A bird for booze.

Earlier this month, KFC Japan started selling a spicy miso version of its signature dish. They’re not done innovating yet, though, as there’s yet another fried chicken innovation coming this week.

On Wednesday, KFC Japan is launching its new Ninniku Crispy, which is specifically seasoned to taste great when eaten with beer and other alcoholic drinks. Pictured above, the Ninniku Crispy is based on the chain’s Colonel’s Crispy recipe, but with extra garlic (ninniku in Japanese) and soy sauce flavoring, and is finished with an additional coating of garlic-flavor oil sauce. The resulting flavor, KFC says, makes an excellent pairing with alcoholic beverages, and they’re launching it now as Japan enters the season for end-of-the-year parties, which in Japan tend to involve at least a moderate amount of stiff drinks.

According to KFC, a lot of work went into getting the flavor just right, as early prototypes tasted more like eating a hunk of raw garlic, but in the end they’re promising a flavorful but properly balanced taste. They’re so confident that Ninniku Crispy and alcohol are a perfect pair that they’re even offering a Kanpai Barrel, or “Cheers Bucket,” with three pieces of Ninniku Crispy and four of Original Recipe fried chicken for 1,680 yen (US$11.20). Alternatively, if you want Ninniku Crispy and only Ninniku Crispy, individual pieces go for 290 yen or you can get a three-piece pack for 600, making the third piece almost free.

With no shortage of fried chicken fans and alcohol aficionados on the SoraNews24 staff, we see an order of KFC Japan’s made-for-boozing fried chicken in our near future, and will be keeping our fingers crossed that the Ninniku Crispy delivers more on the garlicky part of its promise than Burger King Japan’s Ninniku Garlic Burger did.

Source: PR Times via Otakomu
Images: PR Times
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