What oil does Wendy's fry in?
Wendy's cooks with vegetable oil blend — soybean, canola and/or cottonseed (fries, fried chicken).
The 5 cleanest things to order at Wendy's
Learn this once: a salad with grilled protein and the dressing left off is nearly always the lowest seed oil order anywhere. So the list below sticks to real meals, salads included, never just a water.
| Item | PUFA |
|---|---|
| Apple Bites | 0.0g |
| Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce | 0.0g |
| Plain Baked Potato | 1.0g |
| Baked Potato w/ Sour Cream | 1.0g |
| Small Chili | 2.0g |
Lower PUFA is cleaner. These are estimates from published nutrition data and disclosed oils; preparation varies by location.
Why the frying oil matters
Most fast-food chains fry in seed oils like soybean, canola, corn, or a blend of them, which are high in polyunsaturated fat (PUFA). A handful still use beef tallow or other stable fats, which are far lower in PUFA. The oil a kitchen fries in is the single biggest driver of how much seed oil ends up on your plate. See the full breakdown on the Wendy's report card, or where it lands on the Seed Oil Index.
Frequently asked
Does Wendy's use beef tallow?
No. Wendy's cooks with vegetable oil blend — soybean, canola and/or cottonseed (fries, fried chicken), not beef tallow. See which chains fry in real fats on Tallow Watch.