Conbini food review: 7-Eleven Karaage on a stick

While trying new conbini foods is one of the goals of these reviews, sometimes it is necessary to report on something tried and true. This karaage (fried chicken) is a personal favourite.

Nearly a couple of years ago, I was buying this karaage on a stick so often after work each day that the cashier at the 7-Eleven once retrieved and packaged up the chicken before I had even approached the counter and asked for it.

I do not eat it nearly quite as often anymore, but now feels like a good time to put this poultry through its paces.

Starting with the outside, the crispy, salty coating provides a perfect first crunchy bite, as the outside cracks and breaks to reveal the soft, hot, delicious chicken inside. The balance is perfect; it is not hard or brittle on the outside, nor soggy and wet on the inside.

There are a generous four pieces of karaage on a stick, which eventually poses some problems. The first piece can be pulled off the stick in one clean bite and enjoyed without second thought. The following bite, in which one enjoys the second piece of chicken, is a little different. The pointed end of the stick is not exposed presenting some level of danger. This is fairly easily negotiated, however, by a steady hand and some focus.

Now we turn things up a gear. On the third bite of chicken, we have a couple of inches of pointy wooden stick to beware of. This requires a choice: continue to eat in the same manner as previously, risking severe injury to the mouth or throat; or eat the third piece horizontally on the stick. This go-sideways choice is a risk in itself. It’s not possible to take the whole piece in one bite, so the eater must nibble away at it. All the while hoping not to eat so much at once as to make the karaage fall to the ground. (Speaking from experience, seeing your perfectly fried chicken splat and scatter across the pavement is a haunting memory.)

The fourth and final piece poses the same conundrum but with more danger and higher stakes. A well experienced conbini visitor will know of the option to turn the stick the other way and eat the final piece from the non-pointed end.

All of the above can be avoided by using one’s fingers to slide the third and fourth pieces up to the end of the stick. The downsides of this option include greasy finger tips and, the far worse, sense of shame from being defeated by some fried chicken and a wooden stick.

This is top tier conbini food. Add the risk of a punctured oesophagus and you’ve got a whole experience. What’s flavour with a little dangerous fun? Rating: 10 out of 10 taste, 1 in 10 chance of throat injury.