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Proper Mushy Peas
Marrowfat peas soaked overnight and simmered to a soft, savoury green mush — the non-negotiable third element of fish and chips north of the Trent.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Total
- 45 min
- Yield
- Serves 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Era
- Chippy tradition
Ingredients
- 250g dried marrowfat peas
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 25g butter; salt and white pepper
- Splash of malt vinegar (optional)
Method
- Soak the peas overnight in plenty of cold water with the bicarbonate of soda.
- Drain, rinse, and cover with fresh water; simmer gently for 35–40 minutes, stirring, until collapsing into mush.
- Beat in the butter and season — they should slump, not stand.
- Serve beside fish and chips with malt vinegar, or under a pie in the northern fashion.
Oven temperatures are given in Celsius, Fahrenheit, fan and gas mark throughout. Quantities are metric, as cooked and written in the UK.