Themigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Us had a custom of deep frying chicken in lard and even previously they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The Scrotish migrants would often work, live and eat with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some other seasoning to the procedure andgeneratingtheir own presentationof fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thechefsin many a Southern American household where crispy fried chicken became a common staple. They also discovered that it transported well inhotconditions before refrigeration was seen everyday so was enjoyed on almost every day basis as they went to the cotton fields to work. Since then it has become the southern state's go-tofor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a chap known as James Boswell who wrote ajournalin 1773 called “journal of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his diary he noted that at mealtime the locals would eat fricassee of rooster which he went on to say “deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in actuality heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not crispy fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.
The very true origins of deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known procedure for fried chicken in English is stashed in one of the most prominent cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse named The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her dish had a strange name named “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released 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 quarters; 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 high-quality deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of a fine browncolour and set them on your platter with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a high-quality gravy. Nowadays, we have substituted 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 food has went worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
