TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep-frying chicken pieces in fat and even previously 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 other seasonings to the procedure andmakingtheir own versionof crispy fried chicken. These Africans later went on to become thecaterersin many a Southern American home where deep-fried chicken became a ordinary staple.
They also discovered that it transported well inhotclimate in the times before refrigeration was everyday so was eaten on almost an every day basis as they went to the cotton fields to work. Since then it has become the southern state's top choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a guy named James Boswell who wrote adiaryin 1773 known as “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his record he noted that at an evening meal the local people would eat fricassee of chicken which he went on to say “crispy deep-fried chicken or something like that”. What he in reality heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.
The very true origins of crispy deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known recipe for fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most notable culinary books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cooking Made Plain and Easy. Her mix had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first available in 1747. The book was a hit in the England and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original procedure...
Cut two chickens into quarters; 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 well, dip yourfowlsin the batter and fry them in a excellent deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of golden incolour and serve them on your plate with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemons 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 procedure has travelled worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
