TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of America had a tradition of deep-frying poultry in fat and even previously they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The migrants from Scotland would often labor, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some new seasoning to the process andmakingtheir own versionof crispy fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thechefsin many a Southern American home where crispy fried chicken became a universal staple.
They also discovered that it journeyed well inhotweather conditions in the times before refrigeration was common so was enjoyed on almost an every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to labor. Since, it has become the region’s most suitable choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a gentleman called James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 known as “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his diary he noted that at meals the locals would eat fricassee of capon 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 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 formula for deep-fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most renowned culinary books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy. Her food had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a hit in the England and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original dish...
Cut two chickens into pieces; 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 2 eeg yolksa little 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 dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemons and a good 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 mix has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
