Gluten Free Socialite
- Jul 8, 2019
- 3 min read

Gluten Free Fast Food French Fry Trivia

Can you guess if these fast food chain french fries are gluten free?

French fries on their own should be gluten free because potatoes are free from wheat by nature. However, there is more that goes into play to determine if the finished product is gluten free or not.

French fries must be cooked in a dedicated gluten free fryer to be considered safe to eat for celiacs and truly "gluten free".

Another factor that comes into play are the ingredients that restaurants use to flavor the fries. These are two essential things to look out for when searching for gluten free fries.

So let's take a look at a few popular fast food chains and their french fries. Can you guess if these fast food chain french fries are gluten free?

**The answers below are determined by US chain fast food restaurants. Be sure to check your countries fast food nutrition website to determine whether their fries are gluten free or not.

1. In-n-Out

What do you think? Are In-N-Out's french fries gluten free?

This west coast fast food chain may be healthier than your typical drive-thru burger joint, but does that mean that their fries will be gluten free?

70% of you answered that In-N-Out fries are gluten free
While the other 30% voted that they were not gluten free

The Answer

True! In-N-Out french fries are in fact gluten free!

Let's all rejoice together, In-N-Out french fries are gluten free! The fries are made in a dedicated gluten free fryer. In addition, they can make their famous hamburger, cheeseburgers, and double doubles protein style which replaces that gluten filled bun with a lettuce wrap.

Not a bad option to check out if you're on the West Coast.

Check out the Allergy Guide for In-n-Out here.

2. Jack In the Box

I don't even remember the last time I ate at Jack In The Box because of the whole Celiac thing, but let's see what you guys think about their fries. Are they gluten free or not?

Only 20% of you answered that Jack in the Box french fries are gluten free poll
The majority, 80% of votes, thought that Jack In The Box french fries are not gluten free

The Answer

True! The allergen reference guide on Jack In The Box's website list their french fries to be free of wheat. Now that's a shocker!

Surprise, surprise! Jack in the Box french fries are gluten free!

Sadly, it's one of the few items that we can actually eat there. Almost every other item has an "X" mark in the wheat column.

Check out the Allergy Guide for Jack In The Box here.

3. McDonalds

What do you think? Does the world's largest fast food empire menu include gluten free french fries?

A few 30% of you were hopeful that McDonal's french fries are gluten free
70% of you were suspicious about this fast food giants french fries being safe to eat for gluten free goers

The Answer

False! Your hunch was right! In the United States, McDonald's fries use a natural beef flavoring that contains wheat, and therefore are NOT gluten-free. My heart is broken!

This came in as a shock to most of you, and even to me to be honest. According to McDonald's US allergen guide, the french fries ingredients are listed as the following:

Ingredients: potatoes, vegetable oil (canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, natural beef flavor [wheat and milk derivatives]'), dextrose, sodium acid, pyrophosphate (maintain color), salt. *Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milks as starting ingredients.

Contains: WHEAT, MILK.

Check out the Allergy Guide for USA McDonald's here.

4. Burger King

The king! Will you have our backs on this one? So far we have two unsafe fries and we are searching for some papa fritas!

For the final poll, only 28% believed that Burger King french fries are gluten free
The majority of you answered that they were not gluten free at 72% tapping on the "false"

The Answer:

False! They are cooked in the same fryer as hash browns, which contain wheat and expose them to cross-contamination, and therefore aren't gluten-free!

Sadly, if your celiac, you can no longer enjoy burger king french fries. However, they do have tacos and salads that are marked to be gluten free.

Check out the Allergy Guide for Burger King here.

That's all for fry trivia! I hope you enjoyed this segment. Be sure to stay tuned on instagram @glutenfreesocialite for stories for more gluten free trivia!