We’ve all heard the horror stories coming out of the kitchen of your local McDonald’s. “The burgers are made with ‘pink slime.’” “There’s no chicken in the Chicken McNuggets.” “The McRib can’t be real meat.” And then there are those videos going around that show how food from McDonald’s doesn’t decompose the way normal food does. Another question McDonald’s customers may be too afraid to ask pertains to the fast food chain’s golden crispy French fries.

Back in November, McDonald’s announced that it would not be switching over to GMO potatoes despite the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s approval of a new genetically modified potato grown by Idaho-based J.R. Simplot. Even if McDonald’s French fries are made from real potatoes, there have to be some ingredients that aren’t considered healthy. Right? Grant Imahara traveled to Simplot to find out what exactly goes into McDonald’s French fries production process.

By working his way backward through the step-by-step process, Imahara revealed there’s nothing all too shady going into the production of McDonald’s World Famous Fries. Like all fries, Simplot starts with real potatoes that are cut into the tiny rectangular product found at any McDonald’s establishment. In fact, the only part of the process that may turn heads is the ingredient dip where dextrose and sodium acid pyrophosphate are added.

But don’t worry, dextrose is just a natural sugar that helps the fries keep their consistent golden color, and sodium acid pyrophosphate keeps them from graying after freezing.