Fennel is one of those vegetables you often see sitting in the supermarket or greengrocer — but if you have never cooked with it before, it can be easy to walk straight past because you are simply not sure what to do with it.
This salad is a great place to start.
Raw fennel has a lovely crisp texture and a fresh, slightly aniseed flavour that works beautifully with citrus. Sliced very finely and combined with sweet blood orange, ruby grapefruit, cos lettuce, Spanish onion and basil, it becomes fresh, light and very approachable.
The finishing touches bring everything together — toasted almonds for crunch, fresh lemon and olive oil for the dressing, and a drizzle of Cypress Ridge Caramelised Garlic Balsamic Vinegar for a sweet, savoury finish.
It is a simple salad, but there is plenty going on in every mouthful.
Serve immediately.
If you are still a little unsure about the aniseed character of raw fennel, you can lightly cook it first.
Cut the fennel into slightly thicker slices, drizzle with a little olive oil and roast in a hot oven or air fryer until just tender and lightly coloured.
Allow it to cool slightly before adding it to the salad.
Cooking fennel mellows its aniseed flavour considerably and brings out more of its natural sweetness.
For a barbecue version, cut the fennel into wedges or thicker slices, lightly oil and grill until just softened with a little colour.
Cool slightly, slice and add to the salad.
This gives the dish a slightly smokier flavour and makes a great accompaniment to grilled meats or seafood.
The bulb is the main part of the fennel we are using.
Trim away the stalks and the base of the bulb, removing any tough outer layer if necessary.
Cut the bulb in half and slice very finely.
The thinner the fennel is sliced, the more delicate it becomes in the salad.
Our Nocutu Mandoline from the Underground Chef Pantry is particularly useful here, giving you beautifully thin, even slices of fennel and Spanish onion.
Always use the hand guard and take care when working with any mandoline.
To remove grapefruit segments cleanly, cut away the peel and white pith with a sharp knife, following the natural curve of the fruit.
Then carefully cut between the membranes to release each segment.
This gives you clean pieces of grapefruit without the tougher membrane.
This salad does not need a complicated dressing.
The lemon provides acidity, olive oil softens that acidity, and the salt and pepper help bring out the natural flavours of the citrus and fennel.
Taste before serving and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
Slice the fennel finely.
Very thin fennel gives you crunch without allowing its flavour to dominate the salad.
Keep the citrus fresh.
Prepare the blood orange and grapefruit close to serving time so they remain fresh and juicy.
Add the almonds last.
Sprinkle the toasted almond slivers over the salad immediately before serving so they stay crisp.
Don’t overdress it.
There is plenty of moisture in the citrus, so 25 ml of olive oil is enough. You want the salad lightly dressed, not swimming in oil.
Use the fennel fronds.
If your fennel still has its feathery green fronds attached, keep them. They can be scattered over the finished salad just like a fresh herb.
Use a large flat platter rather than a deep bowl.
Begin with the cos lettuce, then build the salad in layers so you can still see the beautiful colours of the blood orange and ruby grapefruit.
Scatter the fennel and onion rather than piling them into one area, and place the citrus naturally across the platter.
Finish with the basil, toasted almonds and a drizzle of Cypress Ridge Caramelised Garlic Balsamic Vinegar.
A few fennel fronds over the top make a lovely final garnish.
Serve as a fresh side dish with grilled fish, seafood, chicken or barbecue meats, or add one of the variations below to turn it into a light meal.
You can prepare most of the ingredients ahead, but keep them separate.
Slice the fennel and onion, prepare the citrus and wash the lettuce, then refrigerate everything until required.
Assemble and dress the salad close to serving so the lettuce and almonds remain crisp.
Drizzle a little Yuzu Honey from the Underground Chef Pantry over the finished salad.
The honey adds a gentle sweetness and extra citrus flavour that works beautifully with the blood orange, ruby grapefruit and fennel.
A little goes a long way.
For a deeper, more savoury variation, add a little Cypress Ridge Caramelised Black Garlic from the Underground Chef Pantry.
Finely slice or chop a small amount and scatter it through the finished salad.
Black garlic has a wonderfully sweet, savoury and earthy flavour that works particularly well against the freshness and acidity of the citrus.
Use it sparingly — you want little bursts of flavour throughout the salad rather than allowing it to overpower the fennel and fruit.
Tear thin slices of prosciutto into ribbons and scatter over the salad.
The salty prosciutto is a lovely contrast to the sweet citrus.
Add sliced grilled chicken to turn the salad into an easy lunch or light dinner.
A few good-quality anchovies like Ortiz Anchovy Fillets in Olive Oil add a salty, savoury element that works particularly well with fennel and citrus.
Serve sardines over or alongside the salad for a simple Mediterranean-style meal.
Try adding parsley, mint or a small amount of fresh dill alongside the basil.
Raw fennel does have a fresh aniseed character, but when it is sliced very finely and combined with citrus, lemon, olive oil and other salad ingredients, the flavour becomes much more delicate.
Cooking fennel mellows that flavour even further.
Yes.
A good sweet orange will still work beautifully, although you will lose some of the dramatic colour that blood orange brings to the dish.
Yes.
You can use additional blood orange, regular orange or even mandarin instead.
The grapefruit does provide a slight bitterness, which helps balance the sweetness of the other ingredients.
Certainly.
Toasted pistachios, walnuts, pecans or hazelnuts would all work well.
Use a good-quality balsamic glaze or balsamic reduction.
The garlic balsamic adds another layer of flavour, but the salad will still work without it.
Fennel is extremely versatile.
Try roasting it, grilling it, braising it, adding it to soups, slicing it through pasta dishes or serving it with seafood.
And remember — the fronds are edible too.
Once you know how to prepare fennel, it suddenly becomes far less mysterious and a very useful vegetable to have in your repertoire.
