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Can you make KFC takikomi gohan in a rice cooker, and is it something worth eating?【SoraKitchen】

Casey Baseel Oct 20, 2024
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Colonel Crispy goes into the rice cooker pot, but does something tasty come out?

One of the most common economic issues we find ourselves faced with is the question of “How much of our resources should we keep in cash, and how much should we convert to fried chicken?” As with any investment decision, the answer is going to vary depending on current market conditions, and right now it’s a buyers’ market, thanks to a half-off promotion at KFC Japan for their Colonel Crispy boneless chicken tenders.

▼ Actually it’s an even better deal than half off, with a three-piece order currently going for 430 yen (US$3.10) instead of the regular 870.

And so it was that our Japanese-language reporter Seiji Nakazawa came back from his shopping run with six pieces of Colonel Crispy. The chicken is seasoned with garlic and soy sauce, for a flavor with similarities to Japanese-style karaage fried chicken, and as he plated the strips already their aroma was beckoning him to dig in. Just before Seiji succumbed to temptation and devoured them all, though, he had an idea.

Seiji has been having sort of a rice cooker renaissance recently, using the surprisingly versatile kitchen appliance to make various kinds of hot pot. So he found himself wondering, what would happen if he tossed his KFC into the rice cooker along with some rice?

Theoretically, the result should be a sort of takikomi gohan, a style of Japanese cooking in which you cook meat or vegetables together in the same pot with rice so that the flavors of the extra ingredients seep into the grains. However, when making orthodox takikomi gohan you’re also supposed to add soy sauce and other seasonings to the mix. With the Colonel Crispy already being so fragrant, and with Seiji being so uninterested in expending extra energy for meal-prep, he decided to take a chance and make his Colonel Crispy takikomi gohan using only the fried chicken, rice, and water necessary to cook the grains, even as he worried that it might not be flavorful enough.

▼ In ya go, everybody!

Another potential problem is that while chicken is a common ingredient in takikomi gohan, it’s not normally breaded. Would the Colonel Crispy’s coating prevent the juices of the meat, the part that’s seasoned with garlic and soy sauce, from being released and blending with the rice?

All of these thoughts were swirling through Seiji’s head, but the die had been cast/the start button pushed, so all he could do was wait impatiently for the rice cooker’s 45-minute cooking cycle to finish.

When the time was up, Seiji popped open the lid, and a scent both meaty and starchy, reminiscent of chicken-broth ramen, wafted upwards.

Grabbing a rice scoop and giving the mixture a few stirs, Seiji saw the rice taking on a golden color, suggesting that the fried chicken had indeed been able to impart some degree of its flavor to the rice.

He also discovered that the fried chicken’s time in the rice cooker had thoroughly tenderized it, enough so that he could cut it with the edge of the rice scoop, making “Colonel Crispy” now feel like a misnomer.

It smelled and looked good, but would it taste good?

Seiji took a bite…

…and then he took another bite to be sure…

…and then he took yet another bite, because it was really, really good!

Seiji’s worries about whether enough of the Colonel Crispy flavor would transfer to the rice turned out to be completely unnecessary, as the meaty sensation and garlic and soy notes permeated the grains all the way to the core. At the same time, the flavor wasn’t overpowering. It was just right, and Seiji is now thoroughly convinced that adding any other ingredients or seasonings to the pot besides rice, Colonel Crispy, and water would only serve to disrupt the perfectly palate-pleasing balance.

KFC Japan’s half-off Colonel Crispy deal is going on until October 22, so there’s still time for Seiji to whip up another batch of this super-easy takikomi gohan at a discounted price, provided his rice cooker isn’t otherwise occupied with making him some sukiyaki or chanko sumo stew.

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[ Read in Japanese ]