Secret Menu Items You Can Order At Raising Cane's
Raising Cane's is lauded for its simple and concise menu, consisting of just four items: Chicken fingers, Texas toast, crinkle-cut fries, and the secret Cane's sauce. You can get these items in combo boxes from the chain's official menu, or order them a la carte. With such limited menu offerings, it's not expected for there to be any secret menu items, but the Louisiana-based chain isn't as limited as you think. Its secret menu has some ingenious items like the chicken fingers sans breading (called ''naked''), a secret sauce that isn't the Cane's signature, and plenty of substitutions and menu hacks that will land you with more food for less money.
The reason a basic chain like Raising Cane's has a customer base loyal and dedicated enough to come up with a secret menu is the restaurant's commitment to quality. With fried chicken so fresh it gets thrown out six minutes after leaving the fryer, coleslaw that doesn't get served more than 24 hours after being made, and sauces made in-house everyday, you get the same delicious flavor each time with no compromise on quality. In fact, Raising Cane's lacks common restaurant appliances like microwaves and heat lamps, so the food is never reheated or kept longer than it should.
Whether you love Raising Cane's enough to be a Caniac or choose to ignore the chain like a maniac (sorry, had to), trying the secret menu is worth a shot. Heck, you might end up liking it!
Read more: Ranking Fast Food Fried Chicken Sandwiches From Worst To First
Naked Chicken Fingers
As chicken makes up the bulk of Raising Cane's menu, there's not much room for innovation -- or so you would think. The chain's much-loved chicken fingers (or tenders as many fans like to call them) remain a classic fried option on the menu, but did you know there's a somewhat healthier alternative to them? A Raising Cane's fan on TikTok, @smackbae, shared a secret menu item back in 2021 called naked chicken fingers, named that way since you can order them without the breading. The video reveals a lightly golden exterior to the chicken, likely from its batter, so expect the same soft and juicy texture as your regular Cane's chicken. The creator also mentions that there's no extra charge for the naked chicken fingers.
A recent thread on Reddit had customers asking whether this secret menu item is a carb-free option. Alleged employees at Raising Cane's shared that the naked chicken is fried in the same oil as the regular chicken, so it's not 100% gluten- or even dairy-free. They also suggested ordering the chicken fingers at times when it's less crowded, since making them anew takes time and can inconvenience staff at rush hour. The naked chicken fingers aren't available on the chain's official menu or for ordering through the app, so you can only get them through in-person orders or at the drive-thru.
Honey Mustard Secret Sauce
Most true fans of Raising Cane's will stick to the chain's original Cane's sauce with every order, since it pairs deliciously with the fried chicken and lends it a much-needed flavor punch. Made in-house regularly with pretty precise measurements and ingredients, the Thousand Island-esque sauce has fans in a chokehold, but it's not the only condiment the chain makes. A YouTuber by the name @HJFShorts who shares hacks and secret menu offerings at Raising Cane's and other fast food joints took to Shorts to reveal the chain's secret honey mustard sauce, a runny-looking dressing packed and served in the Cane's sauce containers.
You won't find the honey mustard on the official menu (it wouldn't be much of a secret if you could) but it's prepared in-house by staff at most locations, and is only available to order on request. Sauces are a great way to amp up your Raising Cane's order, whether it's with the fried chicken, french fries, or in the chicken sandwich. Fortunately, the secret sauce isn't the only lesser-known condiment at Raising Cane's, as you can also get packs of Louisiana hot sauce and Kraft mayonnaise to mix in with the Cane's sauce, or to have with the chicken on their own. Make sure to request for them separately since they're not on the menu, but are stacked behind the counter for customers.
A Cup Of Cane's Sauce
If there's one complaint Raising Cane's fans will unanimously raise, it's that there's not enough Cane's sauce with their orders. Served in 1.5 ounce containers (190 calories), there never seems to be enough of the addictive condiment to go around. That is, until customers found their way around ordering extras of the tiny sauce servings (for $0.39 each) by getting a whole cup in one go and never running low. This secret menu hack seems to have been around for a while, with videos of customers from up to three years prior flaunting their sauce cups online. The chain hasn't reversed the sauce cups or put a limit on them yet, so you can expect to get it in the future too.
