KFC -- Sorry

Ok, call me a sucker.

I'm weak. I was intrigued by their commercial. So today I'm driving around hungry, and I said WTF. I stopped in at KFC. I got 2 pieces each of Nashville Hot and Georgia Gold.

The Hot was their regular chicken with liquid hot sauce squirted on and the Gold was regular with a sweet sauce. That was it, just a squirt and done.

I'm ashamed to admit that I was surprised. I even commented to the cashier and she said it's the same, except they give each a squirt before serving.

D.

dodger wrote:That was it, just a squirt and done.

Speaking of which . . . Restaurant Caught Selling Popeyes Chicken As Their Own, Offers Bizarre Explanation

We put fried chicken on Barn & Company's menu a couple of months ago, I sweated through a number of iterations before I was even moderately satisfied, could have saved myself a lot of trouble and just gone with Popeye's. Which is my favorite chain chicken, crisp, spicy thigh/wing please, no biscuit.

And Popeyes appears to be actually beloved in New Orleans. Going to guess that KFC Nashville hot in Nashville - maybe not the same.

http://www.nola.com/dining-guide/index. ... h_die.html

Chef Warren LeRuth created many of Popeye's recipes, and it's one of my favorite fast food fried chicken brands, some of the others being well run Church's and Bojangles. Every four or five years I have a strange compulsion for KY chicken, and always feel sick afterwards. I like Popeye's "Cajun" rice, but like Gary, I go for the wing/ thigh combo and skip the biscuit.

Why skip the biscuit? When they're done right they are among the best you can get around here. They are truly beloved in New Orleans and for good reason

kuhdo wrote:Why skip the biscuit? When they're done right they are among the best you can get around here. They are truly beloved in New Orleans and for good reason

There ain't no butter in those biscuits no matter how fresh they are.

kuhdo wrote:Why skip the biscuit?

Maybe its the Popeye's I go to, Lincoln Ave in Lincolnwood but, to me, the biscuits taste salty and leave a slick of cheap shortening in my mouth. Obviously YMMV

G Wiv wrote:

kuhdo wrote:Why skip the biscuit?

Maybe its the Popeye's I go to, Lincoln Ave in Lincolnwood but, to me, they taste salty and leave a slick of cheap shortening in my mouth. Obviously YMMV

When I lived in New Orleans (way back in the day), we used to refer to them as greasy butter buns . . . and yes, we were being kind. That said, I do enjoy the chicken at Popeye's but feel the quality has dropped noticeably in the past few years. It no longer scratches the itch for me as it once did.

As for the actual subject of the thread, my experience was similar to the OP's. Tried KFC's Nashville Hot once, in spite of my instincts, and couldn't believe how wrong it was. I threw the uneaten portion, most of my 2-piece order, away. What the H was I thinking?!

=R=

I still find myself driving on an Interstate scanning the signs for restaurants at the next stop, just hoping for a Popeyes. In this land of limited Popeyes, thank goodness for Culvers.

https://munchies.vice.com/en_us/article ... odweek2017


I am not alone

I tried the Nashville Hot and the Whatever Gold as their tender-on-a-bun sandwiches, and found them acceptable, but nothing special. I do agree that in general KFC is inferior to Popeye's, although Popeye's uses the smallest chickens I've ever seen commercially (during college we called it "Popeye's Fried Pigeon"). If you haven't tried their onion rings (not petals), you owe yourself a treat: crisp, light, and somewhat spicy, they're probably the best in the fast food world.

I've had the Nashville (Not Really) Hot Tenders a few times at KFC. They're ok, the pickles go nicely. When they're on, I have no problem with the chicken at both KFC (original and crispy) and Popeye's (spicy). I also love Bojangles (Mid-Atlantic states). Around 20 years ago I had a couple of biscuits from a Popeye's around 75th St and the Dan Ryan in the mid-morning. I just wanted a snack, so I went through the drive-thru and got on the expressway. They were nothing like any biscuit I had before or since. They were buttery, soft, melt in your mouth. Maybe they took them out of the oven way too early? I have no idea, but they were incredible, and I have never forgotten how amazing they were.

Been there ! See link above!! Love the coleslaw too .Agree completely about the onion rings as well.

One of my (too many) guilty pleasures in Popeye's spicy bird. I'm ashamedly happy there is a local not 2 miles from my Mothers' house when I come back South for a visit. It's their "cajun" gravy and mashed potatoes that does it for me. Large order of beat to death spud flakes with an extra side of gravy for later please.

The Hot was their regular chicken with liquid hot sauce squirted on and the Gold was regular with a sweet sauce. That was it, just a squirt and done.

this is the worst application of nashville hot - though it's very close to the original ... The Nashville Hot oil is basically cayenne, whatever else the creator wants to add, and oil/fat from the fryer.. the wrong way to do it - keep it in a squeeze bottle at room temp... the better way: hot oil from the fryer (what Prince's does)... room temp oil doesn't allow spices to bloom, and just makes the chicken greasy.. flavor is not far off from the original, albeit weak spice, but the application is poorly executed and lazy..

rubbbqco wrote:

The Hot was their regular chicken with liquid hot sauce squirted on and the Gold was regular with a sweet sauce. That was it, just a squirt and done.

this is the worst application of nashville hot - though it's very close to the original ... The Nashville Hot oil is basically cayenne, whatever else the creator wants to add, and oil/fat from the fryer.. the wrong way to do it - keep it in a squeeze bottle at room temp... the better way: hot oil from the fryer (what Prince's does)... room temp oil doesn't allow spices to bloom, and just makes the chicken greasy.. flavor is not far off from the original, albeit weak spice, but the application is poorly executed and lazy..

