- On November 12, KFC added three new meals made with chicken and waffles to its menu.
- The available options are chicken tenders, fried chicken, and a sandwich with Belgian Liège-style waffle buns, along with a side of Mrs. Butterworth's syrup.
- The fried chicken and chicken tenders remain the same as the fast-food's other chicken menu items, but the Liège-style waffles are sweeter and doughier than expected.
- My favorite was the chicken and waffle sandwich, which had just the right balance of spicy and sweet for my taste.
While pairing fried chicken and waffles together predates Colonel Sanders, it isn't until this year that KFC finally decided to try its hand at the iconic dish.
After a trial at locations in Charlotte, North Carolina, this past summer, KFC started serving chicken and waffles nationwide from November 12 and will offer the dishes through December 31.
Meal options include waffles topped either with KFC's "Extra Crispy" fried chicken or "Extra Crispy" chicken tenders, and a chicken and waffle sandwich consisting of KFC's new "Hot Honey" fried chicken breast between two waffle buns. All three come with a side of Mrs. Butterworth maple-flavored syrup.
Available in three different varieties, INSIDER tried KFC's new menu additions to see how they compare.
The chicken tasted like any other KFC chicken, but the waffles made all the difference
For all three menu options, KFC used Belgian Liège-style waffles that are known to be dense and richer than Brussels waffles, the light and rectangular variety most popularly used in American cooking.
Speaking to INSIDER, KFC's head chef Bob Das said the fast-food restaurant wanted to create a "new spin on a classic dish" while still maintaining the fundamentals of what makes chicken and waffles such a classic pairing.
Das added that the company went through 15 different waffle variations before settling on the Liège-style waffle. He went on to say that the waffle is "sweeter and doughier than American style waffles," but that it combines seamlessly with KFC's fried chicken.
KFC's chicken and waffle sandwich took me by surprise and ended up being my favorite
As a self-professed lover of chicken and waffles, KFC entering the market was welcome news to me. Though they're fast food and not home-cooked, the dishes are still rich and a satisfying.
KFC's use of the Liège-style waffle lent itself especially well to the sandwich, in my opinion. The waffles' density coupled with their sweetness complemented the chicken's sweet and hot flavoring. I thought the sandwich's flavor is unlike anything else on KFC's menu.
The other chicken and waffle meals paled in comparison to the sandwich
One mark against the release is that KFC lost some of its creativity with the two other dishes. In the plated chicken and waffle meals, the only new components were the addition of the waffles and syrup; the chicken remained unchanged from what KFC already offers.
Read more: We tried fried chicken from 4 fast food chains — and the winner was clear
I've eaten KFC's fried chicken and chicken tenders before, so there weren't any surprises there. While the sandwich took some liberties with its honey flavoring, I was a bit bored eating the plated dishes and it didn't feel like I was really getting anything new.
That being said, I thought the waffles still paired well with KFC's chicken and made for a no-nonsense eating experience, as chicken and waffles always should.
You can try the new chicken and waffle dishes at KFC restaurants in the US until December 31.
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