Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag)
An Irish chipper spice bag — five-spice chicken and chips fried crisp, tossed with peppers and chili, with a curry sauce for dipping.
Ingredients
- 600 g Chicken thighs
- 1 Egg
- 4 tsp Soy sauce
- ¾ tsp Five-spice powder
- 4 tbsp Cornstarch
- 5 tbsp Flour
- 500 g Potatoes
- 1000 ml Neutral oil
- 1 Onion
- 1 tbsp Butter
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 tbsp Curry powder
- 350 ml Chicken stock
- 100 ml Milk
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Olive oil (optional)
- 1 tsp Garlic powder (optional)
- 1 tsp Onion powder (optional)
- 1 tsp Smoked paprika (optional)
- ½ tsp White pepper (optional)
- 1 Green bell pepper (optional)
- 1 Chili (optional)
- 2 Scallions (optional)
- 1 tsp Ground turmeric (optional)
- 1 tsp Sugar (optional)
- ½ tsp Black pepper (optional)
Method
- Cut the chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces.
- Mix the chicken with the egg, the soy sauce, olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, the five-spice, the white pepper and the salt. Let it sit at least 20 minutes (up to 2 hours in the fridge is better).
- Finely chop the small onion and mince the garlic for the sauce.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan and cook the onion for 3-4 minutes until soft, then add the garlic for 30 seconds.
- Stir in the curry powder and turmeric and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the flour and stir for 1 minute to make a roux.
- Gradually whisk in the chicken stock until smooth, then stir in the milk, the soy sauce, the sugar and the black pepper.
- Simmer for 5-8 minutes, stirring now and then, until it coats the back of a spoon. Season with a pinch of salt and keep warm.
- Cut the potatoes into chips about a finger thick.
- Heat the oil in a deep, heavy pan to 160C (320F).
- Slice the green pepper and large onion into strips, finely chop the chili and slice the scallions. Set aside for the toss.
- Fry the chips in the hot oil for 5-6 minutes until cooked through and pale gold. Lift onto a rack.
- While the chips fry, toss the marinated chicken with the cornstarch and the remaining flour until every piece is craggy and coated.
- Bring the oil up to 180C (350F). Fry the chicken in batches for 6-7 minutes until deep golden and crisp. Drain on the rack.
- Pour off all but a tablespoon of oil from a wok or wide pan. Stir-fry the pepper, onion and chili over high heat for 2 minutes until just softened.
- Add the fried chicken and chips, the scallions, the remaining five-spice and a pinch of salt. Toss over the heat for 1 minute so everything is coated.
- Tip the spice bag onto plates and serve with the warm curry sauce poured over or in a bowl for dipping.
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About Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag)
The spice bag is one of Ireland's most beloved takeaway inventions — a shaken bag of crispy fried chicken and chips tossed with peppers, onions and a smoky Chinese five-spice seasoning, almost always served with a tub of curry sauce for dipping. It was born in Chinese takeaways in Dublin around 2010 and spread across the country with a cult following, but you will not find it in China: it is a true Irish-Chinese fusion, marrying chip-shop chips and salt-and-pepper seasoning with five-spice fried chicken. The name comes from the bag it is traditionally served in, shaken so every piece is coated before it is tipped onto a plate.
Making it at home means marinating boneless chicken in five-spice, paprika, garlic and onion, coating it in a mix of cornflour and plain flour for that craggy, shatter-crisp crust, and deep-frying it alongside hand-cut chips. The peppers, onion and chili go in at the end for a quick toss so they keep some bite, and the curry sauce — a roux-based, mildly spiced gravy — pulls the whole thing together. It is unapologetically indulgent comfort food, best made when you want the chipper experience without leaving the house, and the homemade version at least lets you control the oil and the heat.
Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag): frequently asked questions
What is an Irish spice bag?
A spice bag is an Irish takeaway favourite: crispy fried chicken and chips tossed with sliced peppers, onions and chili in a Chinese-style five-spice seasoning, usually served with curry sauce for dipping. It comes bagged and shaken so everything is coated — hence the name.
Is a spice bag Irish or Chinese?
Both, in a way. The spice bag was invented in Chinese takeaways in Ireland around 2010 and is hugely popular there, but it is not a dish you will find in China. It is best described as an Irish-Chinese fusion — Irish chipper chips meet Chinese five-spice fried chicken.
What is in spice bag seasoning?
The seasoning blends Chinese five-spice with chip-shop salt-and-pepper flavours: five-spice powder, salt, white or black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and chili or paprika. It is what gives the chicken and chips their distinctive smoky, peppery, slightly sweet coating.
What do you serve with a spice bag?
Curry sauce is the classic partner, poured over or served in a tub for dipping. Garlic mayo is a popular addition, and it is traditionally eaten as a takeaway on its own — the chips and chicken together make it a full meal.
What kind of chicken is used in a spice bag?
Boneless chicken, usually thigh, cut into bite-sized pieces, marinated, coated in a mix of cornflour and plain flour, and deep-fried until craggy and crisp. Thigh stays juicier through frying, though breast works if you prefer leaner meat.
Can you make a spice bag without a deep fryer?
Yes. A deep, heavy pan with a few centimetres of oil works fine — heat it to about 180C and fry in batches. You can also shallow-fry or use an air fryer for a lighter version, though you lose some of the deep-fried crunch.
Is a spice bag unhealthy?
It is an indulgent takeaway dish — deep-fried chicken and chips make it high in calories and fat. Making it at home lets you control the oil and portion. This version does carry decent protein and fibre, but it is a treat rather than an everyday light meal.
Why is it called a spice bag?
Because it is traditionally served in a paper or foil bag with the fried chicken, chips, peppers and spices tossed together inside — you shake the bag to coat everything evenly in the seasoning before tipping it onto a plate.
How many calories are in Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag)?
A serving has about 1072 calories — 48.1g protein, 75g carbs, 65.3g fat, 9.4g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 48.1g of protein, roughly 18% of its calories.
Is Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag) gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains Soy sauce, Flour. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for those ingredients to make it gluten-free.
Is Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag) dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Butter, Milk. Swapping those for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
How long does Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag) take to make?
About 55 minutes start to finish, but only around 38 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
Do I need every ingredient to make Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag)?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder — they're optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Five-Spice Chicken & Chips (Irish Spice Bag) make?
This recipe makes 3 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.