TheScrotish migrantsfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep frying chicken pieces in lard and even further back they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The migrants from Scotland would often work, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some supplementary flavorings to the dish andbuildingtheir own presentationof crispy fried chicken.
These Africans later went on to become thechefsin many a Southern American house where crispy deep-fried chicken became a regular staple.
This is said to have come from a male called James Boswell who wrote alogin 1773 called “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his log he noted that at meals the locals would eat fricassee of poultry which he went on to say “fried chicken or something like that”.
What he in actuality heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.They also found out that it transported well inhotweather conditions before refrigeration was everyday so was enjoyed on almost an every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to labor.
Since then it has become the south's best choicefor just about any occasion.
The very true origins of crispy fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known mix for fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most well-known culinary books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse named The Art of cookery Made Plain and Easy.
Her procedure had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a success in the England and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original mix...
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 the yolks of two eggssome melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a first-class deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of bronze incolour and arrange them on your bowl with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a first-class gravy. In the present day, we have changed 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 formula has went worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
