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This irresistible copycat KFC Famous Bowl is super quick and easy to make at home and tastes even better than the fast food classic. It’s a warm & comforting dinner that the whole family will enjoy!
I love to make recipes from my favorite restaurants in the comfort of my kitchen. I have tons of copycat recipes for you to try! Some of my favorites are this Chick-fil-A sandwich, this delicious Cafe Rio sweet pulled pork and my favorite Cheesecake Factory brown bread!
What is a KFC Famous Bowl?
Colonel Sanders himself describes the KFC Famous Bowl as “Creamy mashed potatoes, sweet corn and chicken nuggets layered together, then drizzled with home-style gravy and topped with a perfect blend of three shredded cheeses”. It’s so simple but hearty and comforting!
If you’re a fan of takeout food but would rather make it at home, give these KFC Bowls a try. You only need 5 ingredients, and in less than 30 minutes your family can be gobbling up a delicious meal.
Ingredients in the KFC Famous Bowl Recipe
We’re using a few shortcuts with this KFC Bowls recipe, which makes getting dinner on the table quicker and easier! Check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all of the exact measurements.
- Mashed Potatoes: Buy premade mashed potatoes from the store for easy prep or make your own!
- Corn: Adds texture and a subtle sweetness to this dish that is so tasty.
- Chicken: I like using frozen popcorn chicken and cooking it in the air fryer because it gets super crispy. You can choose to use small nuggets instead.
- Gravy: The bowls are traditionally made with brown gravy but you can use white gravy, if preferred. Use any favorite brand or make your own gravy from scratch!
- Cheese: Shredded cheddar cheese is the perfect finishing touch!
How to Make KFC Bowls
With this recipe, you can enjoy all the comforting flavors of a KFC Famous Bowl but with fresh, delicious ingredients! Plus, you can customize it just the way you like.
- Prep: Prepare and warm the corn, mashed potatoes, and gravy according to package instructions.
- Cook the Chicken: Prepare the popcorn chicken according to package instructions. Here is my easy fried chicken recipe if you want to make it from scratch!
- Assemble the Bowls: Once all of the ingredients are warm you can assemble the bowls. Divide the ingredients evenly between 4 bowls. First layer the mashed potatoes, followed by the corn, chicken, gravy, and shredded cheese on top.
- Serve. Enjoy while still nice and warm!
Quick Tips
This copycat KFC Famous Bowl is so easy, it’s basically foolproof, but here are a couple of tips to make sure it turns out perfecty!
- Use the air fryer: I HIGHLY recommend heating the chicken in the air fryer. It gives it the perfect “fried chicken” crisp.
- Serving suggestions: This bowl is pretty much a complete meal as-is, but it would be extra delicious with buttermilk biscuits, cowboy beans, carrots or copycat KFC coleslaw.
Recipe Tip
Variations To Try
What makes this Famous Bowl recipe so simple and quick is that it uses ingredients that are already prepared and just need to be heated. However, if you’d rather make the components separately here are some options:
- Mashed Potatoes: Use this recipe for Dad’s famous mashed potatoes. So good!
- Gravy: If you’d like to make your own brown gravy for this bowl, try this very easy, flavorful homemade brown gravy recipe. You don’t even need drippings!
- Chicken: Make your own crispy chicken with this air fryer chicken nuggets recipe.
- Cheese: We love cheddar cheese, but feel free to use any shredded cheese variety, like Monterey Jack, Colby cheese or a taco blend.
- Vegetables: Boost the nutrients by adding sautéed, roasted or steamed veggies to your bowls. Good options are air fryer roasted broccoli, air fryer Brussels sprouts, or garlic balsamic mushrooms.
Storing Leftovers
It’s best to only assemble the amount of bowls that you’ll be eating immediately. The components of this recipe will store best separately.
- In the Refrigerator: Store all of the ingredients in separate airtight containers. Everything will last for 3-4 days.
- To Reheat: When you’re ready to make another bowl, reheat the chicken in the air fryer for a couple of minutes and the other ingredients can be assembled and warmed in the microwave in 30-45 second intervals until heated.
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KFC Famous Bowl
Ingredients
- 4 cups prepared mashed potatoes
- 1 cup frozen corn, cooked or steamed
- 26 ounces frozen popcorn chicken
- 1 cup prepared chicken gravy, jarred
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Prepare and warm the corn, mashed potatoes, and gravy according to package instructions.
- Prepare the popcorn chicken according to package instructions. I HIGHLY recommend heating the chicken in the air fryer. It gives it the perfect "fried chicken" crisp. Here is my easy fried chicken recipe if you want to make it from scratch!
- Once all of the ingredients are warm you can assemble the bowls.
- Divide the ingredients evenly between 4 bowls. First layer the mashed potatoes, followed by the corn, chicken, gravy, and shredded cheese on top.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
