Insalata di Arance e Finocchio
The winter salad of Sicily — blood oranges, shaved fennel, black olives, red onion. Bright, refreshing, and impossibly beautiful.
Ingredients
- 4blood oranges (or navel oranges)
- 2 bulbsfennel
- 1small red onion
- 80gTaggiasca black olives
- Extra virginSicilian olive oil
- To tastesea salt and black pepper
- Optionalfennel fronds for garnish
Method
Peel oranges removing all pith. Slice into rounds or segments.
Shave fennel paper-thin on a mandoline. Place in cold water 5 minutes.
Slice red onion into thin rings. Soak briefly in cold water to soften.
Layer oranges, drained fennel and onion on a wide plate.
Scatter olives, drizzle generously with olive oil, season. Serve at room temperature.
Frequently asked
What oranges are best for an orange and fennel salad?
Blood oranges when they are in season — in Sicily that is winter, and the sharpness works against the fennel. Otherwise any sweet, thin-skinned orange. Cut away all the pith, and slice into rounds over a bowl so you keep the juice.
What do you serve orange and fennel salad with?
Oily fish and rich meat, which is why it turns up next to sardines and roast pork in Sicily. It also holds well on a table, so it works as part of an antipasto spread.
Learn to make Insalata di Arance e Finocchio with Chef Gabriele
A recipe gets you most of the way there. The rest is in the hands — how the dough should feel, when to stop working it, what the pan should sound like. Chef Gabriele teaches the arancini and street food classin Leichhardt, Sydney's Little Italy, in small groups where everyone cooks.
