Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Us had a tradition of deep frying poultry in fat and even further back they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The immigrants from Scotland would often work, live and dine with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some new seasonings to the recipe andbuildingtheir own interpretationof crispy deep-fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thefood preparersin many a Southern American family where crispy deep-fried chicken became a frequent staple. They also discovered that it travelled well inhotconditions before refrigeration was commonplace so was enjoyed on almost a daily basis as they journeyed to the cotton fields to labor. Since then it has become the south's preferred choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a man known as James Boswell who wrote alogin 1773 known as “log of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his diary he noted that at mealtime the locals would eat fricassee of fowl which he went on to say “deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in reality heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy deep-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 mix for deep-fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most eminent cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse named 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 hit in the England and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original dish...
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 yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a good deal of pork shorteningwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of light golden incolour and set them on your bowl with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a superior gravy. Presently, we have changed the hog fat with Rapeseed oil which features 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 walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