The 32 ounce cup (the restaurant's large-sized drink cup) comes down to $5.99, according to a recent TikTok in which a customer tried out the hack. The employee serving the sauce in the video also stated that people ordered it often after seeing the trend online. Even though the coveted sauce technically isn't a secret menu item, it's not openly sold by the cup-full either, as employees at Raising Cane's revealed that they'll often spend an entire shift preparing it. So if everyone starts getting the large sauce cup, then Raising Cane's employees better get a raise fast!
Extra Crispy Chicken Fingers And Crinkle-Cut Fries
Fried chicken should be three things; crispy, juicy, and tender. The chain's co-founder, Todd Graves, revealed in an exclusive interview with Mashed that what makes the Raising Cane's chicken so delicious is that it checks all three boxes. The restaurant uses a breast tenderloin cut which gets brined for 24 hours to retain water and become juicy, and is then hand-battered and breaded before frying on order (via Mashed). However perfect a fast food recipe may be, packaging can make or break it. According to customers, the chicken's breading becomes soggy in takeaway boxes, due to steam building up inside the box. An employee revealed on Reddit that this was due to the chicken being boxed as soon as it left the fryer, and the only way to avoid it was to get the chicken fresh for dine-in.
Nothing should stand between a hungry customer and Cane's crispy chicken, so the internet comes to the rescue once again. An alleged former employee shared secret menu hacks on a Reddit Ask Me Anything thread, saying, ''Order Xtra crispy chicken and fries if you want guaranteed fresh food. If you don't like Xtra crispy food, don't worry, it's not even that much extra crispy, but it is a lot more fresh.'' The same goes for the chain's crinkle-cut french fries, which you can request to be made extra crispy alongside your chicken, or on their own, and get a guaranteed fresh order.
Chicken Sandwich With Texas Toast
The Raising Cane's menu may be simple and limited in variety, but it features an excellent chicken sandwich. In fact, the sandwich is just three chicken fingers in a toasted bun, with lettuce and Cane's sauce. The combo was so good that it won Raising Cane's the first-ever Mashelin award for the best fried chicken sandwich, owing to its crispy and juicy chicken made from high-quality cuts, with meat fibers visible in each piece. But it gets even better because you can upgrade this near-perfect sandwich at your next Raising Cane's run by subbing the burger bun for Texas toast.
This secret menu item gives you an almost-new chicken sandwich between two thick-cut slices of the restaurant's famous Texas toast with a garlic butter sear on the outer side. A YouTube channel called Food Central TV uploaded a video in 2016 showing their Raising Cane's sandwich order with Texas toast in place of the standard Kaiser roll, and how the bread substitution makes it a lighter meal with a great garlic flavor. This secret menu item is also a hack to get the Raising Cane's 3 Finger Combo for cheap. As a former employee on Reddit says, ''Order a sandwich combo, but on toast instead of a roll. Then order no lettuce, and get sauce on the side. This will get you everything that comes in a 3 finger combo, plus 1 extra toast, for cheaper than the 3 finger.''
Extra Buttery Or BOB Texas Toast
Good bread doesn't get enough credit for its versatility. It pairs well with condiments and fried chicken, and is bomb on its own, too. Raising Cane's understood the assignment for its bread with the Texas toast, a thick slice of toasted bread with garlic butter on one side, which accompanies the chicken fingers in combo boxes and can also be ordered a la carte. However, next time you're swinging by Raising Cane's, try the Texas toast's secret menu version -- good 'ol BOB (butter on both sides) which makes it taste like a delicious slice of garlic bread. It's also available for order as extra buttery Texas toast, but asking for butter on both sides and having the kitchen crew yell BOBBED back and forth is way more entertaining.
Although most secret menu items need you to order them in-person as they're not on the menu or the app, a regular at Raising Cane's shared on Reddit that they get the BOB toast through the app by entering it in the extra instructions field. As far as innovation with the Raising Cane's menu goes, there's no limit, so next time you're at Cane's, get a chicken sandwich between two BOB toasts in place of the bun, and make your way to garlicky chicken heaven. The Texas toast is a dollar on the menu currently, and getting it BOBBED doesn't seem to increase the price.
