TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of America had a custom of deep-frying poultry in lard and even further back they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The Scrotish migrants would often labor, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some extra seasonings to the recipe andmakingtheir own interpretationof crispy fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thechefsin many a Southern American household where fried chicken became a ordinary staple. They also observed that it travelled well inhotweather prior to refrigeration was everyday so was eaten on almost an every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to work. Since then it has become the southern state's top choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a man named James Boswell who wrote adiaryin 1773 known as “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his diary he noted that at an evening meal the local folks would eat fricassee of capon which he went on to say “fried chicken or something like that”. What he in fact heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.
The very true origins of deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known food for crispy deep-fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most well-known cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her recipe 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 procedure...
Cut two chickens into quarters; 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 the yolks of two eggssome melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together very well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a good quality deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of light golden incolour and arrange them on your platter with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemons and a superior gravy. Nowadays, 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 process has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
