Fried chicken
From Free net encyclopedia
Fried chicken is chicken which is dipped in a breaded mixture and then deep fried, pan fried, or pressure cooked. The breading seals in the juices but also absorbs the fat of the fryer, which is sometimes seen as unhealthy. The chicken itself may be chicken pieces on the bone with skin, or boneless and skinless pieces, usually breast meat, as in chicken fingers. Chicken for frying is usually a young, tender bird.
Contents |
Preparation
There are endless variations on the making of fried chicken, and some people hold ferocious views as to the "best" method. Some variations on chicken frying techniques include:
Before the breading and frying process, the chicken may be soaked in any one of a variety of liquids, including brine or buttermilk.
The breading itself may be a simple dusting of flour or seasoned flour, a coating of liquid batter, or a breading of crumbs, cornflakes, or other crunchy material. It can often be layered—for example, the chicken pieces may be dipped in milk, then flour, then eggs, then crumbs, and allowed to dry for a time before frying. Once breaded, the chicken may be cooked by deep frying, pan frying, or pressure cooking. Another alternative is "oven fried chicken", which is baked rather than fried, but is still intended to produce chicken with a crisp coating. Fried chicken is generally considered a casual food, usually eaten with the fingers. As it is easily portable and can be eaten either hot or cold (indeed, some fried chicken aficionados prefer cold fried chicken to hot), it is a traditional picnic food and a popular take-out food.
History
Fried chicken is famous for its roots in the rural American South. There is a dual origin. The Scots, and later Scottish immigrants to many southern states had a tradition of deep frying chicken in fat, unlike their English counterparts who baked or boiled chicken. [1] Later, as African slaves were introduced to households as cooks, seasonings and spices were added that are absent in traditional Scottish cuisine, improving the flavor. Since slaves were often only allowed to keep chickens, frying chicken as a special occasion spread through the African-American community. After slavery, poor rural southern blacks continued the tradition since chickens were often the only animals they could afford to raise. Since fried chicken could keep for several days, it travelled well, and also gained favor during segregation when blacks normally could not find places to eat and had to carry their own food.
Southern whites also continued the tradition of frying chicken. While not limited like blacks socially, poor whites were no better off economically. Therefore, fried chicken countinued to dominate as "Sunday dinner" or on other special occasions.
Another version of Fried Chicken is made by the Chinese, in which the chicken is seasoned and fried in oil. Because the Chicken is not breaded, the fat from the chicken skin is "fried out" into the oil creating a "paper thin skin" that is very light and crispy. Thus, the chicken dish is known by direct Chinese to English translation as "Paper Fried Chicken." This version of the fried chicken probably supercedes the appearance of both its Scottish and American counterparts with respect to time in Chronological history ("zha zhi ji" "炸紙雞").
Types of fried chicken
- Fried chicken - a general term used for whole, bone-in chicken pieces, usually breasts, thighs, wings, and drumsticks (legs).
- Chicken fingers - also known as chicken strips or chicken tenders, this is one of the most common forms of fried chicken, generally pieces of chicken breast (sometimes with rib meat) cut into long strips, breaded or batter-dipped, and deep fried.
- Chicken nuggets
- Buffalo wings
- Popcorn chicken - occasionally known as chicken bites or other similar terms, small morsels of boneless chicken, battered and fried, resulting in little nuggets that resemble popcorn.
- Chicken patties - breaded, fried patties of chicken meat used in sandwiches.
- Chicken fries - chicken nuggets in the shape of french fries, popularized by the fast-food chains Burger King and Hungry Jacks. These may also be referred to as chicken sticks.
- Buffalo Fingers - also known as boneless Buffalo Wings