It's been a washout of a summer, but it seems too soon for wintery foods. These warm salads bridge the
gap perfectly, writes DOMINI KEMP

THERE ARE A bunch of good food stores dotted around the country. Today, as we reveal the best shops in Ireland as voted for by readers, these are a few of my personal favourites. But we need more. I am blessed to live close enough to Roy Fox’s in Donnybrook, which is like Aladdin’s cave, filled with a fantastic array of spices, blends, pluses, seeds and condiments.

Dubliners are lucky to have stores such as Fallon Byrne, Sheridans, and Liston’s on Camden Street, as well as a great Asian market on Drury Street in the city centre. Down in Greystones in Co Wicklow, I was immensely jealous of locals for their proximity to The Happy Pear, filled with organic and vegetarian delights. This nestled confidently next door to a A Caviston, with its fresh fish, wine, cheese and luxury products. In Tipperary, Peter and Mary Ward’s Country Choice has lots of lovely things.

My favourite buys in food shops are things like great olive oils, vinegars, mustards, pulses, salts and spices. Green Saffron is a wonderful Irish company and its spices doused on things like cauliflower and potatoes and then blasted in the oven are a treat. But they are a bit pricey for everyday use, so it’s worth following one of the easy recipes on each pack. You will never view lentils the same way. This is a really great range of products from a company that supplies Heston Blumenthal with a custom blend.

The following two recipes are fast-food in style, helped specifically by some off-the-shelf products, such as preserved lemons, hoi sin sauce and nori sheets of seaweed. The Lyonnaise salad is a perfect vehicle for ready-to-go lardons, which are a bit lazy, but are like a pack of magic dice in terms of a flavour boost.

Frisée lettuce can be hard to find, but inevitably ones of these specialist stores will have it. It’s incredibly strong-flavoured and stands up magnificently to a punchy dressing that is warmed with the bacon fat and plenty of red wine vinegar.

The Belazu range is especially good for two products: its balsamic vinegar is a rich, sticky reduction and although it costs a whopping €20 or so per bottle, a little goes a long way.

For an instant dressing, take some mixed leaves and pour on some olive or rapeseed oil and then the tiniest drizzle of this balsamic and a little rock salt and pepper. Toss, and presto.

I like to use Belazu preserved lemons in everything that I want a strong citrusy punch from, even though it may be mixing Asian with Middle Eastern ingredients.

Soba noodle salad

Serves 6 as main course

You could also add a handful of salted peanuts, lightly chopped or black sesame to this. In Asian markets they sell bags of crispy shallots which are perfect for something like this.

2 heads broccoli

Few glugs rapeseed or sunflower oil

Salt and pepper

Approximately 500g tofu, diced

2 dessertspoons sesame oil

2 dessertspoons hoi sin sauce

2 dessertspoons rice wine vinegar

3 preserved lemons, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

Large piece of ginger, peeled and grated

100ml olive oil

500g soba noodles

2 tbsp sesame seeds

2 bunches spring onions, sliced

4-6 sheets nori

Preheat an oven to 200 degrees/gas 6. Break the broccoli into small florets and toss with some oil and season with salt and pepper. Put them in a roasting tray and cook for about 15-20 minutes until slightly charred and tender. Set aside. Dice the tofu and fry in a non-stick frying pan until golden brown. Season well and set aside.

Make the dressing by mixing the sesame oil, hoi sin, rice wine vinegar, preserved lemons, garlic and ginger. Whisk in the olive oil – feel free to use sunflower oil instead. Season well or adjust the seasoning by adding some soy sauce, chilli sauce or anything else you like.

Cook the soba noodles in boiling water (for about four minutes), then drain and rinse them. They don’t need to be completely cold. Over a flame, brush the nori against the draught of the flame from a little height, so that it lightly toasts, then tear it up. Toss the well-drained noodles with the dressing first and then add the tofu, sesame seeds, spring onions, broccoli and nori. Mix well, season and serve with extra sesame seeds on top.

Lyonnaise salad

Serves 4 as light supper, starter or lunch

Frisée can be absolutely massive in size, so use your head when buying for four people. You may only use half a head.

About 4-6 slices sourdough bread, diced

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Approximately 400g bacon lardons

Pinch brown sugar

80ml red wine vinegar

1-2 heads frisée approx

1 shallot

1 dessertspoon of Dijon mustard

100ml olive oil

4 soft boiled or poached eggs

Dice the bread into appropriate bite-sized chunks. Put them on a roasting or baking tray, douse generously with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake for about 10-20 minutes at 170 degrees/gas 3. Keep an eye on them, shuffle them round a bit and cook until golden brown. These can sit out for a few hours until ready to use, but people tend to nibble on them, so keep them out of sight.

Fry the lardons until fat has rendered well and then add the pinch of sugar for a final bit of caramelisation. You might need a splash of oil to get them started. When they look extremely crispy and tasty, drain them onto kitchen paper, but keep the fat in the frying pan and set aside.

Sort out your lettuce and arrange on plates. Dice up the shallot, mix with the Dijon mustard in a bowl and whisk in a small amount of the olive oil – enough to form a nice emulsion.

Heat up the bacon fat and when good and hot, add in the red wine vinegar and use this to deglaze the pan. Add this warm mixture gradually to the Dijon base and then whisk in the remaining oil. You should have a nice, thick, warm dressing.

Taste and adjust the seasoning. It’s quite sharp, but needs to be to stand up to the bacon fat and bitter leaves. Spoon some dressing over the leaves and top with croutons and poached or soft boiled egg.

Food cooked and styled by Domini and Peaches Kemp