KFC — Korean fried chicken — takes flight as ideal Super Bowl finger food

If you’re in doubt about what to take to a Super Bowl party, you can’t go wrong with a bucket of good old- fashioned KFC — that being Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Or, pick up some new-fashioned KFC — Korean Fried Chicken.

At Super Bowl gatherings, the wing is the thing, way more than other parts of the clucker, like breasts and thighs.

The most well-known brand is Vons, which originated in Sunnyvale, Calif., in 2014. But many folks smile when they recall a legendary predecessor.

Her name was Alice Yang, but everyone knew her as Chicken Alice. She owned and operated a restaurant by that name from 1982 to 1995.

Then, as legends sometimes do, she fell out of sight. Occasionally there’d be reports of sightings of the J.D. Salinger of Korean fried chicken, and she eventually turned up in the mid-2000s hiding in plain sight, serving up her famous wings at a bar called Star Palace, less than a block from where her restaurant had been on Kapiolani Boulevard. Yang died in 2015.

Alice’s was the best fried chicken I’ve ever had, partly due to just the right amount of kim chee base in the batter. Is my memory just a nostalgic yearning for the past? If so, I’m not alone.

“I remember … 30 years ago,” Peter Kim said. “Her chicken was one of the highlights all season long, not just for Super Bowl parties.”

KIM KNOWS a little something about Korean food. He is the founder of the hugely successful Yummy Korean B-B-Q franchise, the foundation of a business empire that includes a vast and eclectic array of eateries on Oahu. They include Liliha Bakery, The Signature Prime Steak & Seafood and Umamiya Shabu Shabu.

Kim also knows football; he was a kicker at Kaiser High School and the University of Hawaii, where he played for a year before transferring to the University of Alabama and playing for legendary coach Paul “Bear” Bryant.

He was born in Korea, and yes, he did grow up eating Korean fried chicken sometimes at home — but until recently, not from any of the current local outlets.

Given where he spent most of his college years, Kim actually has consumed more fried chicken made in the Southern U.S. than South Korea recipes, more soul than Seoul. And he remembers Kentucky Fried Chicken in Kentucky, where he and his Crimson Tide teammates played in 1981.

“I still go to KFC every now and then,” he said. (No wonder — it’s comfort food for him: He kicked four field goals in that game, which the Tide won 19-10.)

So, who better than Kim to participate in a blind taste test of this trending KFC?

I’m also a lifelong fan of Colonel Sanders’ tasty product, but hadn’t had real Korean fried chicken since the old Chicken Alice days.

The KFC we sampled came from three outlets, taste-tested with the idea of choosing which we’d have at a Super Bowl party: Vons on Pensacola Street, Itchy Butt on Keeaumoku, and YoonCy BBQ on Kapahulu. We ordered what each place defined as its most popular type of fried chicken wing.

YOONCY KOREAN BBQ

888 Kapahulu Ave., 737-8288

Garlic fried chicken sold as a plate or side order, among many Korean dishes on the menu

>> Price: $9.99 for a dozen pieces

ITCHY BUTT

1229 Keeaumoku St., 942-4845

Spicy fried chicken is among many menu options, including meat and rice bowls

>> Price: $15 for eight or nine pieces, with fried cheese and a drink

VONS CHICKEN

1102 Pensacola St., 800-3955 (several other locations)

Bestseller is crispy fried chicken; several spicier and roasted types also available

>> Prices: $22.99 for 20 pieces; $12.49 for 10

What most sets the Korean style apart is that it is fried twice — the spices and sauces are an obvious difference, but double-frying is the feature that really sets it apart. It makes the skin and coating crunchier and not as greasy.

We both liked all three offerings, but if forced to make a choice it would be the saucy one from Itchy Butt. We both liked the sauce (Kim called it “fun”). The sweet, sour and chili flavors were strong, but did not overshadow the crispiness of the coating or freshness of the chicken. The only downside was messy hands.

“For me, it’s spicy with sesame taste,” Kim said. “Very meaty. And it looks burning hot, but it’s not. Well-balanced.”

Just make sure you have a good supply of napkins.

Our sample from Vons was no-frills, but I could taste why it is so popular. It’s crunchy on the outside, and the chicken is juicy. The first word that comes to mind is “clean.”

“Very crispy,” Kim said. “Dry-flour coated. Like some of the chicken wings I’ve had in China and Korea. It’s very light.”

Kim noticed more shoyu flavoring in the YoonCy offering. Although it was the garlic variety, the flavoring was not overpowering. It wasn’t as spicy or crispy as the others.

WE CONCLUDED that it’s hard to go wrong with KFC in Hawaii — whether the recipe is from Kentucky or Korea.

I’ve known Peter Kim for many years, and could see the wheels spinning in his head throughout our taste test.

“Maybe I can learn from these guys,” he said.

HOW WINGS BECAME A THING

The Buffalo Bills appeared in four consecutive Super Bowls in the early 1990s, and the food most associated with that upstate New York city is chicken wings — deep-fried wings, tossed in hot sauce, accompanied by raw carrots, celery and blue cheese dressing. Teressa Bellissimo of the Anchor Bar in Buffalo is credited with coming up with the dish in 1964.

It took a while for the concept to explode nationally and become associated with Super Bowl parties.

Buffalo Wild Wings, founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1982, started expanding with franchises nationwide 10 years later — while the Bills were in the midst of their Super Bowl run.

The expansion of Buffalo Wild Wings also coincided with the advent of sports bars, and every outlet features big-screen TVs. The chain added to its 1,238 locations last month with a grand opening at a new Ala Moana Center (942-5445) restaurant, joining those in Ewa Beach (685-0494), Kaneohe (236-0838) and Pearl City (260-9464).

Super Bowl Sunday is by far the biggest day for BDubs, whether it be dine-in or take-out orders.

“Of course,” said Kyle Hochholter, a manager at the Pearl City location. “Last year there were about 14 million wings sold companywide.”