This post is about cultural integration citing KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) as an example.

As one the world’s most populous Muslim nations, Indonesia’s rice production is the fourth largest in the world. [1] It is also the place where a western fast food giant, KFC have become so popular and successful amongst the local people. KFC is so well accepted and patronised by people across Asia that it is a household name.

“Do you want to eat KFC?”

Notice I do not use the word article ‘at’ as in “Do you want to eat at KFC restaurant?” It is not just a name or place, but a brand.

Asian Immersion: Fingers, Fork And Spoon

KFC fast food chains serve potato chips or french fries in many parts of the world. However in Indonesia, steamed rice is on the menu. For the uninitiated, this could pose a cultural discomfort: “How would you eat rice with a plastic spoon at a fast food restaurant?” As you wait in the queue at the service counter, you notice many people are already demonstrating how easy it is to eat rice and chicken together: just dig in with your fingers! Spread the tomato sauce on top (there always seems to be endless flow of sauce) of the food and you are in for a tasty treat. Steamed rice, is wrapped in greaseproof paper, that fits easily in the palm of your hand. When eating it, rice is mixed with the fried chicken, shredded to pieces with skilful fingers. You can’t help but wonder if you start eating in the same way, you may just as well be in an Asian immersion programme. No knives! Just spoons and forks.

Rice Is Staple

Rice is so common with Asian meals that when an Asian person prefers bread to rice, he/she is regarded as having a Western pallete. This is not something racist or anything, just that western cuisines are often associated with bread, potato and fries. Yes of course, Asians can eat them at anytime, but the dishes that accompany these carbo rich food have to be different also.

KFC Logo

Ok. Back to Kentucky Fried Chicken. There are two types, maybe 3, which help you identify the ubiquitous KFC restaurant: the kind face of an old man from Kentucky and the chicken of course. There is no need to explain to kids who this man is; the real deal is the chicken. “They taste better than mum’s homecooked fried chicken.”Besides an elderly face like him is perfectly harmless.

The Men On The Streets

KFC brand of fried chicken recipe is so popular that the men on the streets who cannot afford to eat at a fast food  restaurant can buy from the regular street hawker who also serves fried chicken marinated with KFC “Ayam Goreng rasa Kentucky” meaning “Kentucky flavoured fried chicken”. As fast food restaurants are not affordable to many thousands of Indonesians, eating KFC fried chicken cooked with the original recipe is certainly very special for them.

Bringing the idea of eating fried chicken to the men on the streets is so simple that it takes just a dancing chicken to do that, like the video here.

JuNK Food

French fries or fried potato chips are also considered junk food. So by buying a few pieces of fried chicken, they can prepare steamed rice and vegetables at home. Usually the chicken are sold at  5,000 rupiah per quarter piece.

Reaching To The Muslim World: Changing Perspectives

Reaching to the Muslim world by serving ‘halal’ fried chicken with rice or chips means changing the perception that the western world can neither adapt nor assimilate with local conditions. As a kid, I used to watch and help my dad slaughter chickens for our meals. The whole cooking process of slaughtering, plucking the feathers, washing, cutting and marinating the chicken before we could start cooking it was extremely long. One thing I learnt, which I later realised is so important, is that Muslims can only eat halal food. So when a Muslim slaughters his own poultry, his food is halal for him to eat. At that time, there were not western fast food restaurants nor were there need for them. People prepare their own meals at home.

Reaching To Asian Parents

Anyway, ‘halal’ fast food restuarants, like McDonalds, KFC, Subway (in Malaysia, not in Singapore) and Swensens become the places to eat western food. Asian parents , whether or not they are Muslims, dkeep comparing them to their homecooked meals which are healthier, fresher and most of all cheaper. Parents started learning how to prepare burgers, potato chips, coleslaw and mashed potatoes so the kids would not ask to go to these places. The fear of feeding kids junk food drives Asian families to bring home western recipes into their kitchen, bringing about a form of cultural assimilation and appreciation, through food revolution.

Western Eastern Food Fusion

Out of the bellies the mouth speaks. I love talking about food, so bear with me. Despite the success of western-eastern food fusion, we have learnt to avoid eating at fast food restaurants for many reasons. One of the reasons is that they are generally only use frozen meat. Nothing wrong with it if you know how to prepare.  I told you I learnt to cook since I was a kid. You can easily tell if chickens are fresh or not. Just peel off the meat from the bones and if they appear brownish red on the inside, they are not fresh.

Reaching Asian With Rice

What makes KFC successful then may not be their secret recipe. The whole concept of serving rice at a fast food restaurant and a western at that, is a novel idea and kids crave for them so much, parents do not mind bringing them to eat there some times because they do serve rice and they are ‘halal’. For Muslims, this is a big deal.

In Singapore, the fast food giant started KFC a.m. and one of the items on the menu is chicken rice porridge or bubur ayam, another staple Asian breakfast meal. In Hong Kong, the signature Asian dish is noodles. In Indonesia, it would be steamed rice. Fried chicken is one type of food that appeals to any culture. Like they say in an ad from Malaysia, “Its far too good to rush.”

KFC’s Globalization of Padang Sidempuan, Indonesia

KFC Breakfast Malaysia Ad

Hong Kong KFC breakfast ad