Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of America had a tradition of deep frying poultry in lard and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The Scrotish migrants would often work, live and dine with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some supplementary seasoning to the process andmakingtheir own versionof fried chicken. These Africans later evolved to be thechefsin many a Southern American household where deep-fried chicken became a typical staple.
They also found out that it transported well inwarmclimate in the times before refrigeration was commonplace so was consumed on almost an every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to labor. Since then it has become the south's best choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a chap named James Boswell who wrote alogin 1773 known as “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his journal he noted that at meals the locals would eat fricassee of pullet which he went on to say “fried chicken or something like that”. What he in fact heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.
The very true origins of deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known mix for crispy fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most eminent cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her process had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first available in 1747. The book was a hit in the United kingdom and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original mix...
Cut two chickens into pieces; steep 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 eggssome melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together thoroughly, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a good quality deal of hogs lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of light golden incolour and lay them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with cut lemon and a good quality gravy. Now, we have replaced the hog fat with Rapeseed oil which features 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 dish has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
