Themigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Usa had a tradition of deep frying chicken pieces in fat and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The Scottish immigrants would often work, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some new spices to the dish anddevelopingtheir own interpretationof fried chicken. These Africans later evolved to be thefood preparersin many a Southern American house where crispy deep-fried chicken became a typical staple. They also found that it lasted well well inwarmtemperatures before refrigeration was prevalent so was consumed on almost every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to labor. Since, it has become the region’s best optionfor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a man named James Boswell who wrote adiaryin 1773 named “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his log he noted that at dinner the local people would eat fricassee of pullet which he went on to say “fried chicken or something like that”. What he in reality 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 fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known recipe for crispy deep-fried chicken in English is hidden away in one of the most well-known cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy. Her recipe had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first published in 1747. The book was a success in the UK and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original food...
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 yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a good quality deal of hogs lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of light golden incolour and arrange them on your plate with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a good gravy. Presently, we have swapped out 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 dish has travelled worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
