Menu Prices AUOriginal Recipe Chicken Copycat Recipe — Make It at Home
KFC copycat · ⏱ 35 mins · Difficulty: Medium · Serves 4 · By Sophie Bernard
A home-kitchen take on KFC-style Original Recipe chicken on the bone. KFC sells it by the piece — 1 Piece of Chicken is $4.35, 984 kJ — so that is the dish in the comparison box. The spice blend below is a home blend in the same style, not the chain’s secret recipe.
The Original
1 Piece of Chicken
Price: $4.35 (pickup)
Energy: 984 kJ (235 cal)
Open the real dish page →
Ingredients
Home-kitchen amounts for 4 — standard home-cooking quantities for this dish, not the chain’s recipe (chains do not publish theirs). Difficulty: Medium.
- 8 chicken pieces on the bone (about 1.2 kg — thighs and drumsticks work best)
- 2 cups (500 ml) buttermilk
- 2 cups (300 g) plain flour
- Home spice blend (a home blend in the same style — not the chain’s recipe): 1 tbsp sweet paprika, 2 tsp fine salt, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp dried basil, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp celery salt, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp white pepper, 1 tsp mustard powder
- Vegetable or peanut oil, for deep-frying
Method
- Soak the chicken in the buttermilk with 1 tsp salt for at least 2 hours, ideally overnight. This is the step that keeps it juicy.
- Stir the flour and the whole spice blend together in a large bowl.
- Lift each piece from the brine, let the excess drip off, and press firmly into the seasoned flour until heavily coated. Rest the coated pieces 15 minutes — the crust sets and fries crisper.
- Fry in oil at 170°C in batches, 12–15 minutes for thighs and drumsticks, until deep golden and 75°C at the bone. Do not crowd the pot.
- Drain on a rack and rest 5 minutes. The crust should shatter, not bend.
More KFC Pages
Frequently Asked Questions
How close is this to the real 1 Piece of Chicken?
This is a home-kitchen copycat, not the chain’s recipe — the chain does not publish its recipe. It is built to sit beside the original: the real 1 Piece of Chicken is $4.35 for pickup with 984 kJ (235 cal). Compare the two before you cook — the home version trades the chain’s equipment for a frypan and an oven.
How long does it take, and how hard is it?
About 35 minutes, rated Medium difficulty, serving 4.
What do I need to make it?
The ingredients are listed below — starting with 8 chicken pieces on the bone (about 1.2 kg — thighs and drumsticks work best), 2 cups (500 ml) buttermilk, 2 cups (300 g) plain flour, and 2 more. Quantities are home-kitchen amounts, written to serve 4.
What does the original cost at KFC?
The real 1 Piece of Chicken is $4.35 (pickup), 984 kJ. Prices vary by location and delivery is higher.
Where can I check the original dish?
On its own dish page — open the 1 Piece of Chicken at KFC page for the price, kJ and calories.
Is this recipe the chain’s official recipe?
No — no Top 10 chain publishes its recipes. Every recipe on this site is a copycat written from the dish’s published description and the home-kitchen method below, and the comparison box shows the real dish’s price and kJ so you can judge it yourself.
Written & checked by Sophie Bernard
Sophie reads every menu directly from each chain’s official Australian ordering site and records the store and price basis on the page. No price is published without a source.