Speciality food shops have sprung up all over the country to cater to the needs of multicultural Ireland. Corinna Hardgrave goes in search of Arabic food in Dublin
I approach Abdul Teka, the owner of 205 Food Store on South Circular Road in Dublin, telling him that I'm interested in learning more about Arabic food, and he quickly sets me straight on the whole notion of there even being such a thing as "Arabic food".
"There are so many different types of Arabic food, from the Lebanon and Syria, in the Mediterranean, to Egypt and Tunisia, in northern Africa, and across to Dubai and Iraq, in the Arabian Gulf," he says. "You could pick a region for every week of the year."
This makes sense when you think about it. If somebody asked about "European food", it's unlikely that they'd have the same discussion with an Irishman as they would with a Sicilian, a Greek or a Norwegian. Yet we seem to lump the disparate culinary cultures of 22 Arabic nations into one big, fragrant tagine.
Teka, who is Libyan, has been renting his corner shop for the past seven years. It has a large meat counter, and he supplies the "Arabic" and Pakistani restaurants in town with Irish halal meat. Dried spices, pickles, canned goods and fresh vegetables are on the loosely packed shelves, and large sacks of basmati rice lie on the floor.
I ask whom I should talk to if I want to know what Arab families are eating in Ireland. He suggests I wander down to the mosque, also on South Circular Road. Its shop, more hushed and reverent than Teka's bustling store, is run by Salem Salh, another Libyan, who has been living in Ireland since 1973. I am made to feel welcome, although I am conscious of the stream of traditionally-dressed Muslims trickling in and out.
"Things have changed so much in Ireland," Salh says. "Really, it's no different for Arab families. Everyone is so busy these days."
Al Khryat, an Arabic shop in Rathmines, which opened in 2000, has a more metropolitan neighbourhood feel to it. It's a compact space. The door is nearly always open wide, and shelves are piled high. A large crate of watermelons sits outside. Irish, eastern European, African, Pakistani and Arab customers drop in, some with a "Salam alaikum" greeting, and others with a distinctly non-Arabic "Hiya".
"Eight years ago, I started supplying fresh herbs to restaurants in Dublin. Indian restaurants use a lot of coriander," Sami Hussein, the Iraqi owner, tells me. "And the best stuff comes from Carmel in Israel, although I also import from Cyprus and Spain, and source locally in summer."
We talk about food, and I soon realise that he is a serious cook. He started cooking when he was studying an Open University programme in England and missed the food from home. And now, most weekends, he cooks for 200 people on Saturday evenings at the Islamic Cultural Centre in Clonskeagh, where families get together, sitting on the floor in the traditional manner.
Hussein's eyes light up as he talks about the differences in seasonings used with lamb, chicken and fish. Although many of the herbs and spices are the same, the subtle variations in proportions are all-important. We talk about the wonderful aromas of onions, cardamom, garlic, coriander and chilli, and how the meat falls apart after slow cooking. "When marinating, use a little vinegar for lamb and lemon juice for chicken," he says.
He even offers to cook for me. "Ring me some day when you feel sad, and I will cook you something to make you happy. Or, if you like, I can come around and cook for your family."
Hussein hits the markets at 6am five days a week, to get his supplies of fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs, and then his driver delivers to the restaurants. Vegetables and fruit sell well in summer; he can sell 1,000kg of watermelon in a single day. "I cut them open," he says, "so that people can taste the sweetness before they buy them." Basmati rice is a steady seller. Large bags of nuts, spices and peppercorns are great value, as are the well-priced olives and feta cheese in the fridge. There are tins of hummus, jars of tahini paste and great big jars of grilled peppers. Best of all are the large bunches of fresh herbs, kept at the back of the shop. This really is a one-stop shopping experience, and not just for Arabic food.
Having lived in the Middle East for a number of years, and experienced the hospitality of Arabic people in their homes, I love to replicate some of the great meals I've had when I have people around to eat. And the profusion of excellent Arabic shops has made it easy to source speciality ingredients.
The preparation of Arabic food is very straightforward, with much of it done ahead of time. Hummus is easily made by whizzing up chickpeas with tahini, garlic and lemon juice. I love the sultry taste of smoky baba ganoush, made from grilled aubergines, which benefits from advance preparation, as the flavours have time to develop. A few dips with toasted pitta bread, plates of olives, nuts, feta and grilled halloumi cheese, followed by grilled meat with fattoush - a Lebanese herb salad - makes a wonderful feast.