Review: Hot Wings from KFC

Posted January 5th, 2012 | 3:28pm by Adam

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All things considered, 50 cents is the new 10 cents. In a world where rising food costs have pushed jars of peanut butter past the three buck mark, a lowly two quarters can’t get you much these days. So when Ryan let on that KFC was offering their Hot Wings at just 50 cents per wing, I was intrigued. Not only do I not have a ton of cash to blow eating out, but when it comes to fast food, the snacker in me can admire something I can munch on without having to make a commitment to a full meal. First though, a reminder of what we’re dealing with:

KFC’s sauceless Hot Wings are one of a kind – starting crunchy and finishing spicy for a truly unique wing experience. For a limited time, you can enjoy KFC Hot Wings for 50cents each.

Take it coming from the son of two Buffalo expatriates — these are not buffalo wings by any means. That’s OK with me though, because there’s no commitment to a set number of wings you have to buy to get the 50 cents per wing deal. Not sure if you’ll like them? No problem, you can make like I did and order a single wing to “test” (and get a sauce of your choice) before committing or not committing to anything more.

53 cents poorer, I couldn’t help but come away impressed with KFC’s Hot Wings. The outside is coated in a crunchy, but not oily breading that does well to avoid the major downfall of buffalo wings (greasy exterior). The breading has a texture almost identical to the one you’d find on popcorn chicken, and holds a distinct cayenne kick in along with strong notes of garlic and onion powder. What I like about the taste is that spices and “heat” can easily be balanced out with a dip in KFC’s Honey BBQ sauce. If you’ve never the Honey BBQ sauce before (as I had never had), I recommend it. It’s not cloying like most fast food BBQ sauces, and has a deep flavor which adheres well to the wing.

Being the habitual chicken tender snacker, I’m very much impressed by the depth of flavor in a bite of the wing itself, and get a good reminder of the natural flavor so often lost in chicken breast meat. Forget “all breast meat” and ideas about what’s healthy for a second, because the wing manages to pack an admirable amount of juicy, full flavored and to-the-bone meat in every bite.

That, however, is the only negative I can see with the wing. You have to nibble more than you can bite, and one wing — while possible to purchase — hardly seems practical. Still, the usual problems associated with wings — notably messy sauces, flabby skin, and slimy interior — are avoided, with KFC creating a product which manages to blend the best aspects of fried chicken and chicken wings in one cheap product. As far as I’m concerned, all they have to do now is add televisions to all their stores, so I can watch a game while chowing down on my one chicken wing.