TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of America had a custom of deep-frying chicken pieces in fat and even before this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The immigrants from Scotland would often labor, live and dine with the indentured Africans and this lead to the Africans adding some new spices to the dish andmakingtheir own presentationof fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thechefsin many a Southern American home where fried chicken became a frequent staple. They also found that it lasted well well inhotweather in the times before refrigeration was prevalent so was consumed on almost a daily basis as they walked to the cotton fields to work. Since then it has become the south's top choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a chap called James Boswell who wrote ajournalin 1773 named “record of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his record he noted that at mealtime the local people would eat fricassee of pullet which he went on to say “fried chicken or something like that”. What he in actuality 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 crispy deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known procedure for crispy fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most famous cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her recipe 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 US Colonies.
Here is the original recipe...
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 the yolks of two eggssome 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 place them on your platter with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with cut lemon and a fine gravy. Today, we have changed 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 formula has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
