Popeyes New Ghost Pepper Chicken Wings Were Totally Bland — Here's My Review As A Chicken And Spice Lover
A disgrace for a wonderful establishment.
I love chicken wings and I love spicy foods. Spice brings something new to the table and it brings so much extravagant flavor into the palate. It is exhilarating, almost like a high, you cannot get enough of it.
Unfortunately, the Popeyes ghost pepper chicken wings will not give you that feeling. I cannot believe Popeyes, a great establishment for fried chicken, created something so disgraceful. Let us dig into my review for the Popeyes ghost pepper chicken wings.
Price
Price is going to vary by location. For me, since I live in the Grand Rapids area, the price for six pieces was $8.39 and for twelve pieces were $11.99. I ordered the twelve piece option, and deeply regret buying the twelve piece.
You will see why when you read this review that it is not worth the price.
Appearance
Peter Truong
When I picked up the first piece, I was disappointed. In fact, the entire box was a disappointment. It is not battered enough as indicated with the picture that above, not to mention, the batter on some of the wings were drenched in oil.
The only thing that I liked about these wings, the color. The batter was light golden brown, but it also had this orange powder inside of the batter if you dissected the entirety of the wing.
Usually, you will find that on the spicy chicken in general, but I would assume it is the "ghost pepper powder." Although it had that light golden brown color, there were some overcooked/burnt parts.
Taste
Fried chicken wings, or fried chicken in general, is a delicacy for soul food. That first bite you hear that crunch, the juice being released, and all of a sudden you make this "mmm" sound indicating how delicious the chicken is.
You will not get that "mmm" effect with this. You are probably going to get an "ugh" effect.
Although it is crisp, juicy, and moist, it is nothing more than a bland piece of meat.
The batter is salty like the Pacific Ocean. I was worried that I would have high blood pressure after my meal. Not to mention, the heat is not present.
Although it has that smoke taste, the hints of the ghost pepper are barely present.
The aromas of a ghost pepper usually has a hint of smoke and almost sweetness into it.
Unfortunately, I received barely any hints of the aroma anywhere, just oil and a little smoke which is probably something burnt. Additionally, the spice was not that of a ghost pepper, probably just black pepper. The spice is supposed to creep up on you like a ghost. The only thing that was creeping up on me was the saltiness.
Overall
I felt that I did not receive what I paid for. It is so disappointing to look at. I would rather look at all the academic exams I ever botched than look at this disappointing piece of food.
There is no spice and it is barely present, it is nothing more than a marketing scam to get people to buy it.
You are better off eating the regular spicy chicken that they have.
If I were to give a ten-star review for this abomination, it would be a two out of ten. I am being generous for that because while it is disappointing in taste and presentation, the juiciness and crispiness are still present.