Fried chicken

This article is about fried chicken in the cuisine of the Southern United States. For fried chicken in the Cantonese cuisine of Southern China and Hong Kong, see crispy fried chicken. For fried chicken prepared Korea-style, see Korean fried chicken.
"Southern fried chicken" redirects here. For the restaurant chain, see Southern Fried Chicken (franchise).
Fried chicken

A chicken breast, wing, leg and thigh fried
Course Main meal
Serving temperature Hot or Cold
Main ingredients Chicken
Cookbook: Fried chicken  Media: Fried chicken

Fried chicken (also referred to as Southern fried chicken) is a dish consisting of chicken pieces usually from broiler chickens which have been floured or battered and then pan-fried, deep fried, or pressure fried. The breading adds a crisp coating or crust to the exterior. What separates fried chicken from other fried forms of chicken is that generally the chicken is cut at the joints and the bones and skin are left intact. Crisp well-seasoned skin, rendered of excess fat, is a hallmark of well made fried chicken.

Preparation

Frying chicken upper wings in corn oil

Generally, chickens are not fried whole; instead, the chicken is divided into its constituent pieces. The two white meat sections are the breast and the wing from the front of the chicken, while the dark meat sections are the thigh and leg or "drumstick", are from the rear of the chicken. These pieces are usually subdivided into the wings, the breasts (the wishbone is often cut out first in home cooking), the legs, and the thighs. The ribs are sometimes left on the breast, but commercially they and the back are usually discarded.

To prepare the chicken pieces for frying, they may be coated in a batter of flour and liquid (and seasonings) mixed together. The batter can/may contain ingredients like eggs, milk, and leavening. Alternatively, they may be dredged in flour or a similar dry substance, to coat the meat and to develop a crust. Seasonings such as salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, or ranch dressing mix can be mixed in with the flour. Either process may be preceded by marination or by dipping in milk or buttermilk. As the pieces of chicken cook, some of the moisture that exudes from the chicken is absorbed by the coating of flour and browns along with the flour, creating a flavorful crust.

Traditionally, lard is used to fry the chicken, but corn oil, peanut oil, canola oil, or vegetable oil are also frequently used. The flavor of olive oil is generally considered too strong to be used for traditional fried chicken, and its low smoke point makes it unsuitable for use.[1]

There are three main techniques for frying chickens: pan frying, deep frying and broasting.

Pan frying (or shallow frying) requires a frying pan of sturdy construction and a source of fat that does not fully immerse the chicken. The chicken pieces are prepared as above, then fried. Generally the fat is heated to a temperature hot enough to seal (without browning, at this point) the outside of the chicken pieces. Once the pieces have been added to the hot fat and sealed, the temperature is reduced. There is debate as to how often to turn the chicken pieces, with one camp arguing for often turning and even browning, and the other camp pushing for letting the pieces render skin side down and only turning when absolutely necessary. Once the chicken pieces are close to being done the temperature is raised and the pieces are browned to the desired color (some cooks add small amounts of butter at this point to enhance browning). The moisture from the chicken that sticks and browns on the bottom of the pan become the fonds required to make gravy.

Deep frying requires a deep fryer or other device in which the chicken pieces can be completely submerged in hot fat. The pieces are prepared as described above. The fat is heated in the deep fryer to the desired temperature. The pieces are added to the fat and a constant temperature is maintained throughout the cooking process.

Broasting uses a pressure cooker to accelerate the process. The moisture inside the chicken becomes steam and increases the pressure in the cooker, lowering the cooking temperature needed. The steam also cooks the chicken through, but still allows the pieces to be moist and tender while maintaining a crisp coating. Fat is heated in a pressure cooker. Chicken pieces are prepared as described above and then placed in the hot fat. The lid is placed on the pressure cooker, and the chicken pieces are thus fried under pressure.[2]

Chicken Maryland is made when a pan of chicken pieces and fat, as for pan frying, is placed in the oven to cook, for a majority of the overall cooking time, basically "fried in the oven".[2]

History

Fritters have existed in Europe since the middle ages.[3]The Scots had a tradition of deep frying chicken in fat, unlike their English counterparts who baked or boiled chicken. Scottish immigrants to America continued this frying chicken tradition and are responsible for the introduction of it to African slaves.[4][5]

A number of West African cuisines featured dishes where chicken was fried, typically in palm oil, sometimes having been battered before. These would be served on special occasions in some areas, or sometimes sold in the streets as snacks in others.[6][7][8][9] This provided some means of independent economy for enslaved and segregated African American women, who became noted sellers of poultry (live or cooked) as early as the 1730s. Because of this and the expensive nature of the ingredients, it was, despite popular perception, a rare and special dish in the African-American community.[10]

