If you’re looking for a tasty and different way to enjoy raw fennel, this recipe for fennel marinated in balsamic vinegar might be for you. If you’ve already tried the combination of fennel and orange in this Sicilian fennel salad, you know that this vegetable pairs perfectly with the sweet and slightly sour taste of oranges and the more robust flavor of olives. I followed the same principle in preparing marinated fennel: in this very simple recipe, the fennel is sliced very thinly – I used a mandoline, but a sharp knife will do too – and left to marinate for an hour with a dressing of oil, salt, and balsamic vinegar. To add a bit more flavor, I’ve added some Taggiasca olives, which have a pleasant bitter aftertaste that is particularly suited to balancing the sweetness of the fennel and balsamic vinegar. Among all the fennel recipes, this balsamic vinegar fennel salad is perhaps the easiest and quickest and works well as both an appetizer and a side dish, for a light, healthy, and low-calorie dish.
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: No Cooking
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons
- Energy 111.65 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 2.85 (g) of which sugars 2.26 (g)
- Proteins 1.75 (g)
- Fat 10.25 (g) of which saturated 1.46 (g)of which unsaturated 0.75 (g)
- Fibers 3.33 (g)
- Sodium 176.31 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 165 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 Balsamic Vinegar Marinated Fennel
- 2 fennels (large, about 10.5 oz each)
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- to taste pepper
- to taste balsamic vinegar
- 1 oz Taggiasca olives (pitted)
Tools
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Mandoline
- 1 Salad bowl
- 1 Glass
- 1 Fork
How to Prepare Balsamic Marinated Fennel
To prepare balsamic fennel salad, start by cleaning the fennel: remove the stalks (1) and the outer leaves if they are damaged. Rinse them thoroughly and dry them, then cut them in half and slice them with a mandoline (2).
You need to get very thin slices (3). If you don’t have a mandoline or a vegetable slicer, you can slice the fennel with a sharp knife, trying to get slices that are all the same thickness.
Put them in a large salad bowl and prepare the dressing. Pour the oil into a glass or a small bowl and add a pinch of salt, a grind of pepper, and a little balsamic vinegar (4).
The amount of balsamic vinegar to use varies significantly based on your taste but also on the quality of the vinegar itself. If you use a very aged and thick vinegar, half a teaspoon will suffice, whereas, for a younger vinegar with a less intense flavor, you may need a bit more.
With a fork, beat vigorously until you obtain a homogeneous emulsion (5). Pour it over the fennel salad and mix well to dress them evenly. Finally, add the pitted Taggiasca olives (6).
Briefly mix, cover the bowl with a plate or a sheet of plastic wrap and let the fennel salad marinate in the fridge for an hour or two. About ten minutes before serving the balsamic vinegar marinated fennel, take them out of the fridge and mix them briefly.
How to Store Marinated Fennel
You can store this fennel salad in the refrigerator for a couple of days.
Tips and Variations
If you want to add an extra touch to your fennel salad, you can garnish it with a tablespoon or two of briefly pan-toasted pine nuts, or with almond slivers. If you don’t have Taggiasca olives, you can substitute them with Gaeta olives or Greek olives.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What can I use instead of balsamic vinegar?
If you don’t have balsamic vinegar, you can use apple cider vinegar or the juice of half an orange.
