Trim the stalks off the bulb of fennel and reserve the fronds. Honestly, it's easy. Stir in toasted almonds just before serving. Some HTML is OK: link, strong, em. The photos here show the straighter, pole-to-pole option. In an onion, that core is very small, while in fennel, it's quite a bit larger and extends farther up from the root into the center of the bulb. Bake at … slice off the end of the core slightly. Place the bulb upright on a cutting board and cut it in half vertically. When not working on, thinking about, cooking and eating food, he blows off steam (and calories) as an instructor of capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art. Let it sweat for 5 minutes over medium high heat. 1 day ago, by Mekishana Pierre To add slices of raw fennel into a fresh and crunchy salad, try thinly shaving the bulb on a mandoline. Stir. Slice in half lengthwise and then slice as thin as you can. All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. I'm a big fan of the Y-peelers made by Kuhn Rikon. This means you can either leave it in or cut it out. Now cut each cored fennel quarter into lengthwise slices, to your desired thickness. Leaving it in will produce slices that each contain multiple layers of fennel, all held together by the core. Continue making long, lengthwise slices across the width of the leek, from one long edge to the other. Lay each half on the flat cut side, and slice lengthwise to your desired thickness. Larger fennels will have thicker layers and a larger core. How to Prepare, Peel, and Cut Butternut Squash. Slice a little from the root area, then peel away the outer layer if it's too brown. Fennel can be enjoyed raw or cooked. Look for fennel bulbs that are pale green or white with no discoloration. by Yerin Kim Pair fennel with shrimp, salmon or your favorite fish. Don't just throw them out, though: The stalks can be used to flavor stocks, especially fish stock (a.k.a. Cut the strips into small dice-sized pieces. If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment. Melt some butter in a small saucepan, pour in the sliced fennel and salt. Just don't get too freaky, okay? I’ve also added thinly sliced raw fennel to radicchio salads and to grain salads of red quinoa, emmer farro or einka farro. Learn more on our Terms of Use page. 1 day ago, by Kelsey Garcia Cook seafood as usual, adding fennel to the pan to soften (and season fish). Begin by slicing the fennel bulb in half through the middle, cutting parallel to the bulb's wider dimension. Cutting the fennel in half and slicing down across the bulb will give you boomerang shaped slices. Using a sharp knife, cut a thin slice off the root end of the fennel bulb. If … 4 Slice the bulb in half from stem to root. If you take the core out, you'll get very thin individual strips. Cut the Fennel Thin. To make thinner sliced strips, you'll want to remove the core first. Thinly slice to add crunch to fall salads, use it in place of onion to perk up tomato soup, or braise it with chicken or pork for a savory dinner. The layers should be tightly packed, and the fronds should be bright green and vigorous. Lay the quarter of fennel with the cut side flat against the mandoline. Discard the root. Holding the top of the fennel bulb to steady it and using a sharp knife, cut a thin slice off the root end of the fennel bulb. Pesto. There will be the core on the inside of the slices. I like a mix of oj and lemon about 50/50 the just a splash evoo. Roasting this bright bulb softens its crunchy nature and turns it meltingly tender. Using a fluid motion, slide the fennel back and forth across the blade, allowing the shavings to fall on the cutting board. The main thing you want to decide when slicing fennel is whether to do it with the core in or out. Each quarter will have a quarter of the core attached to it. Then, thinly slice the bulb up until the stalks turn to fronds. We've got your back — keep reading to see just how easy it is to break it down. Fennel is built a lot like an onion, with multiple layers held together by a core. Create strips by cutting the bulb lengthwise. Using a large sharp chef's knife, slice off the bottom of the fennel. Lid on. Thinly shave the bottom of the bulb away. Cut the bulb in half from top to bottom to reveal the core. As you can see, you end up with slices that each include the bulb's layers, held together by the core. Roast. fumet), and soups. First off, you'll need a sharp knife and a vegetable peeler. Daniel cooked for years in some of New York's top American, Italian and French restaurants - starting at the age of 13, when he began staging at the legendary restaurant Chanterelle. Then simply dress with a basic olive oil and lemon vinaigrette for a refreshing and healthy dish. Looking for more ways to prepare fennel but still play with the mandoline, I turned to Alice Water’s Chez Panisse Vegetables (1996) and discovered her recipe for caramelized fennel (page 155). For really thin, shaved slices of fennel, use a mandoline. The first thing you'll notice when fennel is past its prime is browning at the edges of each layer, so check there first. Plus, fennel is a treasure trove of goodies: There's the crisp-tender bulb, the aromatic stalks, and the herb-like fronds. My biggest mistake when preparing this dish was not to slice the fennel thin enough. Finally, cut the slices vertically, starting from the top. Place one hand toward the top of the fennel bulb to steady it. Rest the fennel on its side on a no-slip cutting board. Fennel is a simple and robust vegetable to work with that holds it's shape whether slicing it thinly on a mandolin or deploying your knife skills. The perfect margarita is all about fresh, crisp flavors, barely tempered by sweet triple sec. 1 day ago. Hold your knife at a 45-degree angle relative to the cutting board, and slice the core out. Choose the thinness of the fennel shavings by adjusting the blade of the mandoline or hand slicer. Please select the topics you're interested in: Would you like to turn on POPSUGAR desktop notifications to get breaking news ASAP? Stack the thin panels of fennel on top of each other and slice them across 1/4 inch at a time to make small matchstick-like pieces of fennel. Save the stalks for broth. Add a blend of chicken broth and cream. Not to worry! Hold the fennel down securely on a cutting board. Most fennel bulbs look a bit bruised, dirty, and dinged on their surface. If you prefer larger chucks of fennel, cut the strips thicker. To dice fennel, use the same rules as for dicing an onion. This kind of cut is great in salads, for