Discover the symphony of flavors that Italy has to offer, with our Sicilian Salad. This refreshing salad features succulent orange segments, green olives, and the crisp and licorice-like notes of fresh fennel. Unlike our Fennel Pear Salad, this recipe is very simplistic, in order to celebrate the fresh flavors that it has to offer.
Salads like this one are a great way to lighten up a richer meal like our Creamy Spinach Turkey Meatballs. For a more denser salad, I recommend trying our Broccoli Cauliflower Salad. Try wrapping up a salad with our delicious Chicken Wild Rice Salad.
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Ingredients
Pick out the best quality of the produce required for this recipe, since their fresh flavors will be highlighted in this recipe.
- Fennel Bulb
- Fennel Fronds
- Large Orange
- Red Onion
- Green Olives
- Pine Nuts
- Lemon Juice
- Olive Oil
- Arugula (optional base for the salad)
See recipe card for quantities.
How to prepare a fennel bulb
When seeing fennel at the grocery store, the thing in its entirety can look quite intimidating. Follow these steps on how to prepare a fennel bulb. Pick out a fennel bulb which is nice and white, and mostly undamaged. Having to remove the outer layer of the white bulb can result is losing a lot of the produce.
Cut off the fronds (dill-looking leaves) and the green stalks from the white bulb.
Cut off the bottom tip of the root and then cut the bulb in quarters
Make a diagonal cut on the bottom of each quarter, in order to remove the denser core.
Separate the layers of the bulb making sure they are free of dirt. Slice each layer in thin slices.
Assembling the Sicilian salad
Prepare the fennel bulb as per the instructions above. Save some of the dill-looking fronds for plating. They have a nice milder liquorish taste to them.
Segment the orange by cutting off the rind with as much of the whites as possible. Run a sharp knife along each side of the membranes in order to release the individual segments.
Place the sliced fennel, onion, orange, olives, pine nuts, and fennel fronds on the plates
Drizzle lightly with lemon juice and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper as to your preference.
As seen in the picture below, you can also assemble this salad on top of a bed of arugula for a more substantial salad. I love the arugula with this salad because of its hardier leaves and peppery taste.
Substitutions and Variations
- Greens - You can serve this salad on a bed of arugula or spinach.
- Olives - Use your favorite type of olive, although I recommend a green or kalamata.
- Cheese - If wanting to add cheese, I would recommend feta due to its salt content.
Storage
Store any pre-assembled salads in the refrigerator, without being dressed. If dressing in advance, make sure to not include any greens, because they will wilt much faster than the other ingredients.
Recipe
Sicilian Salad
Ingredients
- 1 large Fennel Bulb ,prepared and thinly sliced
- 1 large Orange ,segmented
- ¼ cup Red Onion ,thinly sliced
- ? cup Garlic Stuffed Green Olives ,halved
- 2 tablespoon Pine Nuts ,toasted
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil ,for dressing
- 1 tablespoon Fresh Lemon Juice ,for dressing
Instructions
How to prepare a fennel bulb
- The fennel consists of the white bulb, the dill-looking fronds and the green stalks. For this recipe, we will use the bulb and some of the fronds for the salad.
- Cut off the bulb from the stalks and fronds. Cut off the this root section of the bulb.
- Cut the bulb vertically in quarters. Make a diagonal cut to the bottom part of each quarter, in order to remove the denser core of the bulb.
- At this point, the layers of the bulb should come apart. Wash and dry them to remove any dirt. Slice the layers in thin slices for the salad.
To assemble the salad
- In a large bowl or on two plates, arrange the sliced fennel bulb, orange segments, and sliced onion.
- Top the salad(s) with the olives, pine nuts, and some of the fennel fronds.
- Drizzle the salad(s) with fresh lemon juice and olive oil. Season with freshly cracked pepper and salt flakes. Enjoy!
