Kyl Haselbauer has 20 years of experience working in fine-dining and modernist kitchens, including Bar Cotto and Anchovies &amp; Olives in Seattle. He is also the owner of Bright Spot, a café and coffee shop in Seattle.

Kyl Haselbauer

A closely guarded seasoning is one of the pillars of really good fried chicken. We’re pulling back the curtain and sharing our own variation of the iconic 11 herbs and spices. (Okay, technically, our ingredient count comes to 12. But we’re betting the Colonel’s not counting sea salt as one of his 11, either.) As we embarked on a journey of epic fried poultry proportions—from uncovering all things fried chicken, to creating the ultimate <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/air-french-fried-chicken">air-fried chicken</a> and an epic KFC-inspired fried turkey Thanksgiving dinner (stay tuned, friends, it’s on the way!)—we knew we’d be judged not just on the crispiness of our breading but also the flavors in our seasoning blend. Only one man was up for the job: Chef Kyl. He has excellent fried chicken experience, straight from the source of those herbs and spices. In fact, he still has his name tag. Kyl dove deep into his flavor bank to develop this mix that we think is spot on. And we’re not keeping it a secret.

Not-So-Secret 12 Herbs & Spices Fried Chicken Seasoning