Recipe Sharing as a Research Method
About:
Pembroke House is a centre for social action and residential community in Walworth, South London
Challenge:
Design a research toolkit to investigate the local food system of Walworth
Impact:
Designed Walworth Community Cookbook Kit, a research and documentation tool that utilises recipe sharing as a method for inquiry.
Client:
Pembroke House, London
My role:
Community Research Workshop design User Testing
Timeline:
March 2024 - April 2024
Testimonials
Richard Galpin
Director of Partnerships, Pembroke House
Thankyou for designing this. Its very relevant and useful for the ongoing events and research for the Walworth Neighbourhood Food Model
Dr Alistair Steele
Course Leader, MA User Experience Design
The research method has great potential to inform bottom up approaches and food related initiatives all the while connecting people in the process.
Secondary Research
1.
Almost 50% residents of Walworth are immigrants or born outside the UK.
2.
Walworth is undergoing regeneration, leading to an influx of new residents.
Research Question:
What does "local food" mean to the Walworth community? How is it shaped by its diverse immigrant population?
Primary research
Process Challenge
Lack of budget allocated for participant recruitment
Street Intercept
42 participants
1 hour
2 locations in Walworth
Utilising a low cost, organic outreach and high engagement method that leveraged public spaces.
Iteration 1
Iteration 2
Prompt
"Could you please suggest local food in Walworth" was used to invite public's response
Participant recruitment
Participants' self recruit to engage with the prompt, giving them greater control of conversation flow
Finding
More than 60% participants mentioned KFC as a local food!
AEIOU observational study and informal interviews
Explored the restaurants and local food joints recommended by Walworth residents
Qualitative Mapping
Mapping the conversations and emotions felt while exploring the recommended places
Interviews felt less natural when inquiring about food culture and knowledge, as participants seemed uncomfortable or hesitant to discuss personal food practices
East street market serves as a hub for culturally diverse food options, however it is seen as unsafe and lacking accessbility for new residents
The conversations about the local food system were deficit-based, focusing on negative narratives around food insecurity, lack of access, and challenges faced by low-income communities
Research Question:
How might we bring together the community to recognise the assets of Walworth and encourage them to build on it?
Research through design
Potluck
12 participants
1 hour
Utilising communal food sharing as a space to facilitate conversations about local food system
Event Observations
Recipe Cards Analysis
Guideline
Participants were encouraged to bring food “local” to them
Observation
Facilitated an exchange of knowledge, sparking conversations about the similarities and differences in food cultures.
Limitation
Created an invisible barrier that you cannot participate if you don’t contribute food.
Graffiti Wall
15 participants
1 hour
Utilising storytelling to enable participants to share personal and cultural connections to food.
Guideline
Participants were encouraged to "share your most memorable food stories"
Observation
Incorporating a food story prompt in the new recipe card sparked deeper and richer conversations compared to the previous format.
Limitation
Participants took longer to think of stories to share, whereas the potluck provided a natural prompt that guided and facilitated conversation.
1.
A need for conversation starter activities
2.
Recipe cards act as good data collection tools
3.
Enabling cultural exchange for richer knowledge generation
Ideation and Testing
Workshop
15 participants
40 minutes
London College of Communication
Facilitating and testing recipe sharing and creation workshop as a research method
Workshop Design
Workshop Testing
Workshop Analysis
Objective
To encourage the production, sharing and co creation knowledge around food system of Walworth and document these conversations.
Data Collection Method
Recipe Cards and note taking
Data Analysis Method
Narrative analysis of conversations and thematic analysis of data collected on recipe cards
Evaluating Workshop as a Research method
Recipes of cultural dishes and access to its ingredients were discussed showing potential to inform access barriers in local food system
Design iteration
Co-generating ingredient list with Walworth residents
Redesigned ingredient cards for workshop
Redesigned recipe cards for workshop
Testing
Street Intercept
54 participants
3 hour
Testing the scalability and replicability of recipe sharing workshop as a research method
Iteration 1
Iteration 2
Iteration 3
Test Details
Testing publicly at East street market with 2 participants
Observation
The participants talked to each other instead of engaging in the activity
Limitation
The public space hindered participants from reflecting deeply, making it harder for them to think about recipes and share stories.
Insights into local food system of Walworth
70% participants buys cultural ingredients from East street market
More than 50% participants had chicken for Sunday dinner at home
12 out of 21 male participants mentioned they do not cook regularly
Evaluating recipe sharing as a research method
1.
Recipe sharing and creating workshop works well in closed communal setting
2.
Workshop can be adapted for public setting by utilising prompt boards
3.
Recipe sharing transforms research to appreciative cultural exchange
Toolkit Prototype
Reflection
Replicability and Scalability of the method
Recipe cards can be adapted to any recipe-themed activity, with prompts customized by the facilitator. They can scale to large groups or intimate household settings.
Importance of reflexivity as a researcher
My design process may have been influenced by implicit assumptions about what constitutes "normal" or "standard" cuisine leading to giving less importance to cultural ingredients. This experience taught me to be more receptive to assumptions I make during my process
Street intercept as a research method
We relied on self recruitment during our primary research. This could mean that only proactive people answers our questions and might lack the the inclusion of different perspectives in our research.
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