Description
A refreshing and vibrant Blood Orange Salad featuring lightly pickled red onions, crisp fennel, fresh parsley, and a tangy blood orange vinaigrette. Perfect as a light appetizer or side dish, this salad combines sweet citrus flavors with a subtle tang and crunch.
Ingredients
Scale
Pickled Onion
- 1/4 red onion, finely sliced or shaved using mandolin 1 mm thick (~1/2 cup)
- 1/2 tsp white sugar
- 6 tbsp white wine vinegar (for pickling and dressing)
Dressing
- Reserved pickling vinegar (2 tsp)
- Reserved blood orange juice (2 tsp)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Pinch of kosher/cooking salt
- Pinch of black pepper
Salad
- 3 blood oranges
- 1 medium fennel bulb, finely sliced or shaved using mandolin 1 mm (about 4 packed cups)
- 1/4 cup parsley leaves
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (for fennel dressing)
- 1/4 tsp kosher or cooking salt
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Lightly pickle onion: In a small bowl, mix 1/2 tsp white sugar with 6 tbsp white wine vinegar. Add the finely sliced red onions and ensure they are submerged in the vinegar mixture. Set aside for 15 minutes to lightly pickle. Drain the onions and reserve the pickling vinegar for dressing.
- Slice oranges and reserve juice: Remove the rind from the blood oranges and slice them into round slices. Reserve all the juice that collects on your cutting board, aiming for about 2 teaspoons. If you don’t have enough juice, sacrifice one or two orange slices to get more juice.
- Prepare blood orange drizzle dressing: Combine 2 teaspoons of the reserved pickling vinegar with 2 teaspoons of the reserved blood orange juice. Whisk or shake vigorously with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper until emulsified.
- Lightly dress fennel: In a mixing bowl, toss the sliced fennel with 1 tablespoon of the reserved onion pickling juice, the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Mix well to coat the fennel evenly.
- Assemble the salad: Arrange half of the blood orange slices on a serving plate. Pile two-thirds of the dressed fennel evenly over the oranges. Scatter half of the pickled onions and half of the parsley leaves on top. Layer the remaining orange slices, then the remaining fennel, followed by the rest of the onions. Finish with a sprinkle of parsley leaves. Just before serving, drizzle the blood orange dressing mainly over the orange slices to avoid staining the fennel. Serve immediately for the best freshness and flavor.
Notes
- Use a mandolin for evenly thin slices of onion and fennel to ensure delicate texture and look.
- If you don’t have blood oranges, you can substitute with navel oranges but the flavor will be less intense and less colorful.
- The pickling vinegar can be adjusted in quantity depending on how tangy you prefer your onions.
- Serve this salad immediately after dressing to maintain crispness of fennel and freshness of ingredients.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: No-Cook
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Keywords: Blood Orange Salad, Fennel Salad, Pickled Onion Salad, Citrus Salad, Mediterranean Salad, Light Salad
