20 fast food dishes you can totally copy at home

A Famous Bowl from KFC is about the easiest fast food dish to copy at home. All it takes is some popcorn chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, gravy, and shredded cheese. You can make the chicken yourself, or you can get some frozen from the grocery store. 

Ice cream cakes aren’t nearly as intimidating to make as they might seem. Sure, they require some layering, but with baking basics and some patience, anyone can get that Dairy Queen flavor, even if the closest one is miles away. 

If you want to make your at-home chili recipe more similar to Wendy’s, add some sugar to your base and use leftover ground beef. The sugar will neutralize the acidity of the tomatoes, and the leftover ground beef will take on a new texture when it’s recooked. 

You can absolutely get that Louisiana taste of a Popeyes Chicken Sandwich at home. Be sure to use a brioche bun and some pickles. You can copy the spicy version with the right combination of mayonnaise and hot sauce. 

Chicken Fries from Burger King are almost like chicken strips, but not quite. There’s far less breading, and they’re much thinner. But rest assured: You can get that same chicken-y goodness at home by going lighter on the breading and some careful knife work. 

The secret to copying Panda Express’ chow mein recipe is to use the right noodles and vegetables. Actual chow mein noodles are going to get you the most authentically Panda Express taste, as will only using cabbage, onion, and celery for veggies. 

The sauce is key to getting your at-home Animal Style Fries to taste like In-N-Out. Don’t skip out on the sweet pickle relish. Add some vinegar to get the flavor right. Once you master the sauce, you can make any of your at-home recipes Animal Style. 

So many people love a Crunchwrap Supreme, but not enough people realize how possible it is to make it at home. With the right taco shells, taco meat, and some time spent layering, anyone can have Taco Bell at home.  

Chick-fil-A's chicken nugget recipe is unlike any other fast food restaurant. The nuggets are very meaty, but they aren’t as crispy as others. To achieve this at home, focus on the breading. That’s key. 

The only issue with making a Big Mac at home is that you’re going to end up with an excess of top buns. That aside, it’s pretty easy. The toughest part of the recipe will be getting the thickness of the burger right. That may take some practice. 

There isn’t much that’s different from a Sonic corn dog than there is from a corn dog you can have anywhere else. Just be sure to use a sweet corn batter for the breading and hot dogs made from beef, pork, and turkey rather than a singular meat. 

Popeyes biscuits are flaky and soft. When making these morsels at home, be sure to use a buttermilk recipe and follow the folding instructions correctly. The folding is what makes the biscuits so flaky. 

If you want a Shamrock Shake all year, it’s entirely possible. There are very few ingredients, and you don’t even need to make it green (unless you want to, of course). With some peppermint extract, vanilla ice cream, whole milk, and maraschino cherries, you’re in business. 

Sauce is the name of the game for Panda Express’ orange chicken. Don’t skip any ingredients because each oil and sauce is carefully chosen to add to the flavor profile. And be sure to add the cornstarch slurry, as that’s going to thicken the sauce to get that signature texture. 

Arby’s Roast Beef Sandwich is so good thanks to its ultra-tasty roast beef and perfect bun. To recreate it at home, use very thinly sliced roast beef and season it a bit. Dip the roast beef slices in hot water to cook for that signature Arby’s texture. 

Cinnabon makes ultra-delicious cinnamon rolls, and they can’t be recreated with just any cinnamon roll recipe. Be sure to use Makara cinnamon and cream cheese frosting. This will give you the closest taste to Cinnabon. 

To mimic an Egg McMuffin, you’ve got to cook your eggs right. Use either a cookie cutter or the ring of a mason jar to hold your eggs in place while frying, and gently beat the yolk so it breaks. Cook it long enough so it isn’t jammy, but don’t overcook it. 

Chipotle burrito bowls are a breeze to copycat at home. Make your favorite protein and rice, and add any extras you’d normally order at the restaurant. You’ll be making them at home all the time. 

If you can make Popeyes biscuits at home, you can definitely make Krispy Kreme glazed donuts at home. Remember that they’re yeast donuts, not cake, and the glaze can be replicated using evaporated milk. 

The secret to ultra-tasty at-home Chick-fil-A lemonade is sugar. Lots and lots of sugar. Just increase the ratio of sugar to lemons and water, and you’ve got yourself a copycat recipe.