DIY Cane's Chicken Sandwich
If you're ever looking for a quick and cheap meal or want to beat the overpriced fast food system, there's a menu hack at Raising Cane's to achieve just that. Instead of ordering any of the combo meals, order a single chicken finger, a single Texas toast, Cane's sauce, and a fork (wait for it). Pierce the longer end of the toast with your fork to open it up lengthwise, much like slicing open a bun, and add your chicken finger and sauce on top. Press the DIY Cane's sandwich closed and enjoy your delicious snack hack. This meal is especially good if you have kids who can't finish the combos, and you get nearly the same elements as the Kids Combo for less money.
HJFShorts on YouTube shared this hack on their channel, bringing the total to around $2.77 (may vary by location), while the combo meal or sandwich would cost nearly $7.79, and the kids' meal comes up to $5.19. Another creator on YouTube tried out the hack with crinkle cut fries and coleslaw added, which might overflow the single toast, but comes up to nearly $6 at the time of this writing. The same creator shared a similar hack to get the Chicken Sandwich Combo for cheap by ordering the Kids Combo with an extra bun, then constructing the sandwich with the contents of your box. This allows getting a full sandwich, fries, a drink, and a toy, for nearly the same price.
Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich
This Raising Cane's secret menu hack for a Nashville hot chicken sandwich is all about bringing the flavors of Nashville to the Louisiana-based chain. Don't be surprised if you haven't seen something even remotely similar on the menu or online, as it's another DIY invention shared on TikTok (in all seriousness, we owe this app so much). Start by ordering the Cane's Chicken Sandwich combo and ask for Cane's sauce on the side, as well as a Louisiana hot sauce packet. Remove the top bun to add the coleslaw and hot sauce to your sandwich, and enjoy this spicy take to the Cane's classic.
To make it taste even more authentic, add the hot sauce straight to the Cane's sauce, mix it in, and then pour on the sandwich. As a Redditor shared, the Cane's special sauce has cayenne, garlic, onion powder, and paprika, the same spices that go into authentic Nashville hot chicken. The Nashville hot chicken sandwich will cost $8.79 for the regular sandwich combo plus coleslaw (it's unclear how much the Louisiana hot sauce costs, if at all). You can also get this sandwich with the Texas toast subbed in for the same price.
Combo Substitutions And Free Box Combo
As the staff at Raising Cane's say, ''Chicken, chicken, chicken, which combo are you picking?'' Apparently, countless ones, as the lesser-known secret of the restaurant is that you can substitute anything in its combo boxes for, well, anything (want a box full of coleslaw? We won't judge). Fortunately, the substitution option is available on the app, as a creator shared on YouTube, so all you have to do is order your combo of choice and remove an item like coleslaw, then replace it with extra Texas toast, fries, or Cane's sauce.
Another user shared on their TikTok that you can substitute any of the sides, plus get extras for them with the combo boxes, for no apparent extra charge. This even extends to the honey mustard secret sauce. However, it's important to keep in mind that if you're having the entire contents of your box changed, to request to the server kindly, explain your wishes clearly, and ideally pick a time with few crowds so they won't have trouble with your order.
Finally, the simplest way to get your next Raising Cane's meal for free is to join the Caniac Club (no weird rituals involved, we assure you). Just visit your nearest location and ask for a Caniac Club card, register the card online from its website, and receive a free Combo Box meal within two days (via Raising Cane's). The membership also includes some discounts for your birthday and other surprises on the membership's anniversary.
Extra Saucy Coleslaw
Coleslaw is not everyone's favorite salad, as it's packed with mayonnaise and often vegetables that aren't that fresh. Maybe it's the lack of freshness, or maybe you've been eating coleslaw wrong this whole time, but fast food chains continue to offer this questionable salad on their menus. Raising Cane's is no different, as you can find the slaw with most Combo boxes on its menu. Fans of the chain seem to like its slaw well enough, and one alleged former employee shares on Reddit that the coleslaw gets delivered to the restaurant in packages of vegetables and sauce, which are then mixed and refrigerated. They also mention that the slaw is thrown away after 24 hours, so it's pretty fresh.
Fans of the Raising Cane's coleslaw will want to try a hack to make their slaw even better by combining it with a container of Cane's sauce and Louisiana hot sauce. This will make it even creamier and add flavor (via @sarahmargareteats). Alternatively, try mixing your slaw with honey mustard secret sauce for a tangy version, or just the Louisiana hot sauce for a spicy side.
Prices vary by location and were accurate at the time of writing.
Read the original article on Mashed
