Is there anything better than biting into a fresh piece of fried chicken? Hearing the crunch and feeling the crisp texture of the fried batter over the juicy slice of chicken beneath it? Fried chicken’s a greasy, deliciously indulgent comfort food enjoyed all over the world. Did you know that the ultimate soul food originated in our own backyard — where Scottish chicken-frying methods were combined with West African seasoning traditions — to create what is now one of the world’s favorite guilty pleasures? Fried chicken was an expensive delicacy up until World War II, but thanks to mass production techniques, we’re now able to indulge ourselves on the cheap in almost any city in the world. So on July 6, we get out our buckets ‘o’ chicken and napkins, because it’s National Fried Chicken Day.
According to a survey, only 5% of Americans say they don’t like fried chicken, while 16% like it so much they’d MARRY it. 6 out of 10 Americans think chicken and waffles belong together.
Sauce it up!
When it comes to dipping sauces for your fried chicken most people are purists. According to a new survey 16% of people prefer their chicken without a condiment. 13% of people prefer hot sauce. 15 % of people want to dip their chicken in BBQ sauce. 7% of people dip their chicken in ketchup. 10% prefer honey mustard. 5% of people like to dip their chicken in honey butter. 12% of people dip their chicken in ranch dressing. And 11% dip their fried chicken in gravy.
7-Eleven just spun off its own line of fried chicken restaurants. The chain is called Raise the Roost, and the menu is entirely fried chicken and biscuits. The first location just opened in New York City but there’s no word on when or where other stores might pop up.
KFC released a chicken sandwich JUST like the Popeyes sandwich that was a massive hit last year. And KFC even admitted they’re trying to rip off Popeyes, because they say their old chicken sandwich, quote, “wasn’t the one to beat.”.
There’s a discussion on Reddit right now where people are sharing the weird FOOD COMBOS that shouldn’t work but taste really good. Making the list: Fried chicken with ketchup AND gravy.
KFC teamed up with Crocs to make a special line of shoes. They have fried chicken printed on them, there’s a fake drumstick attached to the top, AND they’re CHICKEN-SCENTED. They went on sale this spring for $60.
According to a new survey, the average person will eat an INSANE amount of food during Super Bowl Sunday. We’re talking almost 11,000 CALORIES! Which is at least four times more than doctors recommend. That doesn’t even include calories from DRINKS, like soda and beer.
Here’s how it breaks down. The average person will eat NINETEEN different foods during the Big Game.
2.7 wings . . . 3.2 slices of pizza . . . 2.1 servings of fries . . . 3.4 bags of chips . . . 1.9 bowls of chili . . . 2.4 burgers . . . 1.7 sliders . . . two hot dogs . . . 2.7 portions of nachos . . . three pieces of fried chicken.
The Fried Chicken Sandwich:
Chick-fil-A allegedly invented the fried chicken sandwich sometime in the 1940s, according to the company. But, recipes and many historians believe that Scottish chicken frying techniques (lard and no seasoning) and West African chicken pan frying techniques (palm oil, lots of seasoning) were combined by enslaved African and African-Americans in the antebellum South and, thusly, fried chicken as we know it was born.
Is it possible that someone happened to put a deliciously, golden crispy slice of fried chicken between two slices of bread with a couple pickles during that time? Yes. In fact, ads found in newspapers for fried chicken sandwiches pre-date the time period that Chick-fil-A claims to have invented it.
It’s great marketing on Chick-fil-A’s part, but faulty history. The inventor of the fried chicken sandwich is (probably) just as shrouded and forgotten in history’s greasy pages as the inventor of fried chicken itself — or dumplings, or empanadas for that matter. It’s become such a staple in our cuisine it’s hard to pinpoint its advent to one person.
And, while the fried chicken sandwich has thrusted its way into cultural ubiquity, its roots are marred in Jim Crow-era racism. Post Civil War, African American individuals weren’t allowed to raise expensive meats (such as steak and pork) so were relegated to rearing chickens, which is how the stereotype of associating African Americans with the dish came about. It was often all they could make, so they made the best of it.
But over time the delicious appeal of fried chicken spread its proverbial wings and took flight into the hearts of Americans everywhere. It’s hard to deny the combination of fatty cuts of chicken, marinated in buttermilk, dredged in spices and batter, and then deep fried in oil as anything other than delicious.
