Every so often, a report comes along of someone finding something in their food order that’s definitely not food.
The most recent example? A guy who found a dead rodent in his wrap from Chop’t.
But finding something mysterious in your KFC order is arguably even stranger, because when you discover it it’s usually deep-fried. We tracked down several instances of KFC serving some deep-fried things that were less-than-edible, and even found that they’ve served completely raw chicken.
Before we go any further, let’s mention that examples of KFC serving inedible deep-fried things are few and far between, and when it happens it makes national headlines. The chain famously claims to employ a “dedicated, trained cook” in each of its kitchens, so the odds of you receiving anything funky with your order are slim to none. That said, it still happens occasionally — and we can’t look away.
Every week, each location of KFC receives a shipment of on-the-bone chicken as well as the pre-mixed secret breading mixture (containing the famous blend of herbs and spices). Each piece of chicken is hand-breaded in-store before heading to the pressure-fryer, which adds a second level of safety against anything that’s not supposed to be fried.
Occasionally, errors are beyond the chain’s immediate control. Just this past weekend, for example, it was discovered that the company that supplies meat to KFCs and McDonald’s in China, OSI Group, was using chicken that had been expired for nearly two weeks in its chicken nuggets. But most of the time, it appears as if the issues that get KFC into hot water happen in its individual kitchens. Read on to learn about the times when KFC fried and served something it really wasn’t supposed to.
1. 2014: Hand Towel
In June 2014, a woman and her stepson ordered chicken nuggets at a U.K. location of the chain, and when the 7 year-old boy bit into a piece he discovered that it didn’t contain any chicken, just a rock-hard blue hand towel. KFC apologized and offered the mother of two a free meal; it doesn’t look like she’ll be suing.
2. 2013: Kidney
In 2013, another UK resident, this time in Essex, got quite a shock when he was pulling meat off the bone of his fried chicken meal and encountered a “horrible wrinkled foreign body." He thought that it might have been a brain, but KFC confirmed that it was in fact a kidney.
3. 2012: Head
In 2012, a woman and her kids ate dinner at a KFC in Virginia, only to discover a whole battered and fried head in their bucket.
4. 2005: Salmonella
One of the biggest nightmares in KFC history happened in 2005, when a 7-year-old Australian girl and her family fell ill after eating salmonella-infected KFC Twister wrap. The girl suffered salmonella encephalopathy, leading to brain damage, a blood infection, and septic shock. The girl, now severely disabled, is wheelchair-bound, and the family won a court case against the chain in 2012, awarding them $8.3 million.
Check out more unusual things KFC has put in the deep-fryer.
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