FOOD NEWS
7 Fried Chicken Chains That Chefs Actually Eat At
by SOPHIA BLUSH
1. KFC
Chef Carl Yeh of Sansei Seafood Restaurant and Sushi Bar, in Maui, Hawaii told Business Insider that KFC was the "only fried chicken I knew growing up in Pennsylvania."
Michelin-starred chef Karam Sethi told the Financial Review that he loves KFC’s Zinger Tower Burger, explaining, "The chicken is always juicy."
Chef Justin Sutherland, the celebrity chef behind TruTV's Fast Foodies, spent an episode of his show recreating KFC fried chicken.
2. Popeyes
Loved by chefs like Anthony Bourdain, David Chang, and Hugh Acheson, Popeyes has solidified itself as the cream of the crop of fast food chicken establishments.
James Beard Award-winning chef Ashley Christensen told Vice, "I like the level of salt ... They push it just enough. It's got a touch of spice to it. The meat is super juicy."
Chef J. Kenji López-Alt added, "They have a very strict limit on the size of the chickens. They'll reject any chickens that aren't in that range."
3. Raising Cane's
One of the things that makes this beloved Southern fast food chain so special is that its limited menu boasts one singular specialty: chicken fingers.
Executive Chef Rafael Gonzalez told Eat This, Not That! That he loves the four-piece meal at Raising Cane's, adding, “The chicken tenders are huge and tender."
James-Beard Award-winning chef and television personality Andrew Zimmern told Tasting Table, "All they do is serve chicken tenders ... [and] they do them really well."
4. Shake Shack
Ajai Sharma, a sous-chef at The Resident in New York City, told Eat This, Not That!, "The chicken is crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside."
Celebrity chef and beloved host of the show "The Barefoot Contessa," Ina Garten, loves the chain so much that the recipe for Shake Shack's chicken sandwich is one of her books.
On Drew Barrymore’s talk show, Garten made Shake Shack's classic sauce before digging into the chicken sandwiches. "Isn't that fabulous!?" Garten asked.
5. Chick-fil-A
Celebrity chef Carl Ruiz did his own YouTube review of Chick-fil-A, aiming to determine once and for all what is worth it at the chain and what isn't.
Of the spicy chicken sandwich, Ruiz reflected that everything was nicely balanced, saying, "For the money, you're getting a great hot chicken sandwich."
Ruiz also tasted the classic fried chicken sandwich, commenting, "That's an honest-to-goodness chicken sandwich," and repeated multiple times that the sandwich was "very good."