I make braised fennel very often, so often, in fact, that I’ve never bothered to write a post about one of the ways to enjoy this vegetable in a fragrant broth.
Of course raw fennel is marvellous too, but fennel can be cooked in various ways and here is the recipe.
Preparing fennel is a straightforward process, and I employ the Italian culinary technique known as ‘cucina all’occhio’. This technique entails making intuitive decisions based on culinary expertise and knowledge.
Although there is no specific recipe, here are some general guidelines that I find helpful:
I always include herbs like parsley, fresh bay leaves, and minced garlic. If I have rosemary, thyme, or tarragon, I might add one of these too. Sometimes I add a little butter. This enhances the sauce and makes it velvety.
I always braise with stock – chicken or vegetable, that I stock in the freezer and I always add a splash of wine. That’s a northern Italian touch, not Sicilian.
If there’s some Cinzano Extra Dry vermouth that I have around, I’ll use that instead of the wine, especially if I have used tarragon. I’ve also used Pernod, which of course enhances the aniseed flavour. The ratio is simple: about 1 part alcohol to 8 parts stock.
PROCESS
Use a saucepan with a lid that fits the fennel snugly and allows enough room for liquid.
Clean and prepare the fennel: Cut off the stalks and discard them. Save the younger fronds—the wispy pale green ones.
I like to keep the leaves of the bulb intact as they cook, so I only trim part of the tough core. Then I cut the bulb into quarters.
Heat a little extra virgin olive oil in the pan. Lightly pan-fry the fennel quarters until lightly golden on both sides.
Lower the heat, add the stock and wine (or vermouth/ Pernod), the herbs, and a bit of minced garlic. The liquid should come about halfway up the fennel.
Cover and braise gently until the fennel is tender but still holding its shape.
If there’s too much liquid at the end, just remove the lid towards the end of the cooking process and let it reduce a little.
Of course, fennel is also great when it is simply baked… I just include it on the baking tray with potatoes (and other vegetables), but here are a couple of other cooked fennel recipes:
STUFFED BAKED FENNEL WITH PANGRATTATO; FINOCCHI RIPIENI
TORTINO DI FINOCCHI (A flan of cooked fennel)
FENNEL CAPONATA (Sicilian sweet and sour method for vegetables)
My Sicilian/American Grandmother would always leave washed, cut, cold Fennel out on a plate as an appetizer to eat while the big Sunday Dinner was being prepared. We ate it like most people would eat celery. It wasn’t till I visited Sicily and learned that it grows wild everywhere that I realized where this tradition came from.
You have just reminded me that this was what my dad did too when the family would meet for that traditional Sunday lunch. He often cut up fennel into quarters and we would all munch on this as we waited for the rest of the meal. A vey special vegetable.
Thanks again for sharing
A pleasure