When it comes to chicken, it can be a real challenge to decide which type you want to eat. Here in Korea there are so many companies, and each company has multiple varieties to choose from. To make it even MORE challenging, if you have more than one person in a household, it can be downright impossible to make a choice that satisfies everyone.
Fortunately, the chicken franchises have wised up to this conundrum, and have started to introduce meals and sets that provide you with at least two different varieties. KFC Korea has started doing this with their Half and Half bucket (or Ban-Ban) just in time for New Years!
In addition, KFC has recently added a few more items to the menu that will be sure to please a lot of people! The first is Cajun Fries. Now, you have been able to get these at a number of other chicken shops in Korea, but with Popeye’s Chicken leaving the country soon, the number is one less, and it’s the first time that I think you have been able to purchase them at KFC. Also, the size is truly impressive in one case, as you will soon see.
Also, KFC Korea has added gravy to the menu. I know that in many countries, gravy has been a standard menu item for decades, but here in Korea it is a very new addition to a lot of menus.
And so it was New Year’s Eve that I went to a KFC location here in Ulsan to order the Half and Half bucket, as well as the other two aforementioned items.
Getting home was actually a little challenging, as traffic was heavier than usual. I guess many places had let their workers go early for the holiday, but fortunately the food was still quite warm when I got home.
Carefully arranging the items on the counter, there was the bucket of chicken, gravy, two orders of Sweet Chili Sauce for dipping (I finally remembered to order it!), some coleslaw, and of course the 3X Cajun Fries.
That’s right…a THREE-X ORDER OF CAJUN FRIES!
The fast-food French fry game has changed in South Korea thanks to KFC. I have never seen such a large order of French fries at a fast-food location, and this 3X size was massive, as well as massively impressive.
Now that there was all this food to enjoy, the real test was to see how it tasted.
I had written about KFC’s Original Recipe Black Label Chicken a few months ago, although it appears to be gone from the menu these days. The Half and Half bucket contains four pieces of KFC Original Recipe chicken, and four pieces of the Hot Crispy Chicken. As usual, the KFC chicken, both varieties, did not disappoint.
The Original recipe is as good as it has always been. Flavorful, juicy, and not too crispy, the 11 herbs and spices are still working their magic on the tastebuds. After two pieces, I was almost sad to have to change to the Hot Crispy Chicken.
However, the Hot Crispy Chicken is a true treat for all those people who really love a good coating on their chicken. With a little spicy kick, and meat that is even more juicy than the Original recipe, the Hot Crispy Chicken was excellent.
Both types of chicken were augmented by the wonderful flavor of the sweet chili sauce. Not too spicy, not too sweet, it really does make the chicken better. Not quite as good as the Mango-Habanero sauce that KFC had one winter years ago, but still delicious. (KFC, please bring back the Mango-Habanero sauce!)
Now how about those KFC Cajun Fries? Well, they were fantastic! The flavor was really just your basic Cajun fry, but it tasted like they fry it in the same oil that they chicken is cooked in. This took the fries to a whole new level, and they were utterly delicious.
KFC’s coleslaw was the same as it has been for years. A little tangy, a nice level of vinegar, but not mind-blowing. It does a good job of cleansing away some of the grease when you are eating the chicken though!
Finally, the KFC gravy. Well, the taste was pretty good, and did add a nice flavor to the fries when poured on top. The gravy wasn’t out of this world good like a home-made gravy might be, but it was acceptable with some nice spices in it to make sure it wasn’t bland. The only problem was that the container is REALLY small. This is a real problem as you have to pay for each container which is 500 won each (close to 50 cents US)! With a 3X order of Cajun Fries, this is a serious ratio problem.
I really did enjoy my KFC feast. The chicken was excellent, the Cajun Fries wonderful, and the gravy a nice addition to the menu. However the small size of the gravy container was a real disappointment, and I hope they can increase the size a bit I they are going to be selling jumbo orders of French fries.
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