TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of Us had a tradition of deep-frying chicken in lard and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The migrants from Scotland would often labor, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some new seasoning to the process andproducingtheir own interpretationof crispy fried chicken. These Africans later became thecaterersin many a Southern American family where crispy fried chicken became a regular staple. They also learned that it journeyed well inhottemperatures in the times before refrigeration was everyday so was consumed on almost an every day basis as they journeyed to the cotton fields to work. Since then it has become the southern state's preferred choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a man named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 known as “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his diary he noted that at an evening meal the local folks would eat fricassee of chicken which he went on to say “deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in reality heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy deep-fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.
The very true origins of fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known procedure for deep-fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most well-known culinary books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse named The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her formula had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a success in the UK and more importantly in the Usa Colonies.
Here is the original formula...
Joint two chickens into quarters; lay them in vinegar for 3-4 hours with pepper, salt, bay and a few cloves. Make a very thick batter first with ½ pint of wine and flour then the yolks of two eggsa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together thoroughly, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a high-quality deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of a fine browncolour and set them on your platter with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with cut lemon and a good gravy. In the present day, we have swapped out the hog fat with Rapeseed oil which contains nearly zero trans fats and we use a brine of buttermilk and salt to season our chicken throughout. It’s amazing to think how far this recipe has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
