Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep frying chicken pieces in lard and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The migrants from Scotland would often labor, live and dine with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some supplementary seasoning to the dish andproducingtheir own versionof fried chicken. These Africans later became thecooksin many a Southern American family where fried chicken became a regular staple. They also learned that it travelled well inwarmclimatic conditions prior to refrigeration was seen everyday so was consumed on almost a daily basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to labor. Since, it has become the region’s top choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a guy known as James Boswell who wrote ajournalin 1773 named “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his record he noted that at an evening meal the local people would eat fricassee of pullet which he went on to say “crispy deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in fact 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 fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known dish for deep-fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most eminent cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy. Her dish had a strange name known as “To Marinate Chickens” which was first available in 1747. The book was a hit in the England and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original process...
Joint 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 thoroughly, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a fine deal of pork shorteningwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of golden incolour and serve them on your plate with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon wedges and a superior gravy. Nowadays, we have replaced 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 dish has went worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
