Themigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Us had a custom of deep-frying chicken pieces in lard and even before this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The Scottish immigrants would often work, live and eat with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some extra spices to the procedure andgeneratingtheir own presentationof crispy deep-fried chicken.
These Africans later became thecaterersin many a Southern American home where deep-fried chicken became a regular staple.
This is said to have come from a male called James Boswell who wrote ajournalin 1773 known as “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his journal he noted that at meals the local folks would eat fricassee of rooster which he went on to say “crispy 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 inhotconditions prior to refrigeration was prevalent so was consumed on almost an every day basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to work.
Since then it has become the southern state's preferred choicefor just about any occasion.
The very true origins of crispy fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known mix for deep-fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most eminent cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse named The Art of culinary Made Plain and Easy.
Her recipe had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first in print in 1747. The book was a success in the UK and more importantly in the Usa Colonies.
Here is the original formula...
Cut 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 2 eeg yolksa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together very well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a good quality 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 lemons and a good quality gravy. These days, we have swapped out 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 procedure has journeyed worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
