TheScottish immigrantsfrom the southern states of Us had a custom of deep-frying chicken in lard and even further back they used to fry fritters in the middle ages. The migrants from Scotland would often labor, live and dine with the African slaves and this lead to the Africans adding some supplementary seasoning to the recipe anddevelopingtheir own interpretationof fried chicken. These Africans later became thecooksin many a Southern American family where crispy deep-fried chicken became a ordinary staple. They also learned that it journeyed well inhotconditions in the times before refrigeration was seen everyday so was consumed on almost every day basis as they journeyed to the cotton fields to labor. Since then it has become the southern state's top choicefor just about any occasion.
This is said to have come from a guy called James Boswell who wrote adiaryin 1773 known as “log of a Tour to the Hebrides”. In his record he noted that at mealtime the local people would eat fricassee of fowl 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 fried chicken we will probably never know but the earliest known recipe for deep-fried chicken in English is hidden away in one of the most well-known cookery books of the 18th century by Hannah Glasse known as The Art of cookery Made Plain and Easy. Her mix had a strange name called “To Marinate Chickens” which was first released in 1747. The book was a hit in the United kingdom and more importantly in the American Colonies.
Here is the original dish...
Joint two chickens into pieces; 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 eggsa little melted butter and nutmeg. Beat it all together thoroughly, 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 light golden incolour and place them on your platter with a garnish of fried parsley. Serve with lemon wedges and a high-quality gravy. Presently, we have exchanged 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 journeyed worldwide and how different cultures have adopted their own versions.
