Themigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of America had a tradition of deep frying chicken in lard and even before this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The immigrants from Scotland would often work, live and dine with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some extra flavorings to the food anddevelopingtheir own versionof fried chicken. These Africans later became thecooksin many a Southern American house where crispy fried chicken became a regular staple.
They also learned that it travelled well inwarmclimate prior to refrigeration was everyday so was consumed on almost every day basis as they went to the cotton fields to labor. Since then it has become the south's best optionfor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a gentleman known as James Boswell who wrote alogin 1773 called “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his journal he noted that at dinner the local folks would eat fricassee of rooster which he went on to say “crispy deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in reality 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 fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known recipe for crispy fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most famed cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy. Her procedure had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first published in 1747. The book was a success in the United kingdom and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original food...
Joint two chickens into quarters; 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 very well, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a good deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of a fine browncolour and place them on your platter with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon wedges and a superior gravy. Today, 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 mix has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
