Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of America had a custom of deep-frying chicken in lard and even prior to this they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The Scrotish migrants would often labor, live and dine with the African Americans and this lead to the Africans adding some extra seasoning to the procedure andproducingtheir own interpretationof crispy deep-fried chicken.
These Africans later evolved to be thechefsin many a Southern American house where crispy fried chicken became a ordinary staple.
This is said to have come from a male named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 known as “log of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his diary he noted that at meals the local people 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 fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.They also found that it journeyed well inwarmweather conditions in the times before refrigeration was seen everyday so was enjoyed on almost an every day basis as they walked to the cotton fields to labor.
Since then it has become the region’s preferred choicefor just about any occasion.
The very true origins of crispy fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known dish for crispy deep-fried chicken in English is hidden away in one of the most recognized cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy.
Her food had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a hit in the England and more importantly in the Usa Colonies.
Here is the original procedure...
Cut 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 yolksa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together well, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a first-rate deal of pork shorteningwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of a fine browncolour and arrange them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a superior gravy. Now, we have substituted 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 mix has went worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
