to give up their meat during Lent. But that didn't stop the Filet-O-Fish from becoming an exceedingly popular staple

at McDonald's locations across the country. Over the six decades it has enjoyed being on the menu, it disappeared only briefly in 1996 as part of McDonald's poorly conceived Deluxe line. Fine, it returned soon after due to public outcry. Also, over those six decades, the

Filet-O-Fish has been the subject of several marketing campaigns, though you probably don't remember most of them. As it turns out, the Big Fish sells itself, and the sandwich's original slogan, "The fish that catches people," told us as much. Mickey D's stuck with that catchy slogan

until 1976, when they introduced a fresh face to their growing lineup of mascot characters. Mr. Phil A. Oish was a smiling fish wearing a fetching hat and a sea captain's jacket with a McDonald's logo emblazoned on the front. He carried a

fishing net and encouraged hungry guests to try the Filet-O-Fish for a surprisingly good taste. Despite Phil's best efforts to sell out his brethren and save his own tail, he was retired just a year later. In place of Phil, McDonald's went through a slew of

advertisements for the sandwich, including 1976's "Food For Thought" campaign, 1978's "Deliciously Different" slogan, and 2009's iconic "Give Me Back That Filet-O-Fish" commercials. As for Lou Groen, he opened a total of 43 McDonald's

locations over the years and raked in millions of dollars until he sold the lot back to the company in 1986. The titan of industry passed away in 2011, but his legacy lives on in his family, with many of his relatives owning their

own McDonald's franchises, which all proudly serve his fishy creation. Okay, so we know the history of the sandwich. Now, it's time to find out what's actually in it because there are few phrases that send more terror through a foodie's spine than "fast food."

Seafood, along with its ever-changing marketing campaigns, the Filet-O-Fish has seen a fair few changes to its recipe over the years. Originally, Gran's sandwich was a simple piece of battered halibut, tartar sauce, and a slice of cheese between two hamburger buns. Between its

invention and its official launch in 1965, Kroc and Groin made a few tweaks. The first was trimming down that slice of cheese. You may have noticed that the modern Filet-O-Fish, as we know it today, only comes with a half slice of cheese

rather than a whole square. According to McDonald's big cheeses, this was because an entire slice would overpower the taste of fish, but some suspect it was merely a cost-cutting measure. The next change McDonald's made to the original recipe was the bun. Rather than a

traditional toasted hamburger bun, the Filet-O-Fish is served on a fluffier steamed bun, which helps keep the taste and texture of the fish from being overpowered. The third and final change to Gran's recipe was the fish itself. Halibut turned out to be too expensive to use on

a nationwide scale. Originally, the Filet-O-Fish was to be sold for $2, but the use of halibut made it cost $0.30. Cod became the fish of choice with the new sandwich, but in order to avoid association with cod liver oil, they called the main

ingredient by its fancier name, North Atlantic white fish, instead. The deceptively marketed cod was the de facto Filet-O-Fish ingredient for 50 years at the fast-food chain, but that changed in 2013 after North Atlantic white fish were placed on the critically endangered

species list. McDonald's switched to the cheap and sustainable Alaska pollock, which it still uses today. But no matter what kind of fish you're slicing, none of them are square. So why do the Filet-O-Fish patties boast such a specific square shape? Well, according to Mickey D's

corporate office, their Alaska pollock is layered in whole fillets and then cut into convenient blocks of fish flesh, which can then be easily processed and stored. And we all know squares are the most delicious shape. The breading on the patty also contains bleached white flour

made with chemicals like benzoyl peroxide, potassium bromate, or chlorine. Fish and chlorine usually don't mix, except at McDonald's. Chlorine and peroxide aren't the only chemicals you may worry about when you pull up to your local McDonald's drive-through for the catch of the day.

There's also a not-so-healthy dose of hydrogenated soybean oil in there for good measure. Hydrogenated soybean oil is used in all sorts of fast food items because it helps keep them shelf-stable for longer periods of time, but it has

also been linked to diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. And finally, the Filet-O-Fish is also hiding polysorbate 80, which is made from dehydrated sugar alcohol and fatty acids. It helps to reduce fat separation in food, but it's also used in household cleaners and

cosmetics. Hey, that Filet-O-Fish wants to look good! [Music] If you're still hungry after all that toxic talk, we don't blame you. There's a reason the Filet-O-Fish is as popular as it is, and that reason is, it's

Delicious! It's so delicious that over the years, other famous fast-food chains have tried to muscle in on McDonald's turf for the seafood surf wars. Arby's, Bojangles, Burger King, Dairy Queen, Popeyes, Wendy's, and White Castle have

all gone fishing for their own slice of the fish pie. And while each restaurant puts its own spin on the classic sandwich, the public remains divided on which one is truly the most delicious. But surprisingly, there's no debate on which is best for you. According to a

2023 Men's Health article, even with all those worrying additives, the McDonald's Filet-O-Fish takes home the title of healthiest fish sandwich. Maybe that's why it still reigns supreme, selling around 300 million sandwiches annually. That's a lot of pollock, even after all

this time. The initial spark for the Filet-O-Fish's invention proves to be relevant, with around 25% of those sales occurring during Lent, bringing it all the way back to Lou Groen's original idea of making a sandwich to serve to his Catholic customers. Just don't let them

go to Captain D's. So, what do you think? Does the Filet-O-Fish's list of ingredients make you think twice about ordering one? Or is it so delicious you don't care what they put in it? Let us know in the comments below. And while you're at it, check out some of these

Is the Filet-O-Fish Actually Fish?

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