This month’s “Savor Cooks” recipe features fennel. Try our recipe for a quick and crunchy Fennel, Asian Pear and Avocado Salad.
Fennel has an anise-like flavor, and it can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw fennel has a crisp texture that works well in salads. Sautéed or roasted fennel becomes slightly sweet and pairs well with onion as a flavor base for soups, sautéed greens or meat dishes.
The white bulb of the fennel is the main edible part, but don’t toss the green tops. The delicate “fronds” of the fennel are edible and can be used to finish a dish, and the green stalk can be saved in a bag or container in the freezer and turned into soup stock when combined with other vegetable odds and ends (think onion peels and carrot tops).
Don’t forget to check out our Food of the Month post on fennel.
Recipes
This salad takes less than 10 minutes to prepare, and the variations are endless. Instead of Asian Pear, try apple, pomegranate seeds, orange slices or raisins. Not a fan of the sweet and savory combo? Chopped celery makes a nice addition. Don’t have a ripe avocado? Toss in toasted walnuts or sunflower seeds for a healthy and filling source of fat.
Hungry for more fennel recipes? Try our recipe for Roasted Tomato and Fennel Soup that we created for VeryWell’s cancer prevention series.
- ¾ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons red wine or sherry vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- pinch each salt and fresh ground pepper
- pinch garlic powder
- 1 medium fennel bulb, core removed, thinly sliced *save some of the green fronds for assembly
- 1 medium Asian pear, thinly sliced
- 1 small avocado, halved, pitted and thinly sliced
- Combine dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake until emulsified. Alternatively, combine dressing ingredients in a bowl and whisk. Set aside.
- Place the sliced fennel, pear and avocado in a medium bowl. Drizzle in the dressing and toss to combine.
- Divide the salad between two plates. Add some of the green fennel fronds on top to finish.
