Like many fast food chains, KFC's international menus feature a range of dishes you won't
find in America.
Some are attempts to replicate local culinary customs, others are innovations considered
too brazen for U.S. shores, and some — well, some are just plain weird.
It seems a little surprising that KFC has never tried to beat the Big Mac in America.
Maybe they think it's impossible - after all, what chance do you really have of beating
out a burger that's sold 550 million times per year?
But nobody told KFC Canada.
In 2014, the country's KFC branches became home to a brand new menu item: the Big Boss
sandwich, or as they call it in the Great White North, "burger."
The Big Boss is almost identical to a Big Mac.
It's a double-stacked sandwich, topped with lettuce, pickles, cheese, and a special signature
sauce.
In Canada, KFC even sells french fries, making the parallels with the Big Mac all the more
stark.
The only difference, of course, is that instead of beef, it's made using fried chicken.
At the time of its release, KFC Canada described the Big Boss sandwich as a "sandwich revolution,"
which provided "a fresh alternative to the iconic double burger."
But the company also insisted that the Big Boss wasn't a copy of the Big Mac.
The chain's Facebook fans, however, weren't convinced.
One user summed up their suspicions when they posted:
"It looks like a Big Mac made with chicken."
KFC may not be the fanciest joint on the planet, but that doesn't mean you can't get a little
bang for your buck - especially in Singapore.
Pop into one of their KFC restaurants and you'll likely find the Truffle Parmesan Chicken.
Released to celebrate Chinese New Year in 2019, this twist on the traditional fried
chicken recipe includes a truffle-infused cheese sauce and shredded Parmesan cheese
- and comes with a free Sjora strawberry kiwi drink.
According to KFC, the recipe was an attempt to draw in younger crowds, inspired by local
hipster cafes - which frequently serve truffle fries and truffle pasta dishes.
With their fried chicken alternative, KFC said they hoped to give Singaporeans "something
premium" that everyone could enjoy during the Chinese New Year.
In their own taste test of the new item, CNA Lifestyle said the Parmesan taste really cuts
through on KFC's Truffle Parmesan Chicken, though the restaurant does, apparently, tend
to drown the chicken in truffle oil.
But hey, maybe you're into that.
"Have a little taste of chicken.
Just a little.
Just a taste.
Chicken chicken chicken.”
“Mmm.”
In America, you wouldn't normally dream of hitting up KFC for breakfast - unless you
had a really specific craving, that is.
In some countries, though, the restaurant offers a whole range of breakfast items that
have never shown up stateside.
Take KFC Singapore, where you'll find KFC's original recipe porridge, cooked with crispy
shallots, chopped spring onion and, perhaps inevitably, chunks of fried chicken.
KFC Singapore also offers an Original Recipe Twister, which is basically a breakfast burrito
made with fried chicken, as well as the American Twister, which is exactly that but with turkey
bacon and hash browns.
Then you've got the Original Recipe Platter, which is literally just fried chicken with
a load of breakfast sides.
If you'd rather go for a sandwich, though, you could always try the Riser, a chicken
fillet burger topped with whole egg and a slice of cheese.
Or there's the Brekkie, which contains turkey bacon, fresh whole egg, sliced tomato and
cheese.
And yes, they do pancakes too.
But who needs pancakes when you've got chicken porridge?
Back in 2012, KFC's Singapore branches began offering Shrimp Stars and Fish Donuts.
Shrimp Stars are essentially shrimp nuggets in the shape of stars that are breaded and
deep-fried.
Fish Donuts, meanwhile, are fish patties breaded and deep-fried in the shape of donuts.
The two items are also available together as a so-called Snacker's Combo.
And that's basically it.
Not exactly the most complex recipe in the world, and the shape of these things does
kinda make it look like you're eating a weird, terrible school dinner.
All in all, though, it's a decent enough idea - if you're the kind of person who goes to
fried chicken restaurants for the fish.
The closest you're gonna get to nachos in a U.S. KFC is probably the chain's wedges
- and that's a pretty big stretch in the first place.
But if you hop onto a plane to South Africa, you'll be able to get your hands on genuine
KFC nachos.
There is a catch here, though, and that's the fact that these come as part of a sandwich;
the Nacho Cheese Crunch Burger.
This item is made from a chicken fillet dunked in nacho cheese sauce, topped with a slice
of cheese, cheese-flavored nacho chips and a little mayo to top it all off.
If nothing else, you've got to give KFC South Africa a little credit for taking something
only a college stoner could invent and turning it into a nationwide marketing initiative.
In 2019, KFC Australia brought its own version of nachos to stores - but you won't find any
of them there today.
Chachos were basically just Original Recipe Tenders topped with avocado, "Supercharged
Sauce," cheese sauce and salsa.
Chachos had appeared a few times before in Canada as a limited time item, but in Melbourne
they were only available as part of the chain's inexplicable "daylight savings food truck
party" - which took place for exactly one hour in the middle of the night back in April
2019.
The party featured a food truck, local DJs and, of course, KFC's own Chachos.
According to Lifehacker Australia, they were pretty delicious - and free, too.
But you'd expect a couple of freebies too, if you'd pulled yourself out of bed to attend
a chicken rave in the middle of the night.
Obviously, KFC is all about the fried chicken.
That's why they call it KFC.
"Fried chicken" is part of their name.
In Malaysia, however, one menu item that was introduced back in 2013 could easily have
inspired a rebrand from "KFC" to "KPWC."
