Many years ago, I wrote a pickling column for Serious Eats. They have taken most of my old posts down and so where appropriate, I’ve been adding the recipes here.
In the early days of my parents’ marriage, they teamed up with five other couples and bought a cow. They got about 75 pounds of meat from the deal and were thrilled to fill their freezer with locally raised beef. Unfortunately, as soon as they cooked up the first steak, they knew there was a problem with their new purchase. The meat tasted strongly of anise.
As it turned out, the cow they bought had regularly grazed in a field of wild fennel. Every single pound of the meat was infused with the flavor. Eating through the meat in the freezer became a chore and once they were through it, my mother swore off fennel for good.
Because of this, I’ve spent the last few years trying to redeem fennel for my mom. Whenever I’m in Portland visiting my parents, I try to cook it in a different way, in the hopes that I’ll discover a configuration to help her move past this decades-long distaste. Happily, I think this orange-spiked pickle has finally done the job.
It’s a quick pickle, meaning that it isn’t processed in a boiling water bath for shelf stability. The fennel is sliced thinly, tossed with some salt and allowed to sit for an hour or so. This salting step draws out some of the liquid and makes space for the vinegar to enter the fennel.
Before you get started:
Make sure to give your fennel plenty of time to rest with the salt. It improves the final crunch and flavor dramatically.
These pickles improve over time. Let them rest at least 24 hours before you break into them, 48 hours is even better.
When it comes time to serve these pickles, try heaping them on a sandwich in place of a traditional cucumber pickle. For fancier dinners, drizzle them with a bit of olive oil and serve them as a palate cleansing salad. They also work really nicely with sausage and are my favorite thing to eat with a length of turkey kielbasa.
Quick Pickled Fennel with Orange Slices
Ingredients
- 3 small fennel bulbs
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 small orange sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Wash fennel bulbs and remove stems. Slice in half and cut out the hard core. Slice paper-thin on a mandoline.
- Sprinkle kosher salt over shaved fennel and toss to combine. Let fennel sit for at least an hour.
- When time is up, pour fennel into a colander and squeeze to remove the liquid that was produced while it sat with the salt.
- Return fennel to the bowl and toss with orange slices and black pepper.
- Pack fennel and orange into a quart jar and top with the apple cider vinegar.
- Use a chopstick or the end of a wooden spoon to work the vinegar down into the fennel.
- Stash jar in the fridge and let sit for at least 24 hours before eating.
- This quick pickle will keep at least a month in the refrigerator.
I can’t find this recipe on Serious Eats anymore. How can I get it? Thank you, Maureen
I just inserted the recipe in the post here. Serious Eats has taken a lot of my old recipes down.
Is there a suggested method for long storage of this recipe (on the shelf rather than the fridge)? Thanks.
I’ve only made it as a quick pickle. I can’t advice on how to make it as a preserved pickle.
These are so good! I made a batch-and-a-half on Saturday night and have already eaten a third of it. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
So glad to hear that you like them!
I sent this link to my son-in-law and he made a small batch, they are wonderful! A fantastic mix of flavors.
That pickle recipe looks great! I love fennel with citrus. If you are on a fennel kick, do you know the caramelized fennel pasta recipe in Deborah Madison’s Local Flavors? I was just thinking about that recipe yesterday–it gives the fennel an entirely new (to me) taste and texture.
This looks delicious! Do you have any thoughts on using apple cider vinegar with the “mother” or without?
I think that the unfiltered vinegar with the mother probably has a few more health benefits than the apple cider vinegar without it. But in terms of flavor, they’ll be fairly comparable.
Makes me want to grow fennel this year! Oh, man. Quick pickle. Fennel and orange. Brilliant. You get an A. Mmmmwhaaaaaa!
Perfect! I have some fennel just waiting to be used and some wonderful oranges on hand. This is very timely and I can’t wait to try it. Thanks!
Oh my, these look divine. I’ve really fallen in love with fennel this winter, and it looks like the orange takes these pickles into the over-the-top delicious arena.
(And I don’t have better manners than you– I too would eat these with my fingers.)
Ooh, I love fennel, too! Sounds great. One of my favorite salads combines fennel with orange (and jicama and avocado…).
Sounds delightful 😉
Poor fennel. It has a love/hate relationship with eaters. Luckily, I love it. Coincidentally, I have some in my fridge and I am a woman that also loves a quick pickle. It’s Valentine’s day match made in fennel heaven.