By Peter Bothum
You've endured the barrage of ads and billboards for KFC's new Kentucky Grilled Chicken. You read about the controversy where the chain offered free chicken and then had to turn people away because they didn't have enough.
But have you actually tried it?
I took the plunge this week and ordered up a two-piece meal for lunch.
At first I felt kind of sad about leaving my old fried friend behind - Mr. Original Recipe was there, waiting for me on the other side of the drive-thru window, and I turned my back on him like a modern-day Benedict Arnold.
As advertised, Col. Sanders has indeed taken off his devil horns and substituted it for a healthier halo. According to KFC's nutritional guide, the grilled version has 4 grams of total fat and 180 calories in a single breast, compared with 21 grams of total fat and 370 calories in the original recipe.
But that dirty old man is still hiding his pitchfork behind his back - that grilled skin is too tasty and just greasy enough to be totally clean. In fact, a breast of the grilled chicken only has 10 fewer milligrams of cholesterol than a breast of the original recipe.
I dug the grilled chicken. The flavor was reminiscent of Boston Market's chicken but definitely improved on what that chain serves up. The meat underneath the grilled layer was nice and moist, perhaps enhanced by the fact that the chicken wasn't fried.
In my opinion, however, the grilled chicken didn't measure up to the real deal.
The Colonel's signature recipe is there, but it's more of a nip of the KFC goodness instead of the typical power-packed punch. In other words, he can put his herbs and spices on a layer of grilled skin, but the classic recipe melds best with a fried, cholesterol-laced bedding.
It's kind of like a fan of Porter beer trying a Miller High Life or a cigarette smoker chewing Nicorette gum. The buzz is there, but it's just not the same.
On the upside, I didn't leave my meal with the typical regret that follows a visit with my old fried friend. I felt satiated but not sluggishly sorry, and I guess that's a good thing.
Final verdict: I go to KFC to get my butt kicked by the Colonel and his fried chicken, for better and for worse. If I want grilled chicken, I'll go to a cookout.
4 comments:
What about the sodium? I generally feel "salt sick" if I eat fast food chicken. Does the grilled have a lower salt content?
Thanks for this review, Peter. I've been wanting to go and taste it, but needed something like this to either push me along or turn me away.
I thought all along that it wouldn't measure up to the fried.
word is going around that
KFC is using beef seasonings and beef broth for it's grilled chicken.
Andre, you're going to make your decision based on what this guy says? You don't have a brain in your weird shaped skull
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