Coming from Africa, African Americans also brought their methods of frying foods with them., During slavery in the 1800s, as the only animals slaves were allowed to own were yard chickens, African Americans began frying their chicken using the same methods they used to fry other foods. Later in the 1800s, before the Civil War, fried chicken could also be sold by enslaved people to raise money to buy their freedom. Soon, this led to the association of African-Americans in the South and fried chicken.