Fried chicken
A breaded, fried chicken dish with Scottish and West African origins.
Fried chicken—often called Southern fried chicken—is made from chicken pieces coated in seasoned flour or batter and cooked by pan-frying, deep-frying, pressure-frying, or air-frying. The coating creates a crisp outer crust while keeping the meat inside moist. Most recipes use broiler chickens.
The earliest known deep-fried dish was fritters, popular in medieval Europe. But the first recorded instance of deep-frying chicken in fat with breadcrumbs and seasonings comes from Scotland, as shown in a 1747 cookbook by Hannah Glasse and a 1773 diary entry from the Isle of Skye. The first known American recipe lacked the seasonings found in that earlier Scottish version. An English household dictionary from 1736, Nathan Bailey's "Dictionarium Domesticum," has sometimes been misidentified as mentioning fried chicken under the name "a marinade of chickens," but this phrase does not appear in that work as a known recipe for fried chicken.
The term "fried chicken" first appeared in print in the 1830s and became common in American cookbooks during the 1860s and 1870s. Its roots in the American South trace back to both Scottish and West African cooking. Scottish fried chicken was battered, seasoned, and deep-fried in lard; West African fried chicken used different seasonings, was battered, and cooked in palm oil. Enslaved Africans in the American South adopted African seasoning techniques.
For enslaved and later segregated African-American women, selling fried chicken—live or cooked—offered a way to earn money independently, with records of such sales dating to the late 18th and 19th centuries, though the chicken was then cooked on a griddle. Despite popular belief, fried chicken was a rare treat in African-American communities, reserved for special occasions because ingredients were costly. After being introduced to the American South, it became a common staple. Enslaved people, who often could not afford expensive meats but were usually allowed to keep chickens, would fry them for celebrations. This tradition continued through segregation, when most restaurants were closed to Black customers.
After slavery ended, American-style fried chicken spread as an everyday Southern dish. It traveled well in hot weather before refrigeration became common, and falling production costs made it more accessible. It remains a favorite for "Sunday dinner" in the region. Southern Je
- First recorded deep-fried chicken recipe
- 1747 (Hannah Glasse cookbook)
- Earliest known English reference
- 1736 (Dictionarium Domesticum by Nathan Bailey, though not as a fried chicken recipe)
- First use of term 'fried chicken'
- 1830s
- Common in American cookbooks
- 1860s–1870s
- Primary cooking fats
- Lard, corn oil, peanut oil, canola oil, soybean oil
- Typical fat content per 100g
- ~12 grams (12%)
- Calories per 100g
- ~240
Lore & Background
The expression 'fried chicken' was first recorded in the 1830s and frequently appears in American cookbooks of the 1860s and 1870s. The origin of fried chicken in the southern United States has been traced to precedents in Scottish and West African cuisine. Scottish fried chicken was battered with seasonings and deep fried in lard, while West African fried chicken added different seasonings and was battered and cooked in palm oil. African seasoning techniques were used in the American South by enslaved Africans. Fried chicken provided some means of an independent economy for enslaved and segregated African-American women, who began selling poultry on a notable scale in the late 18th and 19th centuries.
Reader's Guide
Fried chicken's significance lies in its evolution from a special-occasion dish in African-American and Scottish traditions to a staple of Southern cuisine and a global fast-food phenomenon. Enslaved and later segregated African-American women used fried chicken as a means of economic independence, selling it as early as the 1730s. After the abolition of slavery, the dish spread across the South, aided by its ability to travel well before refrigeration and declining costs. In the 20th century, chain restaurants such as Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) and Popeyes expanded fried chicken worldwide. The dish also became a mainstay of Southern Jewish Shabbat dinners. Its preparation methods—pan frying, deep frying, and pressure frying (broasting)—and variations like hot chicken and chicken and waffles reflect regional and cultural adaptations. Fried chicken remains a top choice for Sunday dinners and holidays like Independence Day.
Did You Know?
- The first known deep-fried chicken recipe appears in a 1747 cookbook by Hannah Glasse.
- Scottish fried chicken was deep fried in lard with breadcrumbs and seasonings.
- West African fried chicken used palm oil and different seasonings.
- Fried chicken wings contain almost 40 grams of fat per 100 grams.
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