Themigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep-frying poultry in lard and even previously they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The Scrotish migrants would often labor, live and dine with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some new flavorings to the procedure andproducingtheir own interpretationof crispy deep-fried chicken. These Africans later evolved to be thecooksin many a Southern American household where crispy fried chicken became a common staple.
They also observed that it journeyed well inwarmweather conditions before refrigeration was commonplace so was consumed on almost a daily basis as they walked to the cotton fields to work. Since, it has become the south's best optionfor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a gentleman named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 named “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his log he noted that at dinner the local folks would eat fricassee of poultry which he went on to say “crispy fried chicken or something like that”. What he actually 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 crispy 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 prominent cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her food had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first in print in 1747. The book was a success in the United kingdom and more importantly in the Usa Colonies.
Here is the original dish...
Joint 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 first-class deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of light golden incolour and lay them on your plate with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a fine gravy. These days, we have exchanged 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 process has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
