Theimmigrants from Scotlandfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep frying chicken in lard and even further back they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The Scottish immigrants would often work, live and dine with the indentured Africans and this lead to the Africans adding some other seasonings to the process andbuildingtheir own presentationof crispy fried chicken.
These Africans later evolved to be thecaterersin many a Southern American family where crispy deep-fried chicken became a typical staple.
This is said to have come from a man named James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 known as “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his record he noted that at meals the locals would eat fricassee of capon which he went on to say “crispy 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.They also found out that it travelled well inwarmweather before refrigeration was prevalent so was eaten on almost a daily basis as they travelled to the cotton fields to work.
Since then it has become the southern state's most suitable choicefor just about any occasion.
The very true origins of crispy deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known dish for deep-fried chicken in English is hidden away in one of the most notable cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cookery Made Plain and Easy.
Her mix had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first published in 1747. The book was a success in the United kingdom and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original dish...
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 2 eeg yolksa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together well, dip yourfowlsin 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 set them on your bowl with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a superior gravy. Today, 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 travelled worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