After the development of larger and faster-growing hogs (due to crosses between European and Asian breeds) in the 18th and 19th century, in the United States, backyard and small-scale hog production provided an inexpensive means of converting waste food, crop waste, and garbage into calories (in a relatively small space and in a relatively short period of time). Many of those calories came in the form of fat and rendered lard. Lard was used for almost all cooking and was a fundamental component in many common homestead foods (many that today are still regarded as holiday and comfort foods) like biscuits and pies. The economic/caloric necessity of consuming lard and other saved fats may have led to the popularity of fried foods, not only in the US, but worldwide. In the 19th century cast iron became widely available for use in cooking. The combination of flour, lard, a chicken and a heavy pan placed over a relatively controllable flame became the beginning of today's fried chicken.

When it was introduced to the American South, fried chicken became a common staple. Later, as the slave trade led to Africans being brought to work on southern plantations, the slaves who became cooks incorporated seasonings and spices that were absent in traditional Scottish cuisine, enriching the flavor.[11] Since most slaves were unable to raise expensive meats, but generally allowed to keep chickens, frying chicken on special occasions continued in the African American communities of the South. It endured the fall of slavery and gradually passed into common use as a general Southern dish. Since fried chicken traveled well in hot weather before refrigeration was commonplace, it gained further favor in the periods of American history when segregation closed off most restaurants to the black population. Fried chicken continues to be among this region's top choices for "Sunday dinner" among both blacks and whites. Holidays such as Independence Day and other gatherings often feature this dish.[12]

Since the American Civil War, traditional slave foods like fried chicken, watermelon, and chitterlings have suffered a strong association with African American stereotypes and blackface minstrelsy.[11] This was commercialized for the first half of the 20th century by restaurants like Sambo's and Coon Chicken Inn, which selected exaggerated depictions of blacks as mascots, implying quality by their association with the stereotype. Although also being acknowledged positively as "soul food" today, the affinity that African American culture has for fried chicken has been considered a delicate, often pejorative issue. While the perception of fried chicken as an ethnic dish has been fading for several decades, with the ubiquity of fried chicken dishes in the US, it persists as a racial stereotype.[13][14][15][16]

Before the industrialization of chicken production, and the creation of broiler breeds of chicken, only young spring chickens (pullets or cockerels) would be suitable for the higher heat and relatively fast cooking time of frying, making fried chicken a luxury of spring and summer. Older, tougher birds require longer cooking times at lower temperatures. To compensate for this, sometimes tougher birds are simmered till tender, allowed to cool and dry, and then fried. (This method is common in Australia.) Another method is to fry the chicken pieces using a pan fried method. The chicken pieces are then simmered in liquid, usually, a gravy made in the pan that the chicken pieces were cooked in. This process (of flouring, frying and simmering in gravy) is known as "smothering" and can be used for other tough cuts of meat, such as swiss steak. Smothered chicken is still consumed today, though with the exception of people who raise their own chickens, or who seek out stewing hens, it is primarily made using commercial broiler chickens.[11]

The derivative phrases "country fried" and "chicken fried" often refer to other foods prepared in the manner of fried chicken. Usually, this means a boneless, tenderized piece of meat that has been floured or battered and cooked in any of the methods described above or simply chicken which is cooked outdoors. Chicken fried steak and "country fried" boneless chicken breast are two common examples.

Global variants

Nashville-style hot chicken with traditional accompaniments
Tori no karaage, Japanese fried chicken
Savory Restaurant fried chicken (Philippines)
Hong Kong style fried chicken leg from Capital Café in Mong Kok

Throughout the world, different seasoning and spices are used to augment the flavor of fried chicken. Because of the versatility of fried chicken, it is not uncommon to flavor the chicken's crisp exterior with a variety of spices ranging from spicy to savory. Depending on regional market ubiquity, local spice variations may be labeled as distinct from traditional Southern U.S. flavors, or may appear on menus without notation. With access to chickens suitable for frying broadening on a global scale with the advent of industrialized poultry farming, many localities have added their own mark on fried chicken, tweaking recipes to suit local preferences.[17]

North America

Asia

Racial stereotype

In the United States, fried chicken has stereotypically been associated with African Americans. The reasons for this are various. Chicken dishes were popular among slaves before the Civil War, as chickens were generally the only animals slaves were allowed to raise on their own.[18]

