KFC Beyond Fried Chicken Review (The Good & The Bad)

Beyond Fried Chicken Kentucky Fried Chicken

What a day to celebrate! Not only is it my birthday but today, January 10, Kentucky Fried Chicken has added Beyond Fried Chicken to its menus across the United States.

We tried it! So let’s see what we thought… but first, we have to answer the number 1 question (aside from the taste) that every vegan is asking. 

Is KFC’s Beyond Fried Chicken Vegan?

Our number 1 question and the number 1 question across the country… Is KFC’s Beyond Fried Chicken Vegan? I’ll keep this short because ultimately you get to decide what you are comfortable with in terms of what is vegan for you. 

The ingredients of the Beyond Fried Chicken are vegan. They include:

Water, Enriched Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Soy Protein, Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Expeller-Pressed Canola Oil, Wheat Gluten, Salt, Breadcrumbs (Wheat Flour, Distilled Vinegar, Sea Salt, Sodium Bicarbonate, Inactive Yeast, Spice Extractives), Natural Flavors, Contains 2% or Less: Yeast Extract, Garlic Powder, Potato Starch, Leavening (Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Spices, Rice Flour, Salt, Pea Fiber, Citric Acid, Chili Pepper, Titanium Dioxide (for color), Spice Extractive, Onion Powder

The preparation is what makes you have to decide if these are vegan for you. The Beyond Fried Chicken is fried in a shared fryer with animal products, specifically chicken. 

-> At VeggL, we do not place any judgment over whether you would consider these vegan or not… because, to be honest, Ryan and I are different in how we approach these situations.

On one hand, I am leery of shared fryers and surfaces while Ryan just looks at it as a step in the right direction. And having this as an option is better than not having the option and people continuing to eat animals. 

Ryan and I each became vegan for very different reasons which is why we have two different thought processes and neither one judges the other for their opinion because we both understand how this is helping the overall bigger picture.

How To Order KFC’s Beyond Fried Chicken

KFC’s Beyond Fried Chicken Combo. 1.10.22. Available for a limited time and while supplies last!

Before I get into how to order, I do want to mention the KFC’s Beyond Fried Chicken are nuggets. Some of my omni friends did not realize this so I wanted to mention it before I continued on. 

You can order your Beyond Fried Chicken Nuggets 4 ways:

  • 6 piece
  • 6 piece combo (includes Secret Recipe Fries and a drink)
  • 12 piece
  • 12 piece combo (includes Secret Recipe Fries and a drink)

Please be aware the only sauces that are vegan are Ketchup and the Hot Sauce. The KFC sauce, honey BBQ, classic ranch and honey mustard are not vegan.  

If you order yours a la carte, you can also add any of the other vegan sides to your order! We have them all listed on our Kentucky Fried Chicken Guide. Or use the sides to fill out your combo order to share. 

Our Review

We each ordered a 6 piece combo at the KFC closest to our house. This one shares it’s location with a Taco Bell so maybe that’s why we didn’t get the cool green box as many others did. Let’s be honest, I am a little jealous.

Although, we were at the initial test in Smyrna, Georgia in 2019 so there is that. 

Before I get into each of our reviews, I have to say they are vastly different only because we each had varying opinions of Kentucky Fried Chicken in our pre-vegan days. 

Ryan: Straight up, this guy loved them! His words –

“This is the best vegan chicken product I have had. You can tell that it’s from KFC. You take a bite of the nugget and it has the signature KFC herbs and spices batter blend. Out of all the new plant based items we have tried lately, this may be a problem for me. Definitely buying again.”

5 minutes later, I’m in the other room and I hear him yell, “these are SO good!” lol

Jen: As for me, while I did cringe a bit at the shared fryer, I tried the nuggets and fries. That initial bite took me straight back to when I was young and would have Kentucky Fried Chicken bought for me as a family meal.

KFC definitely has a signature herbs and spices batter blend and these nuggets have it!

This is a huge improvement KFCOpens in a new tab. and Beyond MeatOpens in a new tab. made better from that initial test in 2019. The nuggets back then did not have that signature taste.

The question is did I like it or would I buy them again. For me, the answer is no. They were legit but it’s not my taste preference and I could tell the grease taste may not settle well for me. I ate 2 nuggets, a couple fries and gave the rest to Ryan.

And to be honest, when I was young, the Chicken Little’s and Potato Wedges were my favorite. Both are no longer on the menu. But if KFC and Beyond want to start adding a plant based version, I would definitely support their efforts!

For now, I will stick to my Gardein Crispy Chick’n Sliders. Add a little vegan mayo, a couple of pickles and voila, it’s a vegan Chicken Little. 

In Conclusion

We each had our opinions. It appears one of us (Ryan), is going to be spending some money at Kentucky Fried Chicken while I will save us some money by not. Ha!

If you truly are a fan of Kentucky Fried Chicken’s herbs, spices and their batter, you are going to like these.

From all of the reviews I have seen so far, they are a huge hit! I will mention, we have heard some people haven’t been a fan of the texture and the grease felt like it was a lot so be aware of this.

Again, you choose what your level of comfort is when making this an option for yourself as a vegan. But remember, an option for plants may make someone who would choose the animal to take a second and rethink their decision.

Go to our Instagram and let us know if you are a fan Kentucky Fried Chicken’s Beyond Fried Chicken! Do you lean towards Ryan’s opinion, mine (Jen) or somewhere in between? 

VeggL (Jen and Ryan)

VeggL is the passion project of Jen & Ryan. Both vegan (Jen since 2012, Ryan since 2018), they wanted to help other vegans & plant based folks through an incredibly frustrating process--trying to figure out what you can eat & where in the US. Pictured w/ our pups, Mia & Chompers.

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