Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep frying poultry in lard and even before this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The Scrotish migrants would often work, live and dine with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some new seasonings to the dish andcreatingtheir own presentationof deep-fried chicken.
These Africans later evolved to be thechefsin many a Southern American home where crispy fried chicken became a regular staple.
This is said to have come from a guy named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 named “log of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his diary he noted that at dinner the local folks would eat fricassee of hen which he went on to say “deep-fried chicken or something like that”.
What he really heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy deep-fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.They also found out that it journeyed well inhottemperatures in the times before refrigeration was common so was consumed on almost a daily basis as they journeyed to the cotton fields to work.
Since then it has become the region’s most suitable choicefor just about any occasion.
The very true origins of crispy deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known formula for fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most notable cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse named The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy.
Her process had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first published in 1747. The book was a success in the United kingdom and more importantly in the Usa Colonies.
Here is the original recipe...
Joint two chickens into pieces; 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 2 eeg yolkssome melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together very well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a excellent deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of bronze incolour and arrange them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon wedges and a first-class gravy. Today, we have exchanged 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 journeyed worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
