TheScrotish migrantsfrom 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 labor, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some more spices to the formula andcreatingtheir own interpretationof deep-fried chicken. These Africans later became thecooksin many a Southern American family where crispy fried chicken became a regular staple. They also observed that it lasted well well inhotclimate before refrigeration was seen everyday so was consumed on almost every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to work. Since then it has become the south's go-tofor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a chap named James Boswell who wrote ajournalin 1773 named “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his log he noted that at dinner the local folks would eat fricassee of pullet which he went on to say “crispy deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he really 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 crispy fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known food for crispy fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most eminent cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of cookery Made Plain and Easy. Her mix had a strange name known as “To Marinate Chickens” which was first available in 1747. The book was a hit in the UK and more importantly in the US Colonies.
Here is the original mix...
Cut two chickens into pieces; 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 2 eeg yolkssome melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together very well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a first-class deal of hogs lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of a fine browncolour and serve them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with cut lemon and a first-rate gravy. Presently, we have exchanged 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 procedure has went worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
