Understanding plants: fennel
I feel confident with lots more whole plant based foods now. However, I'm pretty sure I have never used fennel. Until now. I unexpectedly acquired a fennel plant. How much do I know about fennel? It went in a salad in an episode of Gilmore Girls. That's all I know. So then why am I making a guide about it? I want to learn more about fennel and then share my newfound knowledge. If you are thinking of cooking with fresh fennel for the very first time, hopefully this guide could provide some basic background.
Fresh fennel. Image: iStock.
What does fresh fennel look like?
I received a whole fresh fennel that had long stems attached. Fennel bulbs may be sold in stores with trimmed short stems. The dried seeds could be found at bulk stores, supermarkets or even harvested when it is grown in the garden.
Is fresh fennel affordable?
I wish I would have taken a leap and tried this vegetable sooner. Why? It actually seems relatively affordable. An organic fennel bulb was $3.95 at Doorstep Organics when I checked, or $6.95 for a bunch. I saw fresh fennel at Coles for $2 or at Woolworths for $2.50 each. Why not look for locally grown fennel at your nearest farmers' market, co-op or direct from a farmer.
How to grow fennel at home
What would be even cheaper than buying fennel at the shops? Growing it by yourself. Look at a few guides like this one to understand the plant and what it needs. Plant it in a sunny location in the spring time. Good luck.
Learn to grow your own fennel for a sustainable way to enjoy this healthy food. Image: Pixabay creative commons, edited.
How to cook fennel
What can we even do with fennel? I found a great summary about preparing fennel. Whole fresh fennel can be thinly sliced or shredded, typically to go in a salad. It could apparently be used as a garnish. We can sauté or roast fennel to bring out a sweet flavour. The bulb could also be boiled or steamed. It seems as though we can do almost anything with fennel. I would add fresh or cooked fennel into a pasta dish or include fennel when cooking pasta or potato bake.
Fennel can be raw or cooked, including sautéed. Image: iStock, edited.
What does fennel go with?
After looking at a bunch of recipes, I see how fennel could go well with olives or lemon. And pasta. I would like to experiment with combinations of fennel and celereac. I bought a celereac once and only used half of it. The rest went in the compost. That's a sad confession. If I can get more creative with those two ingredients, something interesting could happen.
Fennel with olives and oranges as an example. Image: Pixabay creative commons, edited.
Fennel dishes
I visited the BBC Good Food web site and thought of ways to veganise some of the dishes. Try this accidentally vegan barbecued fennel with black olive dressing. Or this simple fennel & celery salad. Here are a few more ideas inspired by the BBC. Why not invent your own vegan fennel gratin. I wonder what pasta and risotto meals should include fennel. Finally, I would happily add fennel salad on the side of a tofu 'steak.'
Fennel can be served raw in a salad. Image: iStock, edited.
Another plant for diversity of food in the day
Fennel seems to be another useful vegetable to grow, buy, cook and eat. It is one of many whole plant food ingredients that could be included in a diverse abundant diet. I look forward to making some of these dishes soon.
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