Kentucky Fried Donut Sandwich: Portrait of a Breadhole on Fire


"Do you know where the donuts come from?" we asked the counter staff at our local Carmel KFC.

They shrugged. "No, we just get the dough and fry it."

"In the same oil as the chicken?"

"Yes."

I ordered mine immediately.
----

Because they fry the donuts on site, The  Kentucky Fried Chicken Donut Sandwich (KFCDS) is a white-meat boneless breast slid between two freshly fried donuts, slathered in enough glaze to create a soupy base of off-white sugar when served in a plastic bowl. It is not possible to eat as a sandwich, and requires a knife and fork. Comparisons can be made to Chicken + Waffles, and frankly the surface area of the food is less than most widely available C+W options. Then again, the food here is much cheaper. You're getting more bang for your buck when it comes to dessert and fried chicken meals. 

the quality is a crapshoot. My donuts were a little over-fried, which created a nice, slightly crunchy texture. One of my companions, Mike, said his weren't over-done at all. They're just tasteless yeast donuts so I think the extra bit of crunch gave them an otherwise lacking memorability. Another one of my companions said that he thought the donut smelled and tasted like the chicken it was fried with. You get what you get.

The sandwich itself lacks any condiments, but adding pickles is an excellent way to enhance the flavor profile of both the chicken and the donut. 

I actually really liked this meal, to which my friend and fellow idiot diner Brian said, "You're an idiot, this is disgusting, do we need to buy you a helmet?" 

It's possible to order this as a non-sandwich, with three tenders and two fresh donuts. Frankly, the donuts themselves aren't good enough to anchor such a meal. The novelty of being a sandwich is what makes the KFCDS worth trying. Slathering the chicken in all that delicious glaze, watching as the sole two ingredients slowly merge into a strange offcolor paste of chicken skin, low-grade meat and melting donut, really sells the experience. Again: add in that little green bit of Pickle to the mix. This sandwich is so beautiful I should try to paint a still-life of it.

Portrait of a Stomach on Fire



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