THERE are some really wonderful, vibrant ingredients available at this time of year and I always look forward to experimenting with the different flavours and textures as each season rolls around.

Salads are often thought of as a summer dish but you can make some really delicious, fresh and colourful meals with whatever seasonal salad produce is available.

Simply add a little meat, fish or cheese to create a nutritional and filling dish. Carrots, beetroot, radish, fennel and artichoke are just some of the fantastic Autumnal ingredients you could use.

One of our most popular dishes at the restaurant is this Thai Beef Salad; the vibrant colours of the ingredients combined with the gentle warming heat of chilli makes for a super autumnal dish. I’ve never been a fan of very spicy foods so I purposely created this recipe to be quite sweet and zingy rather than hot – but feel free to add some extra chillies if you can handle the heat!

I prefer to use fillet steak in this dish, just because it’s leaner than other cuts of beef, but you can use rib-eye if you prefer. Try and get the best you can afford – you’ll only need one fillet for two people so it’s worth spending a little more. Using lean fillet steak also means this is a really nutritious, low fat, protein packed meal.

It’s really important to make sure that the salad ingredients are nice and crunchy in order to create a nice contrast with the tender, warm meat. By placing them into a bowl of iced water for 15 minutes or so, you’ll achieve a really good crunch.

THAI-STYLE BEEF SALAD

(serves 2)

1 8oz fillet or rib eye steak

2 medium carrots

Half cucumber, peeled and de-seeded

1 small red pepper

1 red onion

1 bunch spring onions,

5 radishes

100ml sweet chilli sauce

50ml honey

25ml ketchup

1 tsp dried chilli

2/3 fresh chillies (if desired)

Coriander to garnish

Firstly, prepare the salad by using a potato peeler to make ribbons of the carrot and cucumber, and finely slice the radishes to make small, thin discs. De-seed and finely slice the red pepper and both types of onion. If you want to make the dish a little hotter, slice the fresh chillies and put all the ingredients together in a bowl of iced water. Refrigerate until needed.

Next, prepare the dressing by mixing the sweet chilli sauce, dried chilli, honey and ketchup together.

Over a high heat, pan-fry the steak for three minutes on each side for medium-rare. Cook for a little longer if you prefer it more well-done. Baste the steak in half of the dressing mixture and leave to rest for five minutes.

Drain the salad ingredients, divide between two plates and drizzle over the remaining dressing. Finely slice the beef, dividing equally between the two plates, and place on top of the salad. Finish the dish with an extra burst of colour by sprinkling some fresh coriander on top.