Chicken roll and spice bag chips
Emma Moran and Niall Morrissey share their famous recipes for chicken roll and spice bag, a popular Irish takeaway of chips, chicken, stir-fried veg and plenty of seasoning.
Ingredients
For the roll
- 1 breaded chicken fillet
- 1 demi baguette, sliced lengthways (but kept intact)
- 250g/9oz chopped iceberg lettuce
- ½ red onion, chopped
- ½ small tomato, chopped
- 60²µ/2¼´Ç³ú cheddar, grated
For the chipotle mayonnaise
- 250g/9oz full-fat mayonnaise
- 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- ¼ tsp smoked paprika
For the coleslaw
- 1 carrot, grated
- 250g/9oz grated white cabbage
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú mayonnaise
- ½ tsp salt
For the spice bag
- 500g/1lb 2oz Maris Piper potatoes, washed and peeled and cut into chips
- vegetable oil, for frying
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú curry sauce powder
- 390ml/14fl oz warm water
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú red peppers, finely chopped
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú onion, finely chopped
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú cooked breaded chicken strips
- 1 tsp spice bag seasoning
- 40²µ/1½´Ç³ú spring onions, chopped
- pinch salt
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. For the roll, put the chicken fillet on a baking tray and cook until it reaches a core temperature of 76C/170F and is golden brown.
To make the chipotle mayonnaise, place all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Set aside.
To make the coleslaw, combine all the ingredients together in a bowl.
Spread 1 tablespoon chipotle mayonnaise over the inside of the split baguette. Top with a base layer of lettuce, then coleslaw, onion, tomato and finally cheese.
Slice the hot, breaded chicken fillet lengthways into five or six strips. Place them evenly along the length of the roll. Cut the roll in half to serve.
For the spice bag chips, preheat the oil in a deep-fat fryer to 130C. CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.
Pat the potatoes dry with kitchen paper to avoid any oil spitting or excessive bubbling.
Add the potatoes to the deep-fat fryer and cook until they are soft – they will rise to the top of the oil once cooked (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended). Be careful not to overfill the basket, or the oil will overflow when the potatoes are dropped into it. Remove the chips from the oil and allow to drip-dry and cool.
Increase the fryer temperature to 180C and fry the chips for another 4 minutes until golden and crispy. Remove, drain on kitchen paper and season with salt. Set aside.
To make the curry sauce, first empty the curry sauce powder into a saucepan. Add 390ml//14fl oz warm water and whisk until smooth. Bring to the boil and simmer for approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the sauce thickens. Set aside.
Heat a wok over a medium-high heat and add a splash of vegetable oil. Add the red pepper and onion and fry until softened. Take a handful of the pre-made chips and add them to the wok, tossing them with the vegetables, which should now have gained some colour.
Add the chicken strips, toss well and add the spice bag seasoning. After tossing the dish for 30 seconds–1 minute, or until the ingredients are sufficiently coated in the spice mix, it’ll be time to plate up.
Divide the spice bag between serving plates, cover with a generous dollop of curry sauce and finish with the chopped spring onions.
