Salmon with fennel and blood orange
Fifteen minutes, one pan, dinner-party respectable.
Words — WT Editorial Team
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Serves
- 2
- Level
- Easy
Raw shaved fennel under warm fish is the trick here: it softens slightly in the heat without losing its bite.
Blood orange for the colour, an ordinary orange when they are out of season.
Ingredients
- 2 salmon fillets, skin on
- 1 fennel bulb, shaved thinly
- 2 blood oranges
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- Handful dill
- Sea salt and black pepper
Method
- 1
Pat the salmon dry, season well, and lay skin-side down in a cold non-stick pan. Turn the heat to medium.
- 2
Cook undisturbed for 7–8 minutes until the skin releases and the flesh has turned pale most of the way up. Flip for 1 minute and rest.
- 3
Whisk the mustard with the juice of half an orange and the olive oil. Toss through the shaved fennel with salt.
- 4
Slice the remaining oranges into rounds. Plate the fennel, then the oranges, then the salmon and the dill.
Notes from the kitchen
- A cold pan is the reliable route to crisp skin — no smoking oil required.
- Trout or sea bass work identically.
Why we cook it
Oily fish is one of the few dietary recommendations that has held steady for decades. Twice a week is the usual advice.
The Sunday Edit
Five things worth knowing for a healthier week.