I thought the KFC iteration was much sweeter than Prince's or any other place I tried in Nashville.

=R=

I thought the KFC iteration was much sweeter than Prince's or any other place I tried in Nashville.

i can't remember... tried it once... it was forgettable, the only detail I remember is the room temp oil in a squeeze bottle being applied just before they bagged it...

JoelF wrote:I do agree that in general KFC is inferior to Popeye's, although Popeye's uses the smallest chickens I've ever seen commercially (during college we called it "Popeye's Fried Pigeon"). If you haven't tried their onion rings (not petals), you owe yourself a treat: crisp, light, and somewhat spicy, they're probably the best in the fast food world.

I too agree about the onion rings. Every once in a while I go to Popeye's and just order onion rings. Yes, they're that good.

nsxtasy wrote:

JoelF wrote:I do agree that in general KFC is inferior to Popeye's, although Popeye's uses the smallest chickens I've ever seen commercially (during college we called it "Popeye's Fried Pigeon"). If you haven't tried their onion rings (not petals), you owe yourself a treat: crisp, light, and somewhat spicy, they're probably the best in the fast food world.

I too agree about the onion rings. Every once in a while I go to Popeye's and just order onion rings. Yes, they're that good.

Had some yesterday based on this thread. They taste like a higher quality frozen onion ring, but still frozen. Made to be sturdy, and therefore heavy and dense.

Not sure if they were fried fresh or had been sitting.

bnowell724 wrote:Not sure if they were fried fresh or had been sitting.

In my experience at numerous locations, they are always fried to order, never pre-made and sitting. Which means you always have to wait 5-10 minutes minimum for them to cook, and when you get them, they're extremely hot in temperature.

An ode to Popeye's I came across last night.

I don't eat a lot of fried chicken. Maybe two or three times a year, usually when I head out towards Iowa City and stop at Ripp's in Ladd. Oh, and Mini Hut here in my part of the southwest side. But Popeye's, from a location with good turnover, is pretty heavenly, and I love those biscuits, fake butter or whatever the hell it is they use -- I don't care -- and all.

KFC Nashville chicken reminded me little of any hot chicken I've actually had in Nashville (Prince's and Bolton's).

Ok, my ignorance is showing. For Nashville Hot is it just hot sauce on the chicken. Or, do they do something in Nashville that gets into the meat?

I assumed the latter.

My opinion on my KFC was mostly awful.

D.

For Nashville Hot is it just hot sauce on the chicken. Or, do they do something in Nashville that gets into the meat?

it's all post-frying .... obviously each spot has it's own fried chicken technique - Nashville or otherwise, but what makes it "Nashville Hot" is the spicy oil/fat applied after frying

dodger wrote:Ok, my ignorance is showing. For Nashville Hot is it just hot sauce on the chicken. Or, do they do something in Nashville that gets into the meat?

I assumed the latter.

My opinion on my KFC was mostly awful.

D.

From all that I could tell, it's just a nicely deep fried chicken, I assume marinaded in buttermilk or something to get it juicy and soft, that is just glazed with lard/cooking oil and shittons of cayenne and other seasonings (black pepper, garlic, salt. I've heard some say the secret ingredient is just "Slap Ya Mama" hot Cajun seasoning, but I doubt it's simply that. It has to have a lot more cayenne than just that, and perhaps a touch of sugar. Otherwise, it would be salty as all get-out.) From the description, you wouldn't think it's that hot, but good god almighty when I had the extra hot at Prince's it was painful after a few bites, and I like my Trinidad scorpions and Carolina reapers. It's just the sheer amount that builds and blows your tastebuds off. I don't recall tasting anything that seemed like habanero or other capsicum chinense peppers (like scorps or ghost peppers) with their tell-tale flavor.

Trivia fact: Al Copeland, the founder of Popeyes , is buried next to Ruth Fertel, the founder of Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, in New Orleans' Metairie Cemetery.

bnowell724 wrote:Had some yesterday based on this thread. They taste like a higher quality frozen onion ring, but still frozen. Made to be sturdy, and therefore heavy and dense.

Not sure if they were fried fresh or had been sitting.

I am happy to hear this. The last couple times I've been to Popeyeses in the Oak Park area, they've told me that they were discontinued, and I've been inconsolable. However, your description makes me think you received some kind of inferior product. The onion rings I expect from Popeyes are freshly battered with a very light, irregular coating, with an order containing small and large rings suggesting that they actually came from an onion. Nothing that to me would suggest frozen food service commodities.

ndgbucktown wrote:

bnowell724 wrote:Had some yesterday based on this thread. They taste like a higher quality frozen onion ring, but still frozen. Made to be sturdy, and therefore heavy and dense.

Not sure if they were fried fresh or had been sitting.

I am happy to hear this. The last couple times I've been to Popeyeses in the Oak Park area, they've told me that they were discontinued, and I've been inconsolable. However, your description makes me think you received some kind of inferior product. The onion rings I expect from Popeyes are freshly battered with a very light, irregular coating, with an order containing small and large rings suggesting that they actually came from an onion. Nothing that to me would suggest frozen food service commodities.

Hmmm maybe they were just old