TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of Usa had a tradition of deep frying chicken pieces in fat and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The migrants from Scotland would often work, live and eat with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some more flavorings to the recipe anddevelopingtheir own versionof crispy fried chicken. These Africans later became thecaterersin many a Southern American house where crispy deep-fried chicken became a regular staple. They also found out that it journeyed well inwarmclimatic conditions prior to refrigeration was everyday so was consumed on almost an every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to work. Since, it has become the region’s most suitable choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a gentleman named James Boswell who wrote adiaryin 1773 named “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his diary he noted that at mealtime the local people would eat fricassee of fowl which he went on to say “deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in actual fact heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not 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 recipe for deep-fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most famous culinary books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her recipe had a strange name known as “To Marinate Chickens” which was first in print in 1747. The book was a hit in the United kingdom and more importantly in the US Colonies.
Here is the original formula...
Cut two chickens into quarters; marinate 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 excellent deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of golden incolour and lay them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with cut lemon and a good gravy. Now, we have replaced 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 dish has travelled worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
