The Secret Recipe is...MSG. Shhhh, don't tell anybody

I’m just going to comment on a couple of the regular staples of KFC.

Mashed Potatoes with Gravy
Gravy: Food Starch-Modified, Maltodextrin, Enriched Wheat Flour (Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Chicken Fat, Wheat Flour, Salt, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Monosodium Glutamate, Dextrose, Palm And Canola Oils, Mono and Diglycerides, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Natural and Artificial Flavor (with Hydrolyzed Corn Protein, Milk), Caramel Color (Treated With Sulfiting Agents), Onion Powder, Disodium Inosinate*, Disodium Guanylate*, Spice, Spice Extractives, With Not More Than 2% Silicon Dioxide Added As An Anti-caking.
Contains Wheat, Soy and Milk.

*Note: Disodium Inosinate and Disodium Guanylate are expensive flavor enhancers that are not MSG themselves but  act directly with MSG to further enhance it. So if you see these two ingredients lurking on your ingredient label, don’t eat it, it means there is MSG in it for sure. This tip is from Dr. Russell Blaylock’s books on Excitotoxins.

As you can see, in the ingredient list above we have at least 3 hard-core sources of monosodium glutamate on the label (MSG, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein and Hydrolyzed Corn Protein), as well as the peculiar “Spice and Spice Extractives” which hardly matter at this point.

Seasoned Rice
Long Grain Enriched Rice(Iron, Thiamine, and Folic Acid). Seasoned with: Dehydrated Vegetables (Carrots, Onion, Garlic, Parsley, Celery), Salt, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Maltodextrin, Monosodium Glutamate, Yeast Extract, Chicken Broth, Maltodextrin, Dextrose, Modified Food Starch, Sugar, Butter (Sweet Cream, Salt, Annatto Color), Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Cooked Chicken, Chicken Fat, Nonfat Milk Solids, Gelatin, Sodium Phosphate, Flavor, Lactose, Disodium Inosinate* & Disodium Guanylate*, Natural Flavor, Sodium Caseinate, Extractive of Turmeric, Spices (Including Turmeric), Lactic Acid, BHA, Propyl Gallate & Citric Acid Added To Protect Flavor, Dipotassium Phosphate, Disodium Phosphate.
Contains Milk and Soy.

I counted 6 ingredients including MSG in the Seasoned Rice. Wow, do we really need this much in rice? Speaking of which, Rice-A-Roni is a real baddie also. It the seasoning packet, the rice by itself is good, but taking away the seasoning packet from Rice-A-Roni makes it just plain fucking rice. What fun is that? It’s not.

I found these entries from NationMaster regarding KFC:

“According to the nutritional information provided on KFC’s own website, the ingredients for KFC Original Recipe Chicken are: Fresh chicken marinated with: salt, sodium phosphate and monosodium glutamate, and breaded with: wheat flour, sodium chloride and anti-caking agent (tricalcium phosphate), nonfat dry milk, dried egg whites and the Colonel’s Secret Original Recipe Seasoning.^[16]“

“In 1983, writer William Poundstone tackled the recipe in his book Big Secrets. He reviewed Sanders’ patent application, and advertised in college newspapers for present or former employees willing to share their knowledge.^[18] From the former he deduced that Sanders had diverged from other common fried-chicken recipes by varying the amount of oil used with the amount of chicken being cooked, and starting the cooking at a higher temperature (about 400°F, 200°C) for the first minute or so and then lowering it to 250°F (120°C) for the remainder of the cooking time. Several of Poundstone’s contacts also provided samples of the seasoning mix, and a food lab found that it consisted solely of sugar, flour, salt, black pepper and monosodium glutamate (MSG). He concluded that it was entirely possible that, in the years since Sanders sold the chain, later owners had begun skimping on the recipe to save costs.^[19] Sanders himself expressed anger at the changes made to the gravy, saying, “That friggin’ … outfit …. They prostituted every goddam thing I had. I had the greatest gravy in the world and those sons of bitches they dragged it out and extended it and wa­tered it down that I’m so goddamn mad.”^[20]“

And there you have it, MSG galore at KFC, but then again…you already knew that.

KFC Ingredients List

http://www.kfc.com/nutrition/pdf/kfc_ingredients.pdf

NationMaster Encylopedia
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/KFC

Monosodium Glutamate "MSG"

Sources of MSG include: MSG, Monosodium Glutamate, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Vegetable
Protein, Hydrolyzed Plant Protein, Plant Protein Extract, Sodium Caseinate, Calcium Caseinate,
Yeast Extract, Textured Protein, Autolyzed Protein, Autolyzed Yeast, and Hydrolyzed Oat Flour.

Additives frequently containing MSG: Malt extract, Malt Flavoring, Bouillon, Broth, Stock,
Flavoring, Natural Flavoring, Natural Beef or Chicken Flavoring, Seasoning and Spices.

Additives that may contain MSG or Excitotoxins: Carrageenan, Enzymes, Soy Protein Concentrate,
Soy Protein Isolate, and Protein Concentrate. Protease enzymes of various sources can release
excitotoxin amino acids from food proteins.

Foods to watch out for include: Soybean milk (naturally high in glutamate / often has hydrolyzed
vegetable protein added to it), kombu, miso, and soy sauces all contain MSG.

Reference:
Blaylock, R. (1997).Excitotoxins – The Taste That Kills, Albuquerque, NM: Health Press NA.