Can You Reheat A McDonald's Burger In The Wrapper?

Chrissy Teigen does it, so how bad can it be? (Don't worry, that question was rhetorical.) The "it" we're referring to is microwaving your refrigerated, hours-old McDonald's cheeseburger (which the chain sells millions of daily) in its original wrapper for about 30 seconds. The idea is that the closed wrapper will not only trap in the heat to warm up your patty, but it'll also steam the cheese and the bun.

Does this method work? Sure. However, way back in the day (we're talking pre-2024), there was one huge drawback you needed to know about: The presence of PFAS — or per- and polyfluoralkyl substances, more commonly known as "forever chemicals" — in the wrappers that most fast food restaurants used, which were particularly dangerous when microwaved. These PFAS have been linked to some types of cancers, among other conditions.

It seems these PFAS were part of the anti-grease agent that manufacturers applied to the wrappers, designed to prevent leakage from fatty foods or foods cooked in oil. Fortunately, this is no longer the case — the FDA worked out a deal with wrapper manufacturers in 2020 to stop the sale of these harmful items, and as of February 2024, they're no longer on the market. So, if you feel comfortable doing so, microwave those burgers in their packaging to your heart's content.

Now that the matter of PFAS in fast food wrappers is settled, you might be curious about heating up your burger with the help of other appliances. If you're one of the millions of Americans who own an air fryer and love to cook absolutely everything in it, from flavorful chicken breasts to delicious homemade dried fruit, you might be wondering if you can reheat your burger in your air fryer, wrapper and all, and achieve similar results as the microwave. Unfortunately, the answer is likely no. If the paper can't stand up to the high, circulating heat, it could catch fire. (And if you're thinking of popping the entire burger in the air fryer sans wrapper, you should know that this isn't the best choice for reheating, either, as the bun can come out super crunchy and crumbly.)

The same goes for the oven. Those thin sheets of paper just aren't robust enough to withstand the appliance's high heat. What is sturdy enough, however, is aluminum foil. You can recreate the microwave steaming process by removing your McDonald's burger from its paper wrapper, placing it on a baking sheet, covering it with foil, and popping it into the oven for about five minutes at a low temperature.