KFC’s Fake Chicken Burger Is Fungi Seasoned With the 11 Herbs and Spices

KFC’s first ever vegan chicken burger will arrive in London this June: it’s made of Quorn, and it’s called The Imposter. The fried chicken chain joins Gregg’s and its vegan sausage roll in using the widely available mycoprotein, with both companies calling their product ‘bespoke,’ according to I News.

This development is interesting for two key reasons: KFC has launched its vegan offering in the U.K. before the U.S., where executives have preached caution over fake chicken; KFC has therefore beaten Burger King and McDonald’s to the punch in the fast fake meat arms race on this side of the Atlantic. The burger itself is processed to resemble a chicken breast, with the ~~secret~~ coating of herbs and spices, lettuce, vegan mayonnaise, and no fake cheese in site.

Eater London contributor Josh Barrie sampled the burger for I News, and commented that it is “firm and vaguely chicken-y; it’s not too dry or aggressively spongy.” He also, however, pointed out that KFC’s spiced coating is the reason most people eat it: “You could put a school dinner turkey escalope inside the stuff and people would still tuck in.”

Quorn, not famously enough, got its PR department to offer KFC vegan nuggets when its delivery trial with DHL left restaurants all over the country without any chicken. The cycle is complete; the U.K.’s first fast food fake meat is here. With Beyond Meat’s first European factory and Impossible Foods’ exponentially scaling partnership with Burger King waiting in the wings, KFC’s first move is a bold one — the four-week trial from 17 June, which only covers 1 (one) store on Gloucester Road — could establish a baseline for fake meat’s place on the U.K. fast food circuit.