Fennel carpaccio
Fennel is one of the most underrated vegetables that I know. It belongs to the carrot family and grows in the cooler months of the year (no frost). The whole fennel plant is edible, from the root over the stalks to the feathery fronds. It has a sweet licorice flavour that changes in intensity depending on the way you cook or treat it. Fennel goes exceptional well with fish and seafood.
Equipment
- mandoline
Ingredients
- 2 smaller fennel bulbs or 1 large one, stalks and a thin layer of the bottom of the bulb cut off. Keep some fronds for decoration.
- 1 orange, filleted and cut into cubes
- 3 Tblsp olive oil
- 3 teasp white castor sugar
- 100 g halloumi cheese, cut into 1 cm cubes
- 1/2 small pomegranate, arils (seeds) only
- 250 ml 100% orange juice
- 1 teasp icing sugar
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- Slice your fennel bulb(s) sidewise on the mandoline into 2 mm segments. If you don't have a mandoline you can slice the fennel as thinly as possible with a knife.
- Heat 1 Tblsp of oil in a non-stick pan to medium high heat and sprinkle half a teaspoon of castor over the surface of the pan.
- Place the fennel slices in a single layer on top of the sugar to caramelize. It might take 1 to 2 minutes or until the slices are slightly golden brown. Turn the fennel and brown the second side. You have to stay next to the stove to avoid burning the fennel. Remember every stove is different.
- Then take the fennel out of the pan and repeat with the remaining fennel, oil and sugar until all the fennel is caramelized.
- Use the same pan and the remaining oil to slightly brown the halloumi cubes.
- While you caramelize the fennel slices, you reduce the 100% orange juice by 2/3rds. Then mix in the icing sugar and set aside to cool.
- Arrange a circle of fennel slices in the middle of a plate, top with a second layer of fennel slices and season with a little freshly ground black pepper. Keep one nice fennel slice for each plate to decorate.
- Top the fennel slices with the orange and halloumi cubes in a smaller circle.
- Scatter the pomegranate seeds over the dish.
- Decorate 1 fennel slice in the middle of each plate (optional).
- Use some fennel fronds to decorate your dish.
- Drizzle the orange reduction over the top and serve.
- Tip: You can make the orange reduction a day in advance and keep it in the fridge.