Shaved Fennel Salad

Simply Delicious: Shaved Fennel Salad with Orange Vinaigrette

If “simple” makes you think boring, think again. This shaved fennel salad proves that a short ingredient list can deliver big flavor, serious crunch, and a whole lot of personality.

Every element of this simple salad plays together to create a delicious masterpiece with thinly shaved fennel, red onion, and Granny Smith apple forming a crisp, refreshing base. A flicker of Thai chili brings heat. Candied sunflower seeds add sweet crunch. And an orange vinaigrette pulls everything together with bright citrus flavor and clean acidity.

This is the kind of salad that wakes up your palate and makes people pause mid-bite. It feels fresh and modern, yet grounded. Light, but satisfying. Simple, but absolutely not dull.

Why This Shaved Fennel Salad Works Anytime—Especially in Winter

This salad leans heavily on winter produce and is a pleasant respite from the traditional heavy winter meals we enjoy like stews, hearty soups, roasts, etc. But all these salad ingredients are available year-round thanks to our access to global markets and supply chains. So you don’t need to wait for a narrow seasonal window to enjoy it.

Fennel: Crisp, Aromatic, and Built for Raw Salads

Fennel has deep roots in Mediterranean cooking, