These KFC Style Spicy Popcorn Chicken Bites will satisfy your KFC popcorn chicken cravings sitting at home! These are very close to the real thing, super easy to make, and so much healthier! Dip these little pieces of glory into sriracha mayo dip and enjoy the loud crunch!
Looking for more snacks recipes? Try my Korean Baked Gochujang Chicken Wings, Perfect French Fries (Finger Chips) or Mexican Corn Fritters!- 15 minutes and ready!
Even if, like me, you're not a big fan of KFC, there's no way you can resist their popcorn chicken! Makes for the perfect appetizer, side dish or 5 pm snack, their bite-sized crispy chicken always hits the right spots! We're going to recreate that same magic at home today! We make everything for this recipe from scratch, including that delicious spice mix that's very very close to the one you get at KFC.
Plus, you can munch on these (almost) guilt-free as they're wayyy healthier than their original counterparts! I mean we still fry chicken pieces, but since we are making it at home from scratch, we are going to be using fresh ingredients, there is no added MSG, and these things haven't been frozen and stored for god knows how long! I'm a firm believer that fried food is waaaay healthier if homemade. Ready to get started?!
Quick Walk Through: KFC Style Spicy Popcorn Chicken
Here's What You Need To Make KFC Style Popcorn Chicken
- Chicken: Skinless, boneless fresh or frozen chicken pieces. Preferably thigh pieces as they remain more tender and juicy until the end, but you can easily replace it with breast pieces as well.
- Oil: For frying. Any neutral-flavored oil with a high smoke point such as peanut, canola, sunflower, rice bran, etc. will work.
- Spices: I have used oregano, chilli powder, salt, and pepper powder to marinate the chicken. This will ensure each bite of this popcorn chicken is full of flavor!
- Ginger garlic paste: Used as part of the marinade
- Flour: All purpose flour as the base to coat the chicken and make it nice and crispy.
- Buttermilk: Helps tenderise the chicken and keep it soft throughout the frying process.
- For The Spice Mix: Onion powder, garlic powder, red chilli powder, sugar and oregano
How To Make KFC Style Popcorn Chicken
1. Mix all the marinade ingredients in a bowl and rub the mixture evenly over the chicken. Let it marinate for at least half an hour. Season the flour and buttermilk with a pinch of salt and pepper each.
2. To start making the popcorn chicken, set up an assembly line. Place the flour and buttermilk next to each other, along with the marinated chicken. Set up a wire rack to place the coated chicken once ready. Lightly coat each piece of marinated chicken with flour.
3. Dip it in buttermilk and ensure it is coated well.
4. Toss it again in the flour.
5. Repeat this process for each piece of chicken and place them on the wire rack.
6. Heat oil for deep frying and fry the coated chicken in 2-3 batches on medium heat until the chicken is cooked through and has a light brown outer coating. This will take approximately 5-7 minutes for each batch of chicken.
7. . In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients under spice mix. As soon as the chicken is fried, dust the pieces with the prepared spice mix. It's best to do this while the chicken is still hot to ensure the spices coat the chicken evenly. You can sprinkle the spicy mix over the chicken and toss it while it's hot.
8. Toss and serve the KFC-style popcorn chicken hot with your favourite dipping sauce, such as sriracha mayo or schezwan sauce. Enjoy!
Richa's Top Tips To Make The Best Popcorn Chicken
- Make sure to cut all the chicken pieces of the same size. This will help them cook faster and more evenly.
- It is important to ensure that the buttermilk you're using is fresh and not too sour as that may alter the taste of the popcorn chicken.
- Avoid adding too many pieces of chicken to the pan when frying. Overcrowding the pan will create extra steam in the pan, and prevent the popcorn chicken from becoming crispy.
FAQs
Popcorn chicken is best reheated in an oven or air fryer. For reheating in the oven, place the leftover popcorn chicken on a baking tray in a single file and broil in the oven for about 3 to 5 minutes. For the air fryer, simply reheat at 200ยฐ C for about 4 minutes or until crispy.
Leftover popcorn chicken can easily be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days. I wouldn't recommend freezing it, as popcorn chicken loses it's texture and crispiness when thawed.
Yes! To make it dairy free, use coconut milk or soy milk instead of buttermilk. You can also use whisked eggs instead of buttermilk. The taste may vary a little bit, but it will still turn out to be amazing!
Get me a bowl of this popcorn chicken + sriracha mayo dipping sauce + couch and I'm the happiest potato in the world. Try it, and you will be too! If you are the kinds who loves your food over-the-top spicy, try this schezwan sauce for dipping and you'll achieve fire breathing dragon levels. Make this as an appetizer the next time you're hosting friends or simply as an indulgent 5 pm snack for the family, and I promise you, it's going to be a sure shot winner!
WATCH THE RECIPE VIDEO
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KFC Style Spicy Popcorn Chicken
Ingredients
- 350 grams Chicken boneless, cut into 1-inch pieces
- Oil for frying
For the Marinade:
- 1 tablespoon Ginger Garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon Oregano dried
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder or Paprika Powder
- 1 ยผ teaspoon Salt
For the Coating:
- 1 cup Flour
- ยฝ cup thin Buttermilk
- ยผ teaspoon Salt
- ยผ teaspoon Pepper
For the Spice Mix:
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 tablespoon Kashmiri Chilli Powder or Paprika Powder
- 1 ยฝ teaspoon Powdered Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Oregano dried
Instructions
- Mix all the marinade ingredients in a bowl and rub the mixture evenly over the chicken. Let it marinate for at least half an hour. In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients under spice mix.
- Season the flour and buttermilk with a pinch of salt and pepper each.
- To start making the popcorn chicken, set up an assembly line. Place the flour and buttermilk next to each other, along with the marinated chicken. Set up a wire rack to place the coated chicken once ready.
- Lightly coat each piece of marinated chicken with flour. Dip it in buttermilk, then toss it again in the flour. Repeat this process for each piece of chicken and place them on the wire rack.
- Heat oil for deep frying and fry the coated chicken in 2-3 batches on medium heat until the chicken is cooked through and has a light brown outer coating. This will take approximately 5-7 minutes for each batch of chicken.
- As soon as the chicken is fried, dust the pieces with the prepared spice mix. It's best to do this while the chicken is still hot to ensure the spices coat the chicken evenly. You can sprinkle the spicy mix over the chicken and toss it while it's hot.
- Serve the KFC-style popcorn chicken hot with your favourite dipping sauce, such as sriracha mayo or schezwan sauce. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Cutting chicken: Chicken popcorn is usually prepared with small bite sizen pieces of chicken. 1 inch sized chicken cubes are ideal.ย
- Marinade:ย marinade for at least 30 minutes. For the best results, marinate the chicken in the refrigerator overnight. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 10 minutes prior to frying.ย ย
- Oil temperature:ย Ensure the oil is at 350F/ 176C for frying the chicken. This temperature is ideal for perfectly cooked crispy chicken.ย
- Make these in advance: You can also make these ahead by frying them once and storing them for a couple of hours. When ready to serve, heat the oil to about 400F/204C and flash fry the chicken cubes for the second time for just a minute. This will give it a super crispy coating and all have to do is toss it in the seasoning before serving and you'll have hot chicken popcorn ready to go.
Ed says
Turned out excellent. Kids ate it up.
Richa says
Thanks Ed!
Gopa chatterjee says
Hi Richa
I want to try out this recipe . Just one query . Can I make buttermilk by adding water to curd and diluting it..
thanks
Mala says
Love Richa's recipe!!
I used 1/2 cup homemade curd and rest water to make 3/4 cup buttermilk. Consistency of curd will vary so adjust the water accordingly, I would say. Kept the buttermilk on slightly thicker side.
Mahji says
Hi, which flour it is? Corn flour? Recipe is looking really good. Gona try it tomorrow. Can the pops be feozen after all the coating? And for how long can they be?
Richa says
Hey Mahji - that's all purpose flour (maida). And yes you can freeze them for up to two months after coating them. Just defrost and fry them when you want.
Jyoti says
Tried it for the first time and it turned out to be amazing. Wonderful flavour n so crunchy. Thank you for the recipe.
Richa says
Wohooo! Thanks for sharing your feedback Jyoti!
Karen Fernandes says
Hi Richa,
Thanks a lot for this recipe! I tried it out this morning and everyone at home is a fan of the dish. Most importantly, I like the fact that you have recommended using buttermilk as a binding agent. I have read a couple of recipes that use egg. However, I've personally liked the idea of using buttermilk instead. The chicken pieces turned out to be nice and crunchy and the spice mix just added on to the flavour.
Richa says
Yay! So glad your family liked it Karen. I always feel guilty about snacking on popcorn chicken at KFC, but making it at home always makes me feel better!
Sibgha says
How much salt is used for 1/2kg boneless chicken?
Richa says
About a teaspoon should be good!
L says
Hey. Was wondering if I can bake this instead of frying?
Richa says
Sure, I actually have a baked chicken popcorn recipe that tastes just as amazing: http://myfoodstory.com/baked-popcorn-chicken-recipe/
Kasi says
I tried the same recipe and air-fried the chicken instead of frying in oil. The taste was great. Thanks.
richagupta says
Wow! I've been meaning to try these out in an air fryer too. So happy you liked it!
Divya Singh says
Hey Richa
what if ? if i dont put garlic and onion powder ?
richagupta says
Hey Divya, if you don't add onion and garlic powder, it will change the taste significantly because the spice mix is what adds that KFS style popcorn chicken flavour that we all love so much. These powders are easily available on Amazon in case you don't have them available nearby.
jangsen says
Hey please tell me how you make the butter milk
richagupta says
Jangsen, buttermilk is the whey you get after making butter. But if you don't have that then just mix 1 tablespoon Vinegar with 1 cup Milk and set it aside for 10 minutes for instant buttermilk.
Mala says
I used plain yogurt 1/2 cup and remaining water to make 3/4th cup buttermilk. The end result was fabulous.Thanks Richa for an amazing recipe! My kids are hard to please when it comes to taste and they are lapping up the popcorn chicken.
Richa says
This is such a great snack for kids! I'm so glad your kids enjoyed this!
Nancy says
Do you have a brand you recommend for the ginger garlic paste or how I can make this at home? I'm not a big fan of KFC either, I just like their seasoning and popcorn chicken lol.
Thanks!
richagupta says
Hey Nancy, here's a good brand if you are in the US - https://www.amazon.com/Shan-Ginger-Garlic-Premium-Quality/dp/B0057Y9J38/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1476418778&sr=8-2&keywords=ginger+garlic+paste This stays good in the refrigerator for at least 2 months. Or else, you could just grind together 6 garlic cloves and a half inch piece of ginger in a mortar pestle and use.
Nancy says
Great! Thanks :D. I'm going to give it a try this weekend.
richagupta says
I hope you like it Nancy ๐
Richa Gupta says
Thanks Dolphia, I'm not a big fan of KFC myself. I think my hips will take it if it's once in awhile ๐
Richa Gupta says
I don't use onion powder a lot, but it's pretty handy for recipes like these Indu, and very easily available these days!
Dolphia Nandi-Arnstein says
Who does not love these! In this country, KFC is not very popular as much it is in India - but I love these fried chickens. I only wish they were a bit lesser in calories ๐ hehe But whatever looks and tastes good - won't be good for your hips ๐ Jokes apart, nice recipe ๐
indugetscooking says
onion powder, that's something i really want to experiment with! The recipe looks really good, Richa....Hoping to make it soon....