Support NeoGAF

[zeopower6]

Chocolate-fried chicken is in the news this week. Adam Fleischman, founder of the uber-popular Umami Burger chain, is the mastermind behind a soon-to-open Frankensteinian creation called “ChocoChicken.” In what’s got to be good news for those who hate having to choose between sweet and savory cravings, the restaurant will open in Los Angeles around April 15th, Fleischman told us. That’s just in time for you to spend your tax refund on dark chocolate–doused fried chicken.

This isn’t the first instance of chocolate and chicken pairing off, of course. Puebla’s mole poblano employs chocolate (along with many other ingredients), but Fleischman insisted to a Fast Company reporter that this wasn’t the inspiration behind this new hybrid, the idea for which originated with a cold call from a duo named Keith Previte and Sean Robbins. Fleischman told us the hybrid “tastes like heaven,” and uses “multiple chocolates, all dark. Some are powdered, some are liquid.”

Some planned menu items:

Salmon: Fleischman is curious about chocolate here, too (go figure): “I might try a salmon mole. I’ve never seen anyone do that.” He’d combine elements of a mole poblano, which uses chocolate, with a black mole negro, which features burned chiles, for the bitter note to balance out the sweet flavor.

Caviar: “One of my favorite foods in the world,” says Fleischman. “I like to put zest in it and pair it with Japanese ingredients like yuzu.” OK, then!

Grits: Fleischman has no fear about introducing other world cuisines into the Southern standby, whether treating grits like polenta and ladling ragú over them—”maybe with chicken livers!”—or topping them with saag paneer. He might even top the saag with white miso, for a last bit of umami.

Licorice: Fleischman’s brain goes straight to vegetables for licorice. We expected to hear “fennel” straightaway; instead we heard “corn.” Corn soup, caramelized in a pressure cooker, then “hit it with licorice powder and tarragon and balsamic.”

Potatoes: White chocolate mashed potatoes are on the menu at ChocoChicken, with a slab of the sweet stuff standing in for butter. (There’s Red Boat fish sauce in there, too.)

Eggs: “I like to do a coddled egg in a water bath—you would put whole anchovies in the ramekins before you do it—and then black truffle puree.” There’s more: “I’d put umami spread on top (one of our products), almost like a dashi broth, and you bake it.” Sounds like one hell of a hangover killer.

Tuna: Fleischman would go visual with this one: “I’d love to do raw tuna loin with an umami ‘soil’ out of different ground things, like ground mushrooms, soy powder, those types of elements to give it a real earthiness.”

Parmesan: Ice cream + cheese = some serious awesomeness. “I would do a Parmesan ice cream with some candy cap mushrooms, maple, maybe balsamic on top of that, maybe chocolate sauce.”

Vanilla: When we said vanilla, Fleischman’s mashup brain went straight to seafood—lobster and spot prawns—a pairing so rich and decadent-sounding, we’ll be making this savory lobster bread pudding with vanilla chive sauce as soon as possible.

http://www.chocochicken.com/
https://twitter.com/EatChocoChicken
https://www.yahoo.com/food/free-associating-mashups-with-the-mastermind-behind-79984102238.html

Yay or nay? I'll try it once.

 

[WorldStar]

Umami Burger is overrated

this place will likely be overrated

 

[zeopower6]

Most likely, but Umami seems to do okay enough. One just opened about 5 mins from me and seems to do pretty well.

 

[Parallax]

chocolate chicken? sounds very similar to mole. hopefully it takes off and mole can become more recognized

 

[Zeppeli]

Chocolate coated fried chicken

 

[golem]

Umami burger is all right.. kind of interested in trying this

 

[Mercury Fred]

Gross dude

 

[Chanser]

I would try this chocochicken.

 

[XenodudeX]

why

 

[Parallax]

Gross dude

If its anything like mole, it could be delicious.

 

[zeopower6]

It's not really like mole from what I've read so far.

 

[mikeGFG]

fuck that

and fuck umami

 

[Beant]

Salmon mole sounds absolutely disgusting

 

[Rentahamster]

chocolate fried chicken sounds frickin awesome

 

[triplestation]

Modern art

 

[Dennis]

Choke-a-chicken

 

[hidys]

Well that's pretty gross.

 

[Raw64life]

Sounds gross, but if you put it in front me I'd probably try it.

 

[SenorArdilla]

So is this the cocoa bean or the processed chocolate? Because if it's the confectionery, that sounds disgusting.

 

[xk0sm0sx]

I think the combination works.
I can already taste it.

 

[zeopower6]

So is this the cocoa bean or the processed chocolate? Because if it's the confectionery, that sounds disgusting.

No idea. They just say it's multiple kinds of chocolates in different forums.

They're really getting into weird savory/sweet territory with this place.

 

[DJ88]

Bet it tastes amazing. Combinations of sweet and salty are the best.

 

[maxcriden]

I only went to Umami when they first opened and I really liked it. Is it still as good as it originally was?

 

[Mechazawa]

Don't really get some of the gross out comments in here. The combination doesn't sound amazing or anything, but mixing chicken with chocolate sounds pretty inoffensive.

 

[AnathemicOne]

Wtf? Disgusting.

 

[The Abominable Snowman]

Don't really get some of the gross out comments in here. The combination doesn't sound amazing or anything, but mixing chicken with chocolate sounds pretty inoffensive.

When people think fried chicken+chocolate, they think KFC fried chicken dipped in Hersheys.

Im thinking it'll be more like