How Does Taco Bell Turn Everything, Including Fried Chicken, Into Taco Shells?

Last fall, we began hearing reports that Taco Bell was testing taco shells made from fried chicken, because that’s an actual thing that people would definitely eat. The fall test was in Bakersfield, CA, and they also tested them in Kansas City last month. Where do they come from, though? Is it simply a Tex-Mex Double Down?

Buzzfeed’s Venessa Wong was able to learn more about the creation of the shell product, which has since been renamed the Naked Chicken Chalupa. The shell comes from one of Taco Bell’s apparent guiding principles of the last few years: fold a variety of flat foods in half and call them tacos.

The Naked Chicken Chalupa will be going nationwide fairly soon, and the company’s test kitchen wizards explained to Wong how they make these shells in-store. The shells arrive flat, but already breaded and seasoned. They’re fried in the shaping basket contraption that you see above to give them a taco-shell shape, which is also how they turned various breakfast foods into taco shells in-store.

Here’s How Taco Bell Makes A Taco Shell Out Of Fried Chicken [Buzzfeed]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist