How do you cut the oranges for the Fennel and Orange Salad? What black olives should I choose to prepare Oranges and Fennel salad? How do you prepare the side dish of Fennel and Oranges?
These are just three of the questions you asked me in the month of January, so here I am writing my recipe for Fennel and Orange Salad with oven-baked black olives. I will not reveal the Moon; there are millions of versions of this simple recipe. Some add an ingredient and others remove some, so this is my version, and I would be curious to read your recipe for Sicilian Blood Oranges with fennel in the comments.
The orange and fennel salad is a typical dish of Spanish cuisine and Sicilian cuisine, obviously with its thousands of variations, so no one should feel offended if my version does not reflect the original or your recipe.
I confess that I do not eat this dish, so I prepare it only for my partner. I don’t like oranges or black olives, sorry. But I’m learning to appreciate fennel, even if for now only gratinated (you can find the recipe on the blog of Baked Gratinated Fennel) or mixed with bechamel and ham.
I will explain how to best prepare this side dish with fennel and orange. I chose the ingredients based on the advice of the women I know and my trusted greengrocer. Starting from the choice of oranges, everyone agrees that Sicilian Blood Oranges should be used, the best for giving flavor and aroma to this salad. Then the black olives, preferably already oven-baked; in my case, they are apulian black olives oven-baked. If you are from Porto San Giorgio like me, you can find them at Pietro’s Garden.
The next tip is to cut the oranges into wedges, removing as much of the outer white part as possible, which is the one that always remains more bitter. If you want to leave them in large wedges like I did, you can do so, otherwise, you can cut each wedge in half.
Grandma also recommends using some lemon to prevent the fennel from darkening after being sliced with a mandoline. Be careful with your fingers; I advise using a knife if you’re not very skilled with the mandoline, as it’s easy to lose a fingertip.
Remember that this recipe can be prepared from Autumn to Spring, which is the season for fennel. Just as you will easily find Oranges from December to the end of May. So save this recipe to prepare it during these months.
Before moving on to the recipe, I remind you that you will find many easy, quick, and affordable side dish recipes. All the links below are clickable and will take you directly to the recipe you want to read. From Purslane with lemon with grandma’s tips to the classic and always delicious Baked Potatoes. Then moving on to Green Beans and Potatoes, another dish I adore. Many and many other recipes await you in the side dish section of my blog.
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2 people
- Cooking methods: No Cooking
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
- Energy 161.66 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 15.21 (g) of which sugars 11.88 (g)
- Proteins 2.46 (g)
- Fat 10.33 (g) of which saturated 1.81 (g)of which unsaturated 4.15 (g)
- Fibers 5.01 (g)
- Sodium 565.69 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 9 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for Fennel and Orange Salad
- 2 Sicilian Blood Oranges (medium-large)
- 2 fennels (medium-large)
- 20 black olives (oven-baked)
- 1 lemon
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
Tools for Preparing Fennel and Orange Salad
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Spoon
- 1 Knife
- 1 Glass
- 1 Teaspoon
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Citrus Juicer
- 1 Dish Towel
- 1 Plate
Steps for Fennel and Orange Salad Recipe
Let’s start by preparing the extra virgin olive oil that will flavor our fennel and orange salad. So, let’s take a glass and pour two or three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into it. Then add the juice of half a lemon. Mix with a teaspoon and set aside. Keep the other half of the lemon for later.
Now let’s move on to preparing the oranges and the fennel. Take the oranges, wash them well, and pat them dry with a dish towel. Place them on a wooden cutting board and, with a knife, remove the peel, trying to remove as much of the outer white part as possible. Then, with your hands, extract the segments; I kept them whole, but if you want, you can also cut them in half to have more orange pieces in your winter salad. Place the orange segments on a plate.
Then proceed with the fennel. Wash them and pat them dry with a kitchen towel. Place on the cutting board and remove the tougher outer part and the green fronds. Now cut the fennel into thin slices; if you’re skilled, you can do this with a mandoline, being careful with your fingers. Or use a serrated knife like I did, as I’m a bit of a coward. As you cut, place the fennel in a deep bowl. Pour over the fennel the juice of the lemon half we set aside. Mix with a spoon.
Now we have the main ingredients ready to proceed. The oven-baked black olives I chose are practically ready to go into the bowl with the other ingredients, so I didn’t have to do anything else.
Pour the black olives into the bowl and finally add the oranges, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. While working everything together with a spoon, also add a drizzle of the extra virgin olive oil that we previously mixed with the lemon juice. Mix well and let it marinate for at least 30 minutes before serving our orange and olive salad.
All that’s left is to wish you a good meal and remind you that I wait for you every morning on the Fan Page of Facebook of Le Ricette di Bea with the Recipe of the Day!
Notes
I would really love to find out your recipe, your trick for preparing a good and fragrant fennel and orange salad. Therefore, I hope you leave a comment on this recipe.
