TheScrotish migrantsfrom the southern states of Usa had a custom of deep-frying chicken pieces in fat and even further back they used to fry fritters in the middle ages.
The Scrotish migrants would often labor, live and eat with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some extra seasoning to the formula andgeneratingtheir own versionof crispy deep-fried chicken.
These Africans later evolved to be thechefsin many a Southern American family where deep-fried chicken became a common staple.
This is said to have come from a male known as James Boswell who wrote arecordin 1773 known as “diary of a Tour to the Hebrides”.
In his journal he noted that at meals the local people would eat fricassee of poultry which he went on to say “crispy fried chicken or something like that”.
What he in actuality heard was the Scottish dish Friars Chicken, not deep-fried chicken but you could say that where it was first named.They also discovered that it transported well inwarmtemperatures prior to refrigeration was prevalent so was eaten on almost a daily basis as they walked 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 deep-fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known process for crispy deep-fried chicken in English is obscured in one of the most renowned cooking books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse called The Art of cookery Made Plain and Easy.
Her process had a strange name known as “To Marinate Chickens” which was first published in 1747. The book was a hit in the England and more importantly in the American 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 2 eeg yolksa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together thoroughly, dip yourchicken piecesin the batter and fry them in a fine deal of pork lardwhich must boil first before you put your fowl in. Let them be of bronze incolour and set them on your dish with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon slices and a good gravy. Presently, 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 food has walked worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
