Fennel Salad, anyone?

Three's company for this stellar combo

There is a salad that I make when I'm looking to convert fennel skeptics to fennel lovers: thinly shaved fennel, cracked Castelvetrano olives, and loads of shaved pecorino. I toss it in lots of olive oil, lemon juice, and the zest of a lemon and an orange. It nearly always works.

Google cannot unearth an origin story for the combination of fennel, green olives, and salty cheese, but from where I’m standing it seems to be a modern classic: it is gracing the menu (in salad form) at three incredible Italian restaurants: Cafe Altro Paradiso in NYC, Via Carota in NYC, and, well … Melfi’s in Charleston, SC. (One of my own restaurants.)

I am happy to admit that I stole the idea from enjoying the dish at Altro Paradiso, where I first had the combination. The chef, Ignacio Mattos, is a friend and someone whose culinary prowess I greatly admire. In his version, which seems to be the “original,” he conceals a surfeit of olives, dressed and redolent of citrus, under a mound of fennel and cheese, bright white. The magic of the dish is just how boring it looks; it appears at first glance to be simply a mound of raw fennel.

The fennel salad at Via Carota in NYC.

But after tucking in, you realize there are depths of flavor and a world of surprises beneath the service. If a salad could make you laugh, it is this one: it is that surprising when you first enjoy it.

Last week, on a trip to NYC we ate at Via Carota three times (and visited their bar across the street a record four times). It is safe to say it is our “favorite” restaurant in NYC. One could argue there are better Italian restaurants, but Via seems to get the full package right (great drinks, simple food, lovely atmosphere), and the food is wildly consistent. On our last visit, we ordered their fennel salad, which seemed to be a riff on Ignacio’s, but with a more assertive fish sauce dressing. The whole affair was a bit more pungent, salty; I prefer the version at Altro Paradiso.

Our version at Melfi’s, which we serve alongside our grilled Bronzino, is also studded with olives and shaved cheese, but dressed in the simplest of vinaigrettes, and punched up with a bit of herbs.

The takeaway here is both that great artists steal (especially when it comes to food), and that this is a tried and true combination that you may as well file away as a “classic” and put on your table whenever you see a firm, fresh head of fennel at the store. My super simple home version is below. Happy eating.

Fail-safe Fennel Salad

Start with your head of fennel, trimming off the long green stalks and reserving the firm white bulb.

Cut the head into fourths, and with a mandoline or a very sharp knife, shave the fennel as thin as you can manage. (This is much easier with a mandoline, but try hard not to remove a finger.)

In a large mixing bowl, squeeze lemon juice over the fennel; toss together and taste to ensure it is well seasoned with lemon. Then dress with olive oil and toss together. Finally, zest the peel of a lemon and an orange into the bowl.

Add a handful of crushed castelvetrano olives (using the back of a knife or bowl to smash them); finish with a grotesque amount of shaved (do not grate!) pecorino cheese (I use a Y peeler for this), and toss the salad to incorporate.

Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve.