orange and fennel salad with walnuts and olives

Let this light and crunchy Italian orange and fennel salad with walnuts and black olives transport you to a place where every flavour tells a story, and every dish is a work of art! A refreshing melody of winter flavours, this Sicilian festive side dish is vibrant, naturally vegan and packed with nutrients.

Sweet, tangy oranges pair beautifully with the delicate flavour of fresh fennel. Crunchy walnuts and briny, salty black olives complement the other flavours and textures, creating a harmonious balance. A simple seasoning of lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper rounds off the dish in true Italian style. Fennel and orange salad with walnuts and olives may not sound very enticing, but it really is a deliciously unique combination of flavours that must be tried to be believed!

Origins of Italian orange and fennel salad

Orange and fennel salad originates from the south of Italy, particularly the island of Sicily, where oranges grow in abundance. Fennel and walnuts are also a winter harvest, testimony to the fact that people used to make dishes with whatever they could grow at any given time of the year. Many of these dishes were naturally vegan because meat was scarce. Italy’s cucina povera has produced many fine dishes of international fame, and this Sicilian fennel and orange salad is one of them. As with all traditional recipes, there are many variations. Some people add sliced red onion for an extra kick, and not everyone uses olives.

This Sicilian fennel and orange salad takes just 10 minutes to make! Slice the fennel, fillet the orange, sprinkle with walnuts and black olives, season with lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt and black pepper. Detto fatto! No sooner said than done!

Fennel and orange salad would normally be served as a festive side dish, but it’s also ideal as a light, vegan lunch. I love it with a slice of sourdough bread to mop up the juices, and the extra calories in the bread keep me going for a bit longer.

How to make Italian orange and fennel salad with walnuts and black olives.

Ingredients

Fennel – Look for firm, tightly-packed bulbs. Fresh ones are white to pale green in colour. The fronds should be green and fresh, not wilted. It’s important that you use fresh fennel for this salad. If you have older fennel, don’t waste it – trim the parts that are no longer fresh and remove the outer layer(s). It’ll be perfectly good for cooking.

Orange – Sicilian varieties include Tarocco and Navelina, which have orange flesh. Moro and Sanguinello are blood oranges. You can use pretty much any kind of orange for this salad.

Red onion (optional) – I don’t put onion in this salad because I find the flavour overpowering. If you do want to add onion, make sure it’s red onion, which is milder. I also suggest you only use a small amount.

Walnuts – I’m lazy, and I use ready-shelled walnut halves for this recipe. You could substitute walnuts with pine nuts.

Black olives – In this recipe, Italian black olives would be the obvious choice, but feel free to substitute with Kalamata or green olives if you prefer. I used Gaeta olives.

Lemon juice – If possible, use freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Oil – Get your best extra virgin olive oil out for this – you’ll definitely taste the difference!

Salt – I use unrefined sea salt

Pepper – freshly ground black pepper will give you the best results.

Fennel fronds or fresh dill for garnish – Sometimes, when you buy fennel, the fronds have been chopped off. If they are still attached, they make a great garnish. I used fresh dill. If you can’t find fresh dill, you could use fresh mint or maybe even parsley instead.

How to prepare Italian orange and fennel salad

• Wash and trim the fennel. Cut it into quarters. Then, cut each quarter crosswise into thin slices. You can do this with a sharp knife or on a mandolin.
• Fillet the orange. This involves removing the membrane from the segments. Let’s say it’s fine to pop segments of orange into your mouth as a snack, so to speak. But you could best do without the membrane in a salad, especially if you’re serving it to guests. Filleting an orange is a bit fiddly but it only takes a couple of minutes. The salad will look nicer, and it’ll provide for a better eating experience.

How to fillet an orange

1. Using a shark knife, cut through the peel and slice off the top and bottom of the orange. Stand the orange on its base. This will prevent it from rolling.
2. Starting from the top, follow the curve of the fruit with the knife to remove the peel and pith.
3. Once the peel and pith are removed, you’ll see the membranes that create the natural divisions between the orange segments. Insert the knife next to one of the membranes. Slice downwards towards the centre of the fruit. Repeat on the other membrane that holds the segment together to release it.
4. Continue this process for each segment. Work your way around the orange, removing each segment by cutting along both sides of the membranes. As you finish each segment, place them on a plate. Work over a bowl to catch the juice that falls.
5. Squeeze the juice from what is left of the orange into the bowl, too. You’ll add this to the dressing at the end.
6. Save the orange peels for zest, candied fruit, marmalade, etc. or compost them.

• Arrange half of the sliced fennel on a serving platter and top with half of the orange and some of the walnuts. Create a second layer with the rest of the fennel and orange. Scatter the remaining walnut halves and the olives over the salad. This is the time to add red onion slices if you want to.

• Pour the orange juice and lemon juice over the salad. Season with freshly ground unrefined salt and black pepper to taste. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, garnish with fresh dill or fennel fronds, and serve immediately.

serving suggestions

Serve this delicious crunchy Italian orange and fennel salad as a side dish with an Italian main course like vegan polpette, or seitan spiedini (skewers). In the home, Italians often eat salad right at the end of a meal. This Sicilian speciality is often eaten at Christmas or Easter. I put it on my New Year’s Eve menu, after the appetisers and the starter but before the main course.

It’s also great as a light, healthy lunch bowl. Add a couple of slices of your favourite bread to make it more filling.

How to store leftovers

Any salad which has been seasoned with salt and oil won’t last very long – at the most, a couple of hours in the fridge. It goes limp quickly and water comes out of the vegetables due to the process of osmosis. If the salad hasn’t been seasoned, it will keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for a couple of days.

I hope you enjoy this recipe for Italian orange and fennel salad with walnuts and black olives! If you do, please leave a comment – I’d love to hear from you!

While you’re here on Vegan Hot Stuff, maybe you’d also like to take a look at some other popular winter recipes…

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