[2][4] The British tradition of eating fish battered and fried in oil may have been introduced to the country by the Chuts: Spanish and Portuguese Jews, who had lived in the Netherlands before settling in the UK.

[7] Fish fried for Shabbat for dinner on Friday evenings could be eaten cold the following afternoon for shalosh seudot, palatable this way as liquid vegetable oil was used rather than a hard fat, such as butter.

The earliest known shops were opened in London during the 1860s by Eastern European Jewish immigrant Joseph Malin,[11] and by John Lees in Mossley, Lancashire.

[12][13] Fried fish and chips had existed separately for at least 50 years prior to this, so the possibility that they had been combined at an earlier time cannot be ruled out.

The fish-and-chip shop later evolved into a fairly standard format, with the food served, in paper wrappings, to queuing customers, over a counter in front of the fryers.

According to Professor John Walton, author of Fish and Chips and the British Working Class, the British government made safeguarding supplies of fish and chips during the First World War a priority: "The cabinet knew it was vital to keep families on the home front in good heart, unlike the German regime that failed to keep its people well fed".

On a single day in 1952, the shop served 10,000 portions of fish and chips, earning a place in the Guinness Book of Records.

[4] In George Orwell's The Road to Wigan Pier (1937), which documents his experience of working-class life in the North of England, the author considered fish and chips chief among the 'home comforts' which acted as a panacea to the working classes.

[2] British fish and chips were originally served in a wrapping of old newspapers but this practice has now largely ceased, with plain paper, cardboard, or plastic being used instead.

[27][28][29] A prominent meal in British culture, fish and chips became popular in wider circles in London and South East England in the middle of the 19th century: Charles Dickens mentions a "fried fish warehouse" in Oliver Twist, first published in 1838, while in the north of England a trade in deep-fried chipped potatoes developed.

A Jewish immigrant, Joseph Malin, opened the first recorded combined fish-and-chip shop in Bow, East London, circa 1860; a Mr Lees pioneered the concept in the North of England, in Mossley, in 1863.

[32] A blue plaque is located at the other main contender for the first fish and chip shop, the present site of Oldham's Tommyfield Market.

[33] Located in Covent Garden, The Rock & Sole Plaice, dating from 1871, is London's oldest fish and chip shop still in operation.

[34] Isaacs' restaurants were carpeted, had table service, tablecloths, flowers, china and cutlery, and made the trappings of upmarket dining affordable to the working classes.

From their first appearance on the British High Street in the early 1860s, fish and chip shops spread rapidly in order to satisfy the needs of the growing industrial population.

[44] The 30th Annual Fish & Chips Awards ceremony was attended by Norwegian ambassador to the UK Mona Juul.

In the province of Newfoundland & Labrador, fish and chips made with cod are a staple food and the most common takeout meal.

In Ireland, the first fish and chips were sold by an Italian immigrant, Giuseppe Cervi, who mistakenly stepped off a North America-bound ship at Queenstown (now Cobh) in County Cork in the 1880s and walked all the way to Dublin.

Food historians have not been able to pinpoint exactly when the meal became an established part of New Zealand cuisine, but all recognise that the first fish and chips shops were introduced by British settlers before World War I.

[56] In Australia, reef cod and rock cod (a variety different from that used in the United Kingdom), barramundi or flathead (more expensive options), flake (a type of shark meat), King George whiting (little more expensive than other fish, but cheaper than barramundi or flathead) or snapper (cheaper options), are commonly used.

From the early 21st century, farmed basa imported from Vietnam and hoki have become common in Australian fish and chip shops.

[51] Some US restaurants and some people in their home cooking may use a thick type of chip, similar to the British variant, sometimes referred to as steak fries.

[40][41][42][43] In England, a portion of mushy peas is a popular side dish,[67] as are a range of pickles that typically include gherkins, onions and eggs.

Portions prepared and sold today consist of loose blobs of batter, deep-fried to a crunchy golden crisp in the cooking fat.

[71] In Sheffield, Yorkshire fishcakes are made by sandwiching a piece of fish between two slices of potato and deep frying it in batter.

[76] In New Zealand and Australia, fish-and-chip vendors are a popular business and source of income among the Asian community, particularly Chinese migrants.

[79][80] The numerous competitions and awards for "best fish-and-chip shop"[81] testify to the recognised status of this type of outlet in popular culture.

[84] A previous world record for the "largest serving of fish and chips" was held by Gadaleto's Seafood Market in New Paltz, New York.

[91][92] In Australia and New Zealand, the words "fish and chips" are often used as a shibboleth to highlight the difference in each country's short-i vowel sound /ɪ/.