Since 1930, Colonel Harland Sanders’ Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe has been a greasy, crispy, delicious mystery — but no longer.
Last week, writer Jay Jones reported in the Chicago Tribune that while visiting the Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum in Corbin, Ky., for a travel story, he stumbled upon the long-sought-after recipe (below) in a Sanders family scrapbook.
KFC public relations quickly denied that Jones had really uncovered Sanders’ magical mixture, but Tribune recipe testers say the spices — plus an added dash of MSG — produce a fried chicken with a flavor nearly identical to that of the popular fast-food chain.
Matt Duckor, the senior editor at the recipe Web site Epicurious, says the clandestine nature of certain dishes is part of what makes them so appealing.
“People get off on secret recipes because they let you in on something,” says Duckor. But “the best ones can be figured out.”
Here, experts reveal what goes into seven of NYC’s most beloved dishes.
KFC’s secret recipe
According to a document obtained by the Chicago Tribune, the Colonel’s secret recipe may be 2 cups of white flour blended with the following 11 herbs and spices. For best results, the newspaper suggests soaking chicken in buttermilk before coating it with the mixture and frying.
⅔ tbsp. salt
½ tbsp. thyme
½ tbsp. basil
⅓ tbsp. oregano
1 tbsp. celery salt
1 tbsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. dried mustard
4 tbsp. paprika
2 tbsp. garlic salt
1 tbsp. ground ginger
3 tbsp. white pepper
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Shake Shack secret sauce
Robert Miller Danny Meyer’s burger joint has drawn mobs of meatheads since 2004 with juicy patties topped with a tangy, slightly acidic sauce. Epicurious’ Duckor spent hours working in the test kitchen to reverse-engineer it.
“We knew it was mayo-heavy along with ketchup,” Duckor says. “But [it also] has supercharged flavor. So we played around and added McClure’s spicy pickle juice to give it spice — along with garlic powder, paprika, onion powder and Dijon mustard.” He says they achieved success: “It’s pretty damned close to the real thing.”
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L&B Spumoni Gardens pizza sauce
Christian Johnston The Gravesend, Brooklyn, pizzeria is famous for the sauce that tops its Sicilian slices. In 2009, there was even a mob-tinged tiff over the recipe supposedly being stolen.
Feuds aside, it’s delicious. John Arena, an NYC native and the co-owner of Metro Pizza in Las Vegas, claims to know how to make it himself.
“A lot of modern pizza places use cold sauce straight from a can,” he says. “L&B Spumoni Gardens cooks down canned tomatoes from Italy with onion, garlic and a lot of olive oil. The onions help to give the sauce sweetness.”
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Katz’s Delicatessen pastrami
Brian Zak Since 1910, the Lower East Side deli has served up sandwiches piled with smoked meat flavored by a secret spice rub. Ryan Farr, the owner and butcher of 4505 Meats in San Francisco, claims to have replicated the pastrami by injecting brisket with a brine of water, salt, sugar, coriander seeds, peppercorns and chili flakes and then coating it in a rub of peppercorns, coriander seeds and kosher salt.
Katz’s says it doesn’t inject its meat but instead ages it for up to 30 days for tender flavor, but Farr claims his shortcut works.
“[It’s] pretty damned close,” he says. “It’s delicious.”
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Serendipity 3 Frrrozen hot chocolate
Jonathan Baskin Tourists and tots flock to the Upper East Side for this classic confection that combines the best elements of hot cocoa and a chocolate milkshake.
Though a general recipe for the decadent drink has been published, insiders say it’s not detailed enough to taste like the real thing.
Brandi Milloy, who hosts “Get the Dish” on PopSugar.com, says it’s essential to use not one but three kinds of cocoa powder and dry milk. “You use cocoa powder from Scharffen Berger, which is artisanal; Hershey’s, which is classic; and Ghirardelli, which is super rich for elevated flavor,” Milloy says. “Then, you add salt, which wakes up the sweetness.”
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Nathan’s original hot dog
Helayne Seidman A visit to Coney Island is not complete without this famed frankfurter, which relies on a special spice recipe created by founder Nathan Handwerker’s mother-in-law. Farr says he’s made comparable hot dogs using paprika, garlic, onion, salt and coriander seeds. But the most important element, he claims, isn’t the spices. It’s the dog’s natural sheepskin casing.
“That’s what gives [the Nathan’s dog] its snappy bite; not many mass-produced hot dogs have it,” Farr says. “It gets crispier on the outside, keeps in the fat solubles and delivers big flavor.”
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Halal Guys white sauce
Christian Johnston Midtown cubicle workers line up for platters of rice and chicken topped with a mysterious but addictive pale liquid from this beloved street cart. Packets of the sauce list the ingredients — soybean and/or canola oil, egg yolk, vinegar, water, salt, sugar, natural flavors and black pepper — but its exact composition isn’t revealed.
Andrew Knowlton, deputy editor of Bon Appétit, says his staff tried “re-engineering” the ingredients in the magazine’s test kitchen. “We think it’s mayonnaise [made from the first six ingredients listed on the packets] with turmeric, lemon and water.”
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Superiority Burger veggie burger
Gabi Porter Since it opened last summer, this tiny East Village spot has drawn big praise — including a James Beard Award nomination, best burger of the year status from GQ and a best new restaurant nod from Bon Appétit — for its vegetarian patties.
Chef Brooks Headley won’t reveal exactly what goes into the burger, aside from quinoa and walnuts, and says it’s a constantly evolving recipe. He will admit that he uses a potato masher to mix it all together. Duckor says a key aspect is the hot griddle he cooks it on to get a nice sear. That’s how Headley “approximates the crust of a [beef] burger,” Duckor says. Perhaps more details will be revealed when Headley publishes a cookbook in 2017.