Paper-wrapped chicken is a popular Chinese dish that involves marinating chicken in sauce
and spices, before wrapping it in paper or tin foil and either deep-frying or baking
it.
Curiously, KFC's version appears to be baked.
According to Malaysian food blogger KYspeaks, this actually comes off rather well.
He writes:
"The chicken was well marinated and carries a strong hint of black pepper and a trace
of mushroom flavor, the bed of corn gives it a note of subtle sweetness as well.
The butter rice was very similar to chicken rice, but softer in texture."
Definitely one to keep in mind if you'd prefer your fried chicken not to be fried, but you
can't avoid the Colonel.
Chocolate Hazelnut Fries are another genius invention by Singapore KFC, having been introduced
back in 2018.
There's not really a lot to explain, here.
They're fries, and they're drizzled in chocolate-hazelnut sauce.
That's it.
These choco-nut-fries were available at just 10 stores in the city, and only for as long
as stocks lasted.
But anyone who couldn't get their hands on the Chocolate Hazelnut Fries could opt for
the chain's Chocolate Hazelnut Egg Tarts, which were released at the same time.
So what was the verdict on the ground?
Well, one Twitter user wrote:
"KFC chocolate hazelnut fries?!
Basically it's just fries and Nutella and I have to pay 4 dollars for that..."
Another tweeted:
"KFC selling chocolate hazelnut fries and egg tarts?
Sell some good fried chicken first."
"Wow, that's… that's harsh."
The not-so-cleverly-named Chizza is, as you might have guessed, a chicken pizza.
And no, that doesn't mean chicken as a topping, either.
Generously referred to by The Independent as a "low-calorie, high-protein" pizza, the
Chizza is quite literally a pizza made with a fried chicken base, topped with tomato sauce
and mozzarella.
So kind of like chicken parmesan, but with toppings.
Like so many other weird KFC recipes, the Chizza first showed up in Singapore.
But it has since spread across the world and, if you're lucky, might show up in a store
near you sometime soon.
Shortly after its launch, KFC told The Express:
"We're always looking to introduce delicious new products to our menu, and are really excited
about the incredible response Chizza has received around the world.
Keep your eyes peeled!"
Don't get too excited just yet, though.
Responses to the Chizza were mixed after it launched back in 2017.
One Twitter user wrote:
"The KFC Chizza looks revolting, but I'm not gonna complain if someone treats me to one."
Another user, on the other hand, took some exception to the recipe itself.
They tweeted:
"The KFC Chizza is literally a piece of chicken meat and toppings.
Don't be fooled."
Remember the Double Down?
It was the so-called "sandwich" that KFC released about a decade ago that consisted of bacon
and cheese trapped between two fried chicken fillets.
It was an instant hit on the internet and in the media, despite containing enough fat
and sodium to kill a medium-sized elephant.
At the time, Eater pointed out:
"As far as our research shows, the Double Down is not based on any other sandwich previously
sold at another restaurant."
But there is another sandwich that's based on the Double Down.
Say hello to the Double Down Dog.
This monstrosity was released in the Philippines in 2015, and was made up of a fried chicken
breast patty wrapped around a hot dog, topped with either ketchup, mayo, or cheese.
And despite looking kind of appetizing in the promo images and commercials, the actual
product appeared... less than appealing.
"Gravy Mashies" might sound like an EP released by an obscure psych-rock outfit from the late
'70s, but they're actually a weird, deep-fried potato snack most recently released by KFC
in Australia in 2017.
Essentially, they're a more portable, bite-size version of the chain's mashed potato side,
consisting of balls of mash deep-fried and injected with a splash of KFC gravy.
They had actually been introduced to Australia in years prior, but only as a limited-time
offer.
Mashies exploded in popularity, however, and soon developed a cult following, leading to
a flurry of requests and at least one "Bring Back KFC Mashies" Facebook group.
In 2015, KFC tested the gravy-waters by releasing Mashies in Tasmania, where over 130,000 servings
were sold in less than two weeks.
In 2017, however, KFC went big, and Mashies were rolled out in 600 locations across Australia.
The company's marketing director said at the time:
"There were thousands of comments on our social post with people outside of Tassie begging
for them and asking when they were going to get them.
When you have fans that are this passionate, you have to give them what they want."
Nonetheless, they remained a limited time offer - and, sadly, Gravy Mashies haven't
been seen since.
Okay, yeah - you can get fried chicken at literally any KFC on the planet.
But the interesting thing here isn't the nature of the food on offer, so much as it is the
quantity.
And that's because, in 2016, Japan began offering all-you-can-eat fried chicken every Wednesday
for two months to celebrate Colonel Sanders' birthday.
And that wasn't the first time they'd done this, either - the company had done the same
thing twice in 2014.
For around the equivalent of $13.40, customers were given three pieces of chicken, a biscuit,
a small batch of French fries, and a medium soft drink, and for 45 minutes it would be
open season on refills for any of those components.
Sora News 24 sent a reporter to cover the event in 2014, and found that they struggled
to make it past 15 pieces of chicken.
This threw up some interesting math, however.
By their reckoning, 15 pieces of chicken would normally cost 3,750 yen, and because the base
meal costs 1,340 yen anyway, eating 15 extra pieces would save you the equivalent of around
$23.
"If you’re making less than 20 bucks an hour at your job, unlimited KFC is an economically
better use of your time than working."
"Can't argue with that logic."
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