On two occasions the golfer Tiger Woods has been the target of remarks regarding fried chicken. The first occurred in 1997 when golfer Fuzzy Zoeller said that Woods should avoid choosing fried chicken for the Masters champions' dinner the following year;[19] the second when golfer Sergio García was asked in a press conference in 2013 whether he would invite Woods to dinner during the U.S. Open to settle their ongoing feud. García said: "We will have him round every night . . . We will serve fried chicken," which Woods said was "wrong, hurtful and clearly inappropriate".[19] Both Zoeller and García subsequently apologized to Woods.[19]

In 2009, a Bangladeshi immigrant to the U.S. renamed his restaurant "Obama Fried Chicken" in honor of recently inaugurated President Barack Obama. Despite controversy at the time, the owner refused to change the name back, and the restaurant continues to operate under this name.[18]

In 2012, Burger King received criticism over a commercial which featured Mary J. Blige singing about a crispy chicken wrap due to the racial stereotypes surrounding fried chicken.[20]

See also

References

  1. ↑ What is Southern Fried Chicken?. Wisegeek.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Fried Chicken Recipes. Southernfood.about.com (November 9, 2011). Retrieved on 2012-01-30.
  3. ↑ A Brief History Of Fried Chicken. The Urban Daily (February 5, 2010). Retrieved on 2012-01-30.
  4. ↑ "Southern fried". Enquirer.com. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
  5. ↑ Lynne Olver. "history notes-meat". The Food Timeline. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
  6. ↑ According to Hog and Hominy: Soul Food from Africa to America by Frederick Douglass Opie (Columbia UP, 2010): "West African women batter dipped and fried chicken" and "The African-American practice of eating chicken on special occasions is also a West Africanism that survived the slave trade. Among the Igbo, Hausa, and Mande, poultry was eaten on special occasions as part of religious ceremonies." (p.11) Also, " the African American preference for yams and sweet potatoes, pork, chicken, and fried foods also originated in certain West African culinary traditions." (p.18)
  7. ↑ Creole: the history and legacy of Louisiana's free people of color (LSU press 2000), Sybil Kein writes: "Creole fried chicken is another dish that follows the African technique: "the cook prepared the poultry by dipping it in a batter and deep fat frying it."" (p.246-247)
  8. ↑ In World of a Slave, Martha B. Katz-Hyman and Kym S. Rice write: "Chickens also were considered to be a special dish in traditional West African cuisine. ... Chickens were... fried in palm oil. ... Pieces of chicken fried in oil sold on the street ... would all leave their mark on the developing cuisine of the early South." (p.109)
  9. ↑ National Geographic: "The Surprising Ways That Chickens Changed the World" By Simon Worral December 21, 2014 | "When slaves were brought here from West Africa, they came with a deep knowledge of the chicken, because in West Africa the chicken was a common farm animal and also a very sacred animal. The knowledge that African-Americans brought served them very well, because white plantation owners for the most part didn't care much about chicken. In colonial times there were so many other things to eat that chicken was not high on the list."
  10. ↑ World of a Slave, Martha B. Katz-Hyman and Kym S. Rice, p.109-110
  11. 1 2 3 History of Fried Chicken through the Ages. Southernfriedchickenrecipe.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2012.
  12. ↑ History of Fried Chicken : I Am Welcoming You to Kik Culinary Corner and History of Some Story & Experience. Experienceproject.com (August 19, 2008). Retrieved on 2012-01-30.
  13. ↑ "Gather 'Round the Table: Race, Region, Identity and Food Preference in the American South". Allacademic.com. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
  14. ↑ "Earl Ofari Hutchinson: Atlanta Falcon's Owner Should Apologize For His Foot-in-the-Mouth Racial Slur About Michael Vick". Huffingtonpost.com. December 13, 2007. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
  15. ↑ Hook, Sara Anne (October 26–27, 2007). "Zip Coon and Watermelons: The Perpetuation of Racial Stereotypes through Visual Imagery from the 19th and Early 20th Centuries" (PPT). 32nd Annual Great Lakes History Conference. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
  16. ↑ "Miami Ethnic Clash May Preview U.S. Where 'Minorities' Dominate". Bloomberg.com. August 19, 2008. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
  17. ↑ Fried Chicken: All-American Favorite, Worldwide Style. Grandparents.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2012.
  18. 1 2 Jesse Bering (November 1, 2011). "Culinary Racism". Slate. Retrieved November 2, 2011.
  19. 1 2 3 "Tiger Woods: Fried chicken jibe by Sergio Garcia 'hurtful'". BBC Sport. May 22, 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2013.
  20. ↑ James Poulos (April 5, 2012). "Drama and Fries: Burger King Bungles Mary J. Blige's Crispy Chicken Ad". Forbes. Retrieved April 5, 2012.

Further reading

External links

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