If you are looking for a simple but very fresh and delicious salad, this is it!
The star ingredient in this salad is fennel, a crunchy, slightly sweet vegetable that adds a refreshing taste to any dish. Fennel’s aromatic taste is often described as reminiscent of liquorice and anise.
Fennel is an excellent source of vitamin C and contains unique phytonutrients with antioxidant and health-promoting effects.
Good quality fennel will have bulbs that are clean, firm and solid, without signs of splitting, bruising or spotting. The bulbs should be whitish or pale green in colour. Both the stalks and the leaves should be bright green in colour.
Did you know that fennel bulbs come in two shapes? Well, it does. There is the elongated bulb, considered to be the female fennel, which is stringy and less flavoursome and the rounded male bulb, which is sweeter tasting, the best one for eating raw.
Fennel is fantastic served with pork and fish, especially salmon.
Serves 4
What you need
- 1 fennel bulb
- 6 Cos lettuce leaves – washed and drain
- 1 orange
For the Dressing
- 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
What to do
Slice the fennel very thinly. This is best done using an mandolin (a vegetable slicer available at most kitchenware shops), otherwise use a sharp knife. Place into a bowl
Shred the lettuce and add to the bowl with the fennel.
Peel and carefully segment the orange (if you’re not sure how, see instructions below) – add these to the bowl. Before discarding the leftover part of the orange, squeeze any juice into a small bowl a set aside for the dressing.
Use your hands to gently toss the salad.
To make the dressing, add the white wine vinegar, oil and a little salt and pepper (to taste) to the reserved orange juice. Mix together.
Pour over the salad and toss gently just before serving.
Follow the instructions in the image captions to segment an orange
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