TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of Us had a custom of deep-frying chicken pieces in lard and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The immigrants from Scotland would often labor, live and dine with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some more seasoning to the mix andgeneratingtheir own presentationof fried chicken. These Africans later became thecaterersin many a Southern American house where deep-fried chicken became a universal staple. They also found that it travelled well inwarmclimate in the times before refrigeration was common so was consumed on almost every day basis as they walked to the cotton fields to labor. Since then it has become the south's best optionfor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a male called James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 called “record of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his journal he noted that at an evening meal the local people 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 crispy fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.
The very true origins of crispy deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known procedure for fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most renowned cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her dish had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first in print in 1747. The book was a success in the UK and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original procedure...
Cut two chickens into pieces; 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 2 eeg yolksa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together very well, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a good quality deal of pork shorteningwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of golden incolour and set them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon wedges and a superior gravy. In the present day, 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 recipe has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
