House of Orange Salad

I called this marriage of orange and fennel my House of Orange Salad, after the Dutch royal family, who are otherwise known as the House of Orange-Nassau. Of course, my tongue is firmly planted in my cheek here, but there is nothing funny about how it tastes. The combination really works. Fennel is said to stimulate the appetite, so this salad makes for a perfect starter.

• 1 fennel bulb
• 2 oranges (1.5 for the salad, plus the juice of half and the zest of half)
• 1/2 red onion
• Big handful of flat-leaf parsley
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Remove the tough outer leaves of the fennel and cut off the shoots that stick out at the top. Keep the green fronds (it looks a bit like dill). Next, slice off the root end at the bottom. Quarter the fennel bulb, wash thoroughly and slice very finely. You can use a sharp knife, a Japanese mandolin or a food processor to do this. Now finely slice the red onion.

Next, section the oranges. This is a bit fiddly, but give it a go. You do need to remove the skin and all the white pith and then cut the orange segments away between the inner sectioning membranes. Section the oranges over a bowl to catch the juices. Now tear some parsley leaves roughly by hand. Use only the parsley leaves for this salad, not the stalks.

Make a dressing with the freshly squeezed orange juice, finely grated zest, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss fennel slices, fronds, red onion, orange segments and torn parsley with a drizzle of the dressing.

Makes enough for one large lunch salad, or two smaller starter/side salads.

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