Chicken
Chicken McNuggets
Four shapes, and none of them are an accident.
Battered and fried chicken pieces introduced nationally in the United States in 1983, sold in four standardised shapes.
McNuggets were developed with food scientist Rene Arend and rolled out nationally in 1983. Demand outran supply so badly in the first year that the chain had to stagger the launch by region.
Why four shapes
The nuggets are produced in four consistent shapes — informally the ball, the bell, the boot and the bone. Uniform shapes cook at the same rate, which matters when the target is a fixed fry time rather than a cook's judgement.