About spattering: my grandmother (who made the best fried chicken ever)
covered her cast iron chicken fryer with an aluminum colander. Worked
great. She also used lard, rendered on the farm. Wonderful stuff, not
like store bought.

Excuse me, I have an overwhelming compulsion to drag out the chicken
fryer and cook up a batch myself. I usually finish off the chicken in
the oven in a roaster so the pan drippings can be converted to country
gravy for the heap of mashed potatoes, with bacon seasoned green beans
on the side. Grandma taught me well. jh