Forget World Cup. The real battle is between two different wildly fried chickens that I tried in El Salvador (though they do have KFC). Pollo Campestre is an El Salvador brand, while Pollo Campero is a Guatemalan chain. Both are very popular, but one seems to be more popular . . .
El Salvador’s Pollo Campestre definitely wins the logo game. It combines a very Looney Tunes-style font with a rakish cowboy hat. No chicken, though. I tried a thigh, which all chefs know is the flavor-packed piece. It was seasoned and super juicy. Like, homemade level of juicy.
It has a good bit more heat and salt than KFC, more on-par with Baltimore favorite Royal Farms Store, who did win Food & Wine’s Best Gas Station Fried Chicken. Absolutely, my cousin Tamara would go nutsos for it — we’d have to drive around to find one open in the middle of the night. Pollo Campestre’s chicken is far more juicy than Royal Farm Store, which has a sitting around for a long time quality.
I tasted it at lukewarm temperature, which — if you know the background of fried chicken — is perfectly fine. It was crunchy, not crispy.
Pollo Campero was first created in Guatemala in 1971, that’s supposedly known for deeply seasoned fried chicken. Pollo Camparo comes from an old family recipe and the chicken is marinated and hand-breaded daily for thoroughly imbued flavor. It’s more crunchy than its competitor, with much less heat and less salt. I was thinking that the breading itself is very chicken-y and realized: I think it has chicken bouillon! That’s kind of genius, actually.
Both are served with packs of ketchup.
Is the suspense killin’ ya? Do we have to find shelter from the ensuing fried chicken war? I hear that most Salvadorans like Guatemala’s Pollo Camparo the best . . . and I do, too. I prefer the true chicken flavor and always feel better if I’m keeping salt to a dull roar.
Luxe & Down-Home Cuisine/Culture/Travel/Style 