Fried chicken fukubukuro is a great way to forget our New Year’s resolutions. 

While December might be the season for Christmas, the first few days of January are the season for fukubukuro lucky bags in Japan. Some of these discounted bundles are hotter than others, though, and every year it seems the fast food fukubukuro are at the top of everyone’s wish list. That was certainly the case when we went hunting for the KFC lucky bag when it was released on New Year’s Day.

▼ We almost gave up all hope of getting a KFC lucky bag this year, because they ended up selling out at the store where we first lined up for them.

▼ Then, at the second store we went to, they told us the bags had sold out through pre-sale reservations.

▼ Finally, we managed to get a bag at the third store we visited, and we were lucky to get it as there were less than ten left there.

Despite being seasoned fukubukuro hunters, even we were surprised at the demand for the KFC fukubukuro. So let’s take a look inside the bag we got and see what makes this one so sought after.

This year’s bag is priced at 2,600 yen (US$19.91) — 100 yen more than last year — and it contains an original tote bag, a booklet of vouchers, and an “Otoshidama Coupon Pass”.

The coupon pass, named after otoshidama, the monetary gifts children customarily recieve at New Year, is exactly the same as the one we received in our KFC Oju, but hey, we weren’t complaining.

▼ The coupon pass we received with the Kenta Oju (top) and the one we received in the fukubukuro (below)

The discounts above can be used as many times as you like between 26 December and 31 March, which is a pretty good way to tempt people to throw away all their healthy eating resolutions in the first few months of the year.

The booklet of vouchers isn’t going to help things either, with 3,240 yen worth of discounts, covering the following menu items:

  • Two chicken fillet pieces (three vouchers)
  • Chicken fillet burger, including the option for a Japanese-style chicken cutlet burger (two vouchers)
  • Small Fries (two vouchers)
  • Five-piece Chicken Nuggets (one voucher)

Comparing the Otoshidama Coupon Pass with previous years shows this year’s version offers the greatest discounts yet.

If you’re looking for discounts over merch, the KFC lucky bag is definitely worth adding to your list of must-have fukubukuro come New Year. It’s no wonder it’s so sought after and hard to find, much like the McDonald’s lucky bag, which we were also lucky to get this year!

Photos: ©SoraNews24
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