Chaat Chat

Compass Live Art Festival, Leeds

Due to the pandemic, our commission for a live installation in 2020 has been postponed to 2022 - and in its place we created a podcast.

Popeye Collective have created a recipe that weaves multiple narratives together to transform a can of mushy peas into a delicious culturally rich dish you can make yourself at home.

For this podcast their recipe for Mushy Pea Chaat will guide the conversation; charting personal histories, unpicking colonial pasts and trying to understand the role our diets and the arts can have on the climate crisis.

For the podcast we made a new Chaat Masala spice mix that was sent out to participants to cook their own Mushy Pea Chaat. Participants included; Marco Springmann (food-system researcher - Oxford University), Josh Cockroft (Producer and funder @ Esmee Fairburn), Manjit Singh (Founder Manjits Kitchen, Leeds) and Alan Lane (Director of Slung Low, Leeds)

In Spetember 2021 we will spend two weeks in residence with the Compass team - undertaking research and development for a new work that aims to find the ‘Flavour of Leeds’

Ingredients:

1tsp Rapeseed oil

1 Shallot

1 Green finger chilli

2-3tsp Chaat Masala

1 tin (300g) Mushy Peas

1 tbs Hendersons Relish

1 tbs Plant based Yogurt

1cm Fresh Ginger

handful fresh coriander

(Optional) handful of Sev (chick pea flour noodles)

Instructions:

Finely chop the shallot and put a small pan on a medium heat and add the oil. Throw in the Shallot and cook until turning translucent - stirring regularly. Add the chopped chilli and stir, then add 1 tsp of Chaat Masala and stir. Leave for 30 seconds then plop your Mushy Peas into the pan and stir to combine.

Heat through adding more Chaat Masala to taste (I tend to add a second teaspoon just to try and tone down the neon green of the peas!).

Whilst warming the peas prepare your garnish. Finely chop into batons (julienne) your fresh ginger and rip the coriander into small bits.

Serve in a small bowl and sprinkle the remaining 1tsp of Chaat Masala on top. Drizzle over yogurt and Hendersons Relish and sprinkle with your ginger and corriander. Finish with Sev if you have them.

Enjoy Mushy Pea Chaat by itself or as a side with a simple Dal and rice.

Don’t forget to Lick the bowl.

Quick version:

If you are in a hurry and don’t have a store cupboard full of stuff - just heat up a tin of Mushy Peas with 1 tsp of Chaat Masala. Serve hot and sprinkle extra Chaat Masala on top.

Expert Version:

If you are up for it you can really go to town on your condiments and garnish. Try making your own chutneys, loosening Tamarind with warm water and adding date syrup works brilliantly, and you can make a fresh herb chutney to compliment by whizzing up coriander and mint and green chilli and yogurt. Add more garnish to suit your taste - I like more green chilli.