Origin of fish and chips

Most people think that Fish and Chips originated in England, this is not actually true. The real history of Fish and Chips is traced back to 15th Century Portugal where the dish really was invented. Like so many other famous dishes, fish and chips was created out of necessity, not culinary genius. 

The pairing of fish and chips has long been considered a British staple. The irresistible combination of a hunk of battered cod resting atop a mound of steaming hot chips (french fries in America) is the quintessential British comfort food. Whether eaten on a plastic tray on your lap in front of the “telly” or gobbled down from a makeshift paper cone on the way home from the pub, a meal of fish and chips is like a serving of deep fried nostalgia in the UK – and let’s not forget a sprinkling of salt and vinegar.

At the dish’s peak of popularity in the late 1920s, there were 35,000 fish and chips shops in the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland). Today, there are still 10,500 “chippies” in the U.K. serving 360 million meals of fish and chips every year. That’s the equivalent of six servings of fish and chips to every British man, woman, and child.

The golden fried combo is so deeply entrenched in British culture that it can be hard to imagine a time when there wasn’t a fish and chip shop in every neighborhood. But travel back a mere 200 years and you would be hard pressed to find a combination of fried fish and chipped potatoes anywhere in the British Isles. Yes, the origin story of fish and chips is a bit more complex than the nationalist sentiment might imply. Food history tells us that it all began outside the U.K hundreds of years ago. From the 8th to the 12th centuries, Jews, Muslims, and Christians lived in relative peace in Portugal, known as Al-Andalus, under Moorish rule. Sephardic Jews, who likely comprised 20 percent of the population, held positions in the high court. But the strength of Moorish rule diminished over time as Christian armies started conquering the territory. By 1249, Moorish rule ended in Portugal.

The situation changed dramatically in the 15th century. First, the Spanish Inquisition outlawed Judaism, sending Spanish Jews fleeing to neighboring Portugal. Then in 1496, the Portuguese King Manuel I married Isabella of Spain who was not on board with religious freedom. She insisted on the expulsion of all Jews from Portugal. Manuel I mandated that all Jews be baptized or otherwise be expelled.

While many fled, some Jews stayed and either converted to Christianity or pretended to do so while continuing to practice Judaism in secret. But when Portugal fell under Spanish rule, the Inquisition targeted individuals with Jewish lineage threatening anyone claiming to be a “converso.” As religious violence worsened, many chose to flee to other parts of Europe with large numbers settling in England. As with many cultures, wherever the Sephardic Jews traveled they brought their rich culinary traditions.

In his London based novel Oliver Twist (1837), Charles Dickens refers to “fried fish warehouses,” the forerunner to the modern chippie where bread or baked potato were served alongside the fish.

A little later, in 1845, cook and writer Alenis Soyer in his first edition of A Shilling Cooking for the People gave a recipe for “Fried Fish, Jewish Fashion” which was fish dipped into a batter of flour and water and then fried.

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