Season’s greetings!
As we bid farewell to 2023, it’s that beautiful time again to partake in the cherished Japanese Christmas custom of savoring Kentucky Fried Chicken for our holiday feast.
The captivating Christmas custom of indulging in fried chicken originated in 1974 through Takeshi Okawara’s vision of a “Party Barrel” to be offered on Christmas Day. This dream materialized that year with the marketing campaign dubbed Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii, which translates to Kentucky for Christmas in English. You can find more details in my previous post here on how KFC evolved into a tradition in Japan.
This year, our choice was the traditional Christmas party barrel, featuring 8 pieces of fried chicken, a unique Shrimp Gratin, a delightful Glacage Chocolat cake, and the 2023 edition of the KFC Christmas Plate, priced at 4,580 yen ($32.48 USD).
Inside the barrel, a handwritten note from the store adds a personal touch, extending gratitude to customers and wishing them a delightful Holiday Season with their KFC meal.
Additionally, we indulged in the Premium Series Chicken for the third time this year, a pre-order exclusive available in limited quantities for 6,500 yen ($46.09 USD). Packaged within a tote bag, it includes a special gravy sauce and detailed instructions for preparation.
The Premium Series Chicken features a top layer adorned with mushroom and parmesan cheese stuffing, this Gokoku Aji Dori brand chicken is exceptionally juicy and tender.
We also ordered the roasted garlic chicken leg priced at 1,400 yen ($9.93 USD) to add variety.
We also treated ourselves to the Chicken Christmas Box, priced at 2,900 yen ($20.56 USD), featuring 2 pieces of chicken, 3 chicken tenders, 5 nuggets, and a BBQ chicken leg.
Naturally, we couldn’t resist the biscuit and potato box for 1,580 Yen ($11.20 USD), which boasts 3 biscuits and a box of chips.
That wraps up this year’s KFC Christmas food highlights. Thanks for reading this post, and here’s to wishing you happy holidays and a happy new year!
I’m Jake Caprino, who is more commonly known by the online alias Swaps4. I’m a business owner based in Japan. I enjoy writing about anime, video games, and bits & pieces of Japanese culture.