How to Make Your Own Fast Food Condiments
Photo by Farideh Sadeghin

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Food

How to Make Your Own Fast Food Condiments

This mayo, mustard, and special sauce aren't even better than the real thing—they *are* the real thing.

If you're disciplined enough to resist the instant gratification of fast food and make some damn burgers at home, you might as well fully commit and make your own condiments. Homemade condiments will elevate anything that you apply them to and aren't packed with preservatives, unless, you know, you want them to be.

In honor of MUNCHIES Fast Food Week, we decided to put together some of our favorite condiment recipes that you can whip up in your very own kitchen, so that you can eat fast food that's not really fast, but tastes a little more like actual food.

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RECIPE: Homemade Mayonnaise

This recipe comes straight from our test kitchen, and packs a lot more flavor than the stuff that comes in plastic jars. Why squeeze out mass-produced mayo onto your perfect cheeseburger when you can make it yourself and get a forearm workout in the process? All you need are basic pantry ingredients and a whisk. Of course, you don't have to use a whisk to emulsify here, and a blender will cut down the prep time dramatically.

RECIPE: Special Sauce

One of the major pillars of fast food is a certain triple-stacked burger that changed the way we think about fast food. Said burger also changed the way we think about condiments, with a tangy orange sauce that imparts an oniony sweetness on whatever it touches. So why not put some out on the table on taco night or slather some on some French fries? Become the master of your own Special Sauce.

RECIPE: Homemade Yellow Mustard

Fast food mustard is fine, but it can lack the extra-vinegary kick of the real stuff. Making your own means that you can control the intensity—and pretty much every other dimension—of your mustard. It also takes about five minutes to make, and keeps for up to three months, so it's kind of a no-brainer.

As for ketchup—well, the bottled stuff is really the best. Sorry.