Is everyone really equal in front of fried chicken? (Attached is the most complete chicken-eating guide in history)

Chadd 2022-03-21 09:01:14

On April 13, 1997, the famous golfer Tiger Woods won the American Masters Championship, which is also one of the most important golf events in the world. The Augusta Golf Club, which hosts the event, is located in a valley near the border between Georgia and South Carolina in the southern United States. It is the premier club in the United States.

Tiger Woods on the day of winning the U.S. Masters Championship

On the day Woods won the championship, another well-known American golfer Fuzzy Zoeller told CNN in an interview with reporters: "This kid drove well and played very well. He did his best to win. . So after he comes for a while, do you know what to do? Pat him on the back, say congratulations, and invite him to celebrate; tell him not to sell fried chicken next year ."

Fuzzy Zoeller was interviewed after Wood won the championship

After saying this, Zoeller walked away, and then only explained that his remarks were an overdone joke.

The famous African American writer and critic Lolis Eric Elie expressed his views when talking about this past: "To say that he should sell fried chicken is to say that he may be a great golfer, but he is still a nigger. " Although Zoeller's words of racism are useless, but the arrogant and noble white supremacy is undoubtedly revealed.

The relationship between fried chicken and African Americans has been rooted in that land since before the Civil War; it has not been reconciled to this day.

Dr. Shirley and Tony rested on the side of the road and helped him write home letters

The movie "Green Book" made racism and fried chicken appear in front of Chinese audiences in an unprecedented manner; and the last time fried chicken became a social trend, it still appeared in that movie with beer. In "You From the Stars". The whole movie revolves around the journey of Dr. Shirley and Tony Lip from north to south; fried chicken as a major iconic food appears twice: once when Dr. Shirley and Tony drove through the road in Kentucky , Tony insisted that Dr. Shirley taste the original KFC fried chicken; the other time was at a dinner at the host’s house in North Carolina, the host who hosted the doctor prepared fried chicken for dinner.

Dr. Shirley tasted fried chicken for the first time

When you see an Italian-American driving casually while eating fried chicken in his hands, while an African-American is at a loss for the fried chicken in front of you, you may think it is a kind of humor; but wait for them When I saw fried chicken in my host's home in North Carolina, and all the white people at the dinner party smiled happily, a kind of noble and arrogant racial discrimination was put on the table .

During the period before and after the Civil War, most of the African slaves were bought by groups represented by manor owners in the southern United States and used as cheap labor and domestic slaves. Chicken-based food gradually became an important part of southern cuisine; From Ollan to Nashville, the local fried chicken is far famous and has developed countless different methods. When they were enslaved, African Americans were allowed to raise chickens, but they were not allowed to raise cattle or pigs; because the government and farm owners at the time felt that this kind of poultry was not important and would not cause any trouble. But for slaves, chickens can be used to eat, cook, and sell; on the one hand, they can save money for redemption, and on the other hand, they can improve their diet.

Then the Civil War ended, but the discrimination against African Americans by whites in the southern United States did not easily come to an end; this is why the two met for the first time in the film Tony directly said to Dr. Shirley, "Believe me, the more you go Go south, trouble will come uninvited."

American Korean chef David Chang once talked about his participation in the production of a special program about fried chicken on television. An African-American friend said to him: " You will never see me eating fried chicken on national television. "At that time, he did not fully realize the deep meaning of this sentence, until the African-American scholar and professor Psyche Williams-Forson pointed out in the subsequent conversation that the stereotype represented by black people who like to eat fried chicken is laziness and uselessness. His black slave made him realize.

David Chang on his show Ugly Delcious

David also visited restaurants and African-American chefs in different regions of the south in his food show Ugly Delicious, and discussed in depth the history, culture and blood and tears behind fried chicken.

The Green Book is also mentioned in "Ugly Delicious"

The most noteworthy of these is Edouardo Jordan, a cutting-edge modern African-American chef, and his process of falling in love with the fried chicken dish on the path of self-identification. Edouardo was born in the southern United States and was trained by the legendary chef Thomas Keller’s Michelin-style French restaurant Per Se, but when he returned to the southern United States to open his own restaurant Salare, he publicly stated that he did not want his restaurant menu to appear Fried chicken is a dish; instead, the exquisite oil-sealed duck leg, paired with quinoa and duck liver sauce, fully demonstrates his French cooking ability and aesthetics.

Edouardo Jordan was named one of the best new chefs by Food & Wine

As time passed, his restaurant gradually became its own. Edouardo also won the Edouardo Emerging Chef Award issued by the American "Food & Wine" magazine; he unexpectedly founded a new restaurant Junebaby, which mainly serves southern dishes, and fried chicken is Put it on the special menu every Sunday.

When the critic Lolis Eric Elie asked about the reason for the change, he said that because southern cuisine has gradually become popular in the United States, the well-known chefs are mainly white, and some African-Americans with great reputation and historical significance in the local area. The restaurant has been forgotten by the public. As an African-American chef, he hopes to pay tribute to the tradition. The fact that fried chicken is only available on Sundays originated from the Civil War. The local West African slaves used palm oil with seasoning to marinate fried chicken and cook it on a campfire; but it was only eaten on special occasions, not daily. Part of life. This is why fried chicken is also called African-American comfort food (Comfort Food), or soul food (Soul Food).

Edouardo in his new restaurant

Benjamin Blanklin once said that the existence of chickens is evidence that God loves us and wishes us to be happy. Fried chicken is a food that has taken the world by storm, and many different versions have been derived, but most people don't understand it. We cannot separate cultural history from fried chicken because it carries too many blood and tears, but we hope that people in the future (especially African-Americans who eat this dish) will not need to hesitate the stereotype that it represents. Indulge in its deliciousness.


The following are all the restaurants that David Chang visited when he made the "Ugly Delicious" fried chicken special. If you are interested in fried chicken and its representative history and culture, you may wish to visit.

New Orleans Dooky Chase's Restaurant

Dooky Chase's, which has opened a store in New Orland for more than 70 years, is a special place for many African Americans to reward themselves.

Nashiville Husk Restaurant

There are four branches in the United States, offering classic southern dishes

Nashiville Bolton's Spicy Chicken & Fish

It is said that it is the legendary restaurant that made spicy chicken synonymous with Nashiville. The abnormal spicy they provided made David Chang feel like his body was about to explode.

Washington DC Florida Avenue Grill

A restaurant opened in 1944, specializing in traditional southern dishes

Atlanta Busy Bee

Located in the traditional black area of ​​Atlanta, it was rated as the best local fried chicken restaurant, a model of the new southern style

Seattle Salare & Junebaby by Edouardo Jordan

Oil-sealed duck made by Edouardo

Southern cuisine restaurant Junebaby opened by Edouardo

West Nahiville Hattie B's

Representative of southern fried chicken restaurant opened by white people

Finally, I wish you all a happy chicken!

View more about Green Book reviews

Extended Reading

Green Book quotes

  • Dr. Don Shirley: [Tony offers him a fried chicken] Come on.

    Dr. Don Shirley: I told you not to get grease on my blanket.

    Tony Lip: [mockingly] Oooh, I'm going to get grease on my blanket.

  • Dr. Don Shirley: You never win with violence. You only win when you maintain your dignity.

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