Fennel and orange kemia with black olives and cumin
The orange salad of the Jews of Tunis (slata bourtgal), seasoned with cumin and a touch of harissa, with very thinly sliced, crisp fennel: a refreshing kemia to begin a meal of red sauces and slow-cooked dishes.
Ingredients for two
| 270 g | Fennel bulb 1 bulb weighing 250–300 g, about 220 g trimmed; reserve the fronds |
| 300 g | Oranges 1 large orange or 2 small ones (about 210 g flesh after removing skin and pith) |
| 40 g | Black olives in brine (Kalamata, Gaeta or Israeli) 10–12 stoned olives (or stone them by pressing with the flat of a knife); drained weight |
| 25 g | Red onions A few thin slices |
| 2 g | Ground cumin 1/2 tsp |
| 6 g | Harissa 1 level tsp; or a pinch (1 g) of hot chilli powder |
| 5 g | Flat-leaf parsley A few sprigs, leaves only |
| 4 g | Fresh mint 6–8 leaves, for extra freshness (optional) |
| 30 g | Lemon 1/4 lemon, yielding about 12 g juice |
| 20 g | Extra virgin olive oil 2 tbsp |
| 2.5 g | Fine salt 1/2 level tsp: 2 g in the dressing, the rest on the plates |
| 0.5 g | Fleur de sel A pinch over the oranges, instead of the remaining salt (optional) |
| 0.3 g | Ground black pepper A small pinch |
Method
- Fill a bowl with very cold water and ice cubes. Rinse the fennel, reserving the fronds, and remove the tough base and any damaged parts. Halve it, cut out the triangular core if thick, then slice on a mandoline into 2 mm slices (or use a very sharp knife to slice as thinly as possible, until barely translucent). Slice the red onion just as finely. Soak the fennel and onion in the iced water for 10 minutes: the slices crisp up and the onion mellows.
- Meanwhile, peel the oranges over a bowl to catch the juice, removing the skin and white pith, then cut the flesh into 5 mm half-rounds, removing any pips. Squeeze the trimmings and core over the bowl: you need about 2 tbsp juice. For a neater presentation, cut out the segments between the membranes instead, then squeeze the membranes into the bowl.
- Stone the olives if necessary by pressing them with the flat of a knife, then halve them. Stir the harissa (1 level tsp) and cumin (1/2 tsp) into the bowl of orange juice; add the juice of the quarter-lemon, 2 g salt (a little less than 1/2 tsp), the pepper and olive oil (2 tbsp). Beat with a fork for 20 seconds until the dressing is orange, cloudy and slightly emulsified.
- Drain the fennel and onion and dry in a clean tea towel or salad spinner: they should be cold and thoroughly dry. Toss them in the bowl with half the dressing.
- Divide the fennel between two plates, arrange the orange half-rounds on top, scatter over the olives and drizzle with the remaining dressing. Season the oranges with the remaining pinch of salt (or fleur de sel), finely chop and add the parsley (and mint, if liked), scatter over the fennel fronds and serve immediately, well chilled.
On your plate
Recipe
237 kcal · protein 3 g · carbs 17 g · fat 15 g
Quantities per person
- 135 g Fennel bulb
- 150 g Oranges
- 20 g Black olives in brine (Kalamata, Gaeta or Israeli)
- 12.5 g Red onions
- 1 g Ground cumin
- 3 g Harissa
- 2.5 g Flat-leaf parsley
- 2 g Fresh mint
- 15 g Lemon
- 10 g Extra virgin olive oil
- 1.25 g Fine salt
- 0.25 g Fleur de sel
- 0.15 g Ground black pepper
Cooking tips
Buy 1 large orange or 2 small ones (300 g in total); the weight refers to the whole fruit. Do not dress the salad ahead of time or it will lose its crunch. To save time, trim and slice the fennel a few hours ahead and keep it in iced water in the fridge; peel the orange at the last moment. Adjust the amount of harissa to its strength: 6 g gives a lively touch without much heat, 10 g a definite kick. This kemia goes well with lamb marka, oven-baked fish and couscous.
Tunisian Jewish kemia: orange salad with black olives, cumin and harissa (slata bourtgal), made here with fennel (besbes).
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