Sesame Free Fennel-Orange Salad
Bright, refreshing, and built entirely from whole ingredients, this fennel and orange salad is the kind of dish that looks like it came from a restaurant but comes together in your own kitchen with almost no fuss. Crisp shaved fennel, juicy citrus segments, briny Castelvetrano olives, and paper-thin red onion create a combination that's equal parts elegant and craveable. The dressing is a simple whisk of olive oil, fresh orange and lemon juice, honey, and a pinch of red pepper flakes — nothing processed, nothing hidden, just clean flavors that let the produce shine. For anyone navigating sesame sensitivities, salads and dressings can be surprisingly tricky territory, since tahini and sesame oil sneak into a lot of store-bought vinaigrettes and Mediterranean-inspired dishes. Every single component here is naturally free of that concern, so you can dress and toss with total confidence. The ice-water trick for the fennel is worth the extra ten minutes — it curls the slices beautifully and takes away any harsh bite, leaving behind a delicate, almost sweet crunch. Finish it with shaved Parmesan and torn fennel fronds and you've got a showstopper salad that's as good for a weeknight dinner as it is for a dinner party spread.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the salad
- 2 medium fennel bulbs, fronds reserved
- 3 medium navel oranges
- ¼ small red onion, very thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup castelvetrano olives, pitted and roughly torn
For the dressing
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh orange juice (from one of the segmented oranges)
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp honey
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- ½ tsp salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper
For serving
- 2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp fennel fronds, roughly torn (optional)
- 1 oz shaved parmesan (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Trim the fennel bulbs: cut off the stalks and any tough outer layers, then halve each bulb through the root. Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, shave the fennel crosswise into very thin slices, about 1/8 inch thick. Place in a large bowl of ice water and let stand for 10 minutes, until the slices curl slightly and crisp up. Drain well and pat dry with a clean kitchen towel.
- 2
Working over a bowl to catch the juice, cut the top and bottom off each orange, then stand each orange upright and slice away the peel and white pith from top to bottom, following the curve of the fruit. Hold the peeled orange over the bowl and cut between the membranes to release the segments, letting them fall into the bowl. Squeeze the spent membranes over the bowl to extract the juice, then measure out 2 tbsp of the juice for the dressing.
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