The cheapskate diet: KFC sells chicken for a penny a calorie

KFC, the erstwhile Kentucky Fried Chicken, has introduced a special meal promotion with a novel pricing twist: It costs 1 cent a calorie.

The 395-calorie Kentucky Grilled Chicken meal comes with a drumstick and thigh, green beans, mashed potatoes, and gravy. For that square meal, customers pay $3.95.

KFC's grilled chicken, by the way, is the same stuff that the 15,000-store chain was pushing when it served up its botched free chicken giveaway earlier this year.

It's funny that major fast food chains have battled local authorities tooth and nail so they don't have to post calorie information in a conspicuous place (a battle lost in New York City last year), but KFC has chosen to launch a promotion that actually depends on getting the number out there.