Themigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of America had a custom of deep frying poultry in lard and even before this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The immigrants from Scotland would often work, live and eat with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some supplementary seasonings to the process andmakingtheir own versionof fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thecooksin many a Southern American home where crispy deep-fried chicken became a frequent staple.
They also found out that it lasted well well inhotconditions before refrigeration was prevalent so was consumed on almost every day basis as they journeyed to the cotton fields to work. Since, it has become the south's top choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a man named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 called “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his journal he noted that at dinner the local folks would eat fricassee of fowl which he went on to say “crispy deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in actual fact 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 crispy fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known dish for fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most famed cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her process had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a success in the United kingdom and more importantly in the US Colonies.
Here is the original process...
Cut two chickens into quarters; 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 well, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a first-class deal of pork shorteningwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of bronze incolour and set them on your plate with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with cut lemon and a good gravy. Nowadays, we have replaced the hog fat with Rapeseed oil which has 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 food has journeyed worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
