Colonel Sanders’ Descendant Claims to Reveal Original KFC Recipe

A family feud over fried chicken has spilled onto social media after Colonel Sanders’ great-great-great-nephew shared what he says is the original Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe.

The Viral Reveal

Posting under the handle @realcolonelsanders, the self-described family historian said he chose to share the recipe only after the KFC brand blocked him on social media.

In the video, he explained that his account had always been about “upholding Colonel Sanders’s legacy and the Kentucky Fried Chicken history.” But after criticizing KFC’s advertising team as “weird, disrespectful, and disgusting,” he said the company cut off his access.

“Over the last decade, they have sexualized my uncle for marketing purposes. They have encouraged fans to sexualize him as well,” he said in the video.

Frustrated, he told viewers: “Do you want to know how to make their chicken? Truly, genuinely, their chicken? This recipe I put together through facts.”

Sharing the Ingredients

He then displayed a full recipe onscreen, claiming it came from both family sources and public records. According to him, the 11 original spices are: sage, garlic powder, cardamom, cayenne, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, coriander, ginger, white pepper, and black pepper.

He credited Lee Cummings, Colonel Sanders’ nephew, with safeguarding the recipe, while also rejecting a 2016 leak as inaccurate. “I have facts and receipts to back up my recipe. Show us what yours is,” he challenged KFC.

He added that his measurements came directly from his grandfather, though he encouraged cooks to adjust them to taste. “Sage is the first ingredient to the original recipe,” he declared.

Criticism of KFC

The TikTok creator also accused the company of abandoning quality standards, pointing to lawsuits from the 1970s and 1980s that involved disputes over the recipe.

“Two million people have seen my video calling out Kentucky Fried Chicken for the sexualization of my uncle over the last decade,” he said in a follow-up post. That number has since grown to eight million views.

Social Media Reaction

TikTok users quickly flooded the comments, with many expressing excitement about trying the recipe themselves.

“I need the cooking method, I’m really excited to try the recipe, just sad my gran isn’t around anymore, she loved KFC and would have been so thrilled to try the original!!” one person wrote.

Another user added, “KFC chicken doesn’t taste the same anymore. To me it tastes different from when I was a kid.”

Some viewers defended the company, noting, “They own the Colonel Sanders name and likeness and therefore can do and use however they see fit.”

One commenter summed it up more humorously: “Colonel Sanders’ great-great-great-nephew leaking the 11 secret herbs and spices was not on my bingo card for 2025.”