Finocchio (fennel) is a vegetable that I do associate with Italy. Italians use every part of the fennel. Fennel stays pretty crunchy so it can be used in salads (even staying crunchy the next day), and can stand up to being roasted or grilled. The dried seeds are used for to spice porchetta. Upset stomach? A cup of finocchio tea will calm your stomach and is believed to aid digestion. Italian mamas will make you eat raw fennel after a big meal, for the same reason. Fennel contains essential oil and is low calorie.
As Italian eat seasonally, fennel is also a vegetable that I associate with winter. As the weather is getting nicer (fingers crossed) I thought I’d say goodbye winter and bid a hello to spring. I wanted to mix fennel, a winter vegetable which has an anise (licorice) flavour with a sunshiney pop of spring, in this case, mandarin oranges with their slightly citrus burst. To give the flavours a bit of a mild bite, I’ve added red onion. Besides having complimentary flavours, the salad looks pretty with the bright colours.
This is a side in a snap. it is easy to make and quick to put together. Leftover salad is good the next day.
Prep time: 5 minutes; Serves: 4 sides
What you need – Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring salad:
- 1/2 large fennel, trimmed, cored and thinly sliced (use a mandolin)
- 1 – 10 oz can mandarin oranges, drained, juice reserved
- 1 tbsp thinly diced red onion (use a mandolin)
- 3-4 tbsp Tangy Citrus Dressing (recipe follows below)
What you do:
Add fennel, oranges and red onion to a medium-sized bowl. Add dressing (see below) and toss lightly to coat. Add fennel fronds to garnish.
What you need – Tangy Citrus Dressing:
This will make approximately 1 1/2 cups of dressing. Reserve extra dressing. You can also use it as a dip for raw fennel and other vegetables.
Prep time: 5 minutes
- 1 small clove garlic, minced
- juice of 1/2 lemon (about 2 tbsp)
- 3 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup reserved mandarin orange juice
- salt, pepper to taste
What you do:
In a mason jar, add all dressing ingredients: minced garlic, lemon juice, Dijon, sugar, olive oil, red wine vinegar, mandarin orange juice. Put the lid on the mason jar, making sure that it is tightly sealed. Shake! Add salt and pepper to taste.
A little note on fennel: There is an Italian expression – “non farti infinocchiare”, which translated to “don’t be fooled”. This is because fennel’s taste and aroma can sometimes overpower other flavours. In the past dishonest innkeepers and winemakers would mask an inferior bottle of wine by using fennel.
I hear the dressing is amazing. Can’t wait to try it.
Thanks! Let me know how it goes.
I’ve been using the leftover dressing for other salads (it makes a ton) and I have to say the response has been very positive!
The University student who is usually salad-phobic ate leftover salad as he “loved the dressing”!