A woman is going viral on TikTok after calling out Banquet for giving different cooking instructions for the same meal.
User @flounder098 said she recently purchased Banquet’s original crispy fried chicken and expressed shock at how good it tasted. It was so good, she said, that she later purchased another box of it.
That’s when things got weird.
“I need someone to tell me right here, right now, that I am not going crazy,” @flounder098 said.
The first box, she said, noted that users are supposed to cook the chicken in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Most notably, @flounder098 said, “the first box… told me to [cook] it for 55 to 60 minutes.”
But a second box of the same Banquet chicken contained different instructions.
“Same exact box,” @flounder098 said. “But when I go to double-check the time on the second box that I opened, it’s telling me to cook [the chicken] at 400 for 35 to 40 minutes.”
@flounder098 clarified, too, that she purchased both boxes of chicken from the same store.
“I am so confused,” the content creator said. As a result, she called on Banquet to explain: “You guys need to recall or something because this is crazy.”
As of Sunday, @flounder098’s video calling out the food brand had amassed more than 143,400 views.
Recalls with some Banquet chicken products
In September 2023, Conagra Brands Inc. announced that it was recalling 254,366 pounds of its Banquet brand frozen chicken strips because the chicken possibly contained pieces of plastic.
The affected boxes, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, would’ve had a “best if used by” date of Dec. 11, 2024, Jan. 1, 2025, or Jan. 7, 2025. “These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase,” its website said.
Already, at least one person suffered an oral injury after eating a piece of chicken that contained plastic.
Of course, the Banquet chicken tender strips meals that were recalled are different from the crispy fried chicken pieces that @flounder098 purchased. And there’s no evidence suggesting that the chicken the content creator purchased is harmful to consume.
In fact, it’s possible that the first, longer cook time was a fluke. Banquet’s own website suggests cooking its original crispy fried chicken in a conventional oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 35 to 40 minutes. “HANDLE CAREFULLY; THEY’RE HOT! Serve and enjoy!” Banquet’s website said.
Viewers offer thoughts on why cook times vary
In the comments of @flounder098’s TikTok post, several viewers shared their own two cents on why the same product might contain different cook times. The consensus appeared to be that the box suggesting an hour-long cooking time likely contained larger pieces of chicken.
“Banquet fried chicken slaps,” one user wrote. “But it’s always inconsistent on the sizes of the pieces.”
“Might be smaller pieces, same weight but different cuts,” another suggested. “Companies are trying to sneak around price gouging.”
@flounder098 @Banquet Records#glitchinthematrix#viral#banquet#case#companymistake#viralbanquet ♬ original sound – loveeveryone.ok?
“Some of those boxes carry different size and different chicken pieces,” one Banquet customer said. “I got a box with 4 chicken pieces and the other has 6, temp might vary based on amount.”
“Probably a misprint or it’s different cuts of chicken,” a fourth viewer wrote.
Others, however, were similarly appalled by the brand’s conflicting instructions and demanded answers.
“Banquet needs a copyeditor,” one viewer quipped.
“The way I’d panic and not know what to do,” another said.
The Daily Dot has reached out to @flounder098 via TikTok comment and to Conagra Brands Inc. through email.
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