I prefer the first recipe, although the ingredients alone is probably irrelevant - the consensus being that it is solely the MSG and the high pressure deep-frying in a pressure fryer that produces the KFC experience, everything else be damned. If that is correct, then the oven bake of the second method will probably not be very much like Kentucky. Not saying it won't be good, just saying - not Kentucky.
The Word of Mouth KFC challengeI see that Robertsons has a product called Zeal, which apparently is pure MSG. So maybe one should use that, rather than Aromat.
So, my take on it would be:
Marinate the chicken overnight in buttermilk.
Remove the chicken, heat the buttermilk to about 80 degree C and poach the chicken for about 20 minutes. (I'd need to actually do it to see if it will work - maybe add some normal milk to thin it a bit.)
Cool chicken in poaching liquid.
Use the first recipe, but omit the Basil and use 1/2 a teaspoon of freshly ground Cumin and a teaspoon of freshly ground Fennel Seeds instead. Use 'Zeal' where it says MSG.
Remove chicken from poaching liquid and roll in flour/recipe mix.
Deep fry in a temperature controlled deep-fryer. I'd need to get one of those. I'd also need to experiment to get the perfect settings for temperature and time.
This will probably not be quite Kentucky either. I believe it will still deliver the Kentucky experience, but it will be noticeably better than Kentucky - much more succulent and tonnes more flavour. One must remember that the Kentucky process is one designed to deliver fast-food optimally.
I'd have to do the marinading and poaching, because I won't buy a pressure fryer, which will cook the chicken right through much faster under pressure and so keep the chicken soft and preserve the moisture inside. Marinating and poaching followed by a short high temperature deep-fry will do the same thing, just better.