Just One Food - KFC's Sambal Rice Bowl

I recently discovered a new item on KFC's Value Treats menu (at least to me since I don't visit KFC all that much) - the Sambal Rice Bowl & Loaded Potato Bowl @ RM5.50 each.  Ok, maybe it's not a new item since I read a comment on their Facebook that said "it's back"...I wonder how long it'll be around this time! 

I'm not going to talk about the Loaded Potato Bowl filled with Zinger chunks and corn in creamy whipped potato, topped with their signature cheesy sauce and mayonnaise coz I'm not a fan of their whipped potato to start with and then loaded with cheese and mayo sauce don't sound all that inviting to me.

I'm going to talk about the Sambal Rice Bowl with KFC Colonel Chicken Rice topped with crispy Zinger chunks and a generous dose of sambal.  What's there not to like?  I can think of 3 reasons:

1)  You get flavoured chicken rice (not white rice).

The rice was served hot (or at least warm) and that's a plus (in my books).

2)  You get to eat crispy Zinger chunks of chicken breast fillet.

It's like eating KFC hot & spicy chicken, only without the hassle of going through bones...yay!

No complaints as the Zinger chunks were nice and crunchy.

3)  Everything is then doused with lots of sambal!

It's like eating nasi lemak but with KFC chicken ;)

The sambal had a fair amount of ikan bilis in it...it was sweet and savoury and not spicy at all.  Not the best sambal but still an acceptable rendition though some may find this a tad too sweet or salty for their taste buds.

As for the size of the Sambal Rice Bowl, it's probably about the size of the KFC Curry Rice Bucket that realgunner.com blogged about (based on the pic I saw on his blog since I've not eaten that).  At least this time it's aptly named as a "bowl" instead of calling it a "bucket" which was certainly more misleading.

The portion in the rice bowl was a cause for contention among some customers (as seen on their Facebook) as they said it was "not as advertised" as it didn't resemble the picture shown with the rice filled right to the brim.  Now, how one would think that they'd be getting a bowl that resembled the picture baffles me...of course they had to show the rice jutting out from the bowl, otherwise how would we be able to see the (advertised) food! @_@  If they were to serve it like that, how do you expect them to close the lid?  Of course, customers are still entitled to complain that the portion size is too small (maybe they can give a bit more rice) but saying that it's totally different from the advertised pic is just simply ridiculous!

This is certainly a "value treat" at the price of RM5.50 as one bowl can fulfill the needs of a small-eater or when you don't want a heavy dinner, otherwise you'd probably need 1 1/2 - 2 bowls to be fully satisfied.

Would I have this again?  Sure, why not, even if I don't.....my son would!  Well, if you happen to get tired from all that preparation for Chinese New Year and need a break, it's an option you can fall back on for dinner.....haha...it may not be the most wondrous dinner but it's still dinner! :D