by Lorelei Cohen

Created on: July 03, 2009   Last Updated: July 06, 2009

July 6th is National Fried Chicken Day so if you have a craving for a wing or a drumstick, prepare to celebrate this very unique holiday in true Southern style, and prepare to chow down on some of the best tasting fried chicken that this country has to offer. The simple theme of National Fried Chicken Day is to give people a reason to honor, appreciate, and enjoy the unique history and taste of this traditional Southern feast.

Fried Chicken actually has a very unique and somewhat vital role in history. Back before refrigeration come into existence there were only so many means of keeping meat from going bad before it could be consumed. Meat could be sun dried, or smoked, and in the winter it could be frozen. If you were dealing with a large amount of meat, as of that from a cow or buffalo, then meat preparation could be very time consuming, and even after the meat was treated there was no guarantee that the meat would not spoil in the hot summer sun. The chicken being a small animal, was easy to consume, and when the meat was fried it could actually last for days without spoilage. Fried chicken kept better than other meats so was a good food to carry with you when you were traveling or also if you were simply not wanting to consume the entire bird in one sitting. Chickens also had the added benefit of providing eggs for consumption until the time that their meat was required at the dining table.

It is believed that it was Scottish Immigrants who were the first within the United States to regularly prepare their chickens through the process of frying them in oil. The chicken is battered in a mixture of flour or crumbs and then dipped into hot oil. This process tends to create a crispy hard coating that locks in, or seals in, the flavorful juices of the meat.

In the deep South where slavery at that time still existed, the process of frying chicken was taken a step further, and the slaves began adding unique and flavorful spices into their coating mix. The slaves did not have a lot of means of support for themselves, but they were generally allowed to keep chickens, and frying chicken with their unique blend of spices became commonplace. Back then this unique and flavorful fried chicken was a distinctly African American meal. But as the recipes were passed along and through colored lines this once humble food became, and is still known by all as, "Southern Fried Chicken".

So unbuckle your pants and prepare to celebrate National Fried Chicken Day in any way,

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>