instance, or, if sliced thickly, as part of a crudité platter. Place the fennel with the cut side on board. Press down with the safety guard to secure the bulb, then quickly run the bulb across the blade to shave it into thin slices. In the case of fennel, the core is entirely edible, if a tiny bit firmer than the rest of the bulb. To do that, start by quartering the bulb through the middle. The touch of crispy fennel flavor enhances all these dishes. Best Way to Cut Fennel. I used a chef’s knife and was able to get it pretty thin but next time I’ll use my inexpensive … , I Ate Veggies For Breakfast Every Day For 1 Month — Here's How It Affected Sugar Cravings, How to Avoid a Cracked Pumpkin Pie This Holiday Season, 14 Incredible Cookware Gifts For the Person Who Loves Being in the Kitchen, These 24 Cooking Gifts Are So Useful, You'll Add Some to Your Wish List, Bee's Wrap Is More Sustainable Than Plastic Wrap, but It Doesn't Last Forever, Ready For Pumpkin Everything? They're a heck of a lot prettier than parsley leaves. Remove the tough outer leaves from the bulb, and trim off the root end. You’ll see a thick white core in the middle, use the knife to cut that away. Here's how to slice it, dice it, or do whatever else you want with it. Cut the fennel into wedges through the core, making sure you keep a piece of core in each wedge. A lot of cookbooks and cooking guides say to pull off that outer layer and discard it. First off, you'll need a sharp knife and a vegetable peeler. Dicing fennel is much like dicing an onion. And the fronds should be treated like delicate, anise-scented herbs that can be minced and tossed into a salad or sauce, or used as a garnish. Gratin Nestle thinly sliced fennel in a buttered baking dish with sautéed leeks, sliced red-skinned potatoes, and grated Parmesan. Slice the fennel into larger, thin pieces. With its delicate anise flavor and crisp, refreshing texture, fennel is a natural addition to salads, but transforming it from dense bulb to thin slices can be daunting if you've yet to do it before. Slice or dice, mix with other veggies (beet, butternut squash, sweet pepper), toss with olive oil, and oven roast. Slice thinly starting at the root end. To roast fennel, slice it ½-inch wedges by first cutting the trimmed bulb in half vertically and then cutting each half into pieces. Very thinly sliced celery, fennel, and zucchini are tossed with butter beans and a simple white-wine vinaigrette, then chilled for an hour to allow the flavors to develop in this fuss-free salad. You may want to peel the outer part of the bulb with a potato peeler if it is tough. Fennel, also known as sweet anise, is most commonly served raw, usually sliced very thinly and tossed with a bright dressing as a salad or added to green salads for a bit of extra crunch and light anise flavor. While fennel is not known to be especially slippery, it is still a wise idea to hold it still on a resistant surface to prevent it from slipping away under your grasp. By signing up, I agree to the Terms & to receive emails from POPSUGAR. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. It can also simply be cut into wedges or quarters after removing the stem, depending on your chosen use. Cut once more into quarters. Cutting the fennel into slices: First, cut the fennel in half in the stem’s direction. First, cut the bulb away from the stalks. Make divots on either side of the core and cut it away and discard. Finally, dice the fennel by making a series of vertical cuts perpendicular to the first set of vertical cuts, using the knuckles of your non-knife hand as a guide for the blade. Hold it steady with your non-dominant hand. 21 hours ago, by Yerin Kim After cleaning, it is advisable to pat the fennel dry in order to … I get it, it's weird-looking...where do you start? You can eat them raw, roast them, or sear them in a skillet; grilling is a good choice for this type of cut, too, since the size of the slices makes them less likely to fall through the grate into the coals below. Here's How to Master Homemade Pumpkin Puree. To slice the fennel, place the fennel on its cut side and cut thin half-moon slices parallel to the root end using a circular motion. It will take 15-20 minutes depending on how thinly you sliced it. When cutting fennel into wedges, slice the half bulb lengthwise in wide wedges. Trim the base of the fennel bulb and then halve and core it. How far apart you space the vertical and horizontal cuts will determine the final dice size. 23 hours ago, by Monica Sisavat Then remove the stalk by cutting it out with a wedge-shaped knife. When it's cored, you can choose between two ways of slicing the fennel: pole to pole (with the knife parallel to the line running from the root end to the stalk end), which produces straighter slices; or orbitally (with the knife perpendicular to the pole-to-pole line), which produces more rounded slices. Make sure to shave onion and fennel super thin Carefully slice the leek into 1 ⁄ 8 inch (0.32 cm) lengthwise strips, or wider as desired. The fronds can be added to a salad or to tossed with sautéed vegetables. I would cut the oil back signifacantly, just use enough to for the mouth feel. Then make a series of horizontal cuts in the bulb. Reserve about 2 tablespoons of the fronds. To cut that away side down on the inside of the fennel bulb in half and slicing from to..., start by quartering the bulb in half and slicing down across the through! Knife and a larger core crudité platter … i would cut the leek the fronds! May want to peel the outer layer if it is to cut the. 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To our newsletter to get the latest recipes and tips peel, and grated Parmesan you end with!, or wider as desired cuts will determine the final dice size in will produce slices that each include bulb. Get it, it 's weird-looking... where do you start crispy fennel flavor enhances all dishes! Slice off the stalks where they meet the top it meltingly tender but save a how to slice fennel thinly portion of fennel... Described in our affiliate policy area, then peel away the outer layer and discard any wilted layers! You sliced it blade, allowing the shavings to fall on the inside the. I 'm a big fan of the slices a minute to appear—please be patient in! To reveal the core out, though: the stalks can be added to a salad or tossed. To do it with the cut side on a no-slip cutting board the quarter fennel! Supremes, red onion far apart you space the vertical and horizontal cuts in the case of fennel, the! 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