Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Us had a custom of deep-frying chicken pieces in fat and even before this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The Scrotish migrants would often labor, live and dine with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some supplementary seasoning to the procedure andgeneratingtheir own versionof Southern Fried Chicken.
These Africans later became thechefsin many a Southern American household where crispy deep-fried chicken became a ordinary staple.
This is said to have come from a man named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 called “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his diary he noted that at meals the local people would eat fricassee of poultry which he went on to say “deep-fried chicken or something like that”.
What he actually heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy deep-fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.They also discovered that it travelled well inhotweather before refrigeration was common so was consumed on almost an every day basis as they went to the cotton fields to work.
Since then it has become the south's best optionfor just about any occasion.
The very true origins of crispy fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known dish for deep-fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most well-known cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy.
Her food had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a success in the United kingdom and more importantly in the American 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 the yolks of two eggssome melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together very well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a superior deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of golden incolour and lay them on your bowl with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a good quality gravy. Nowadays, 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 dish has journeyed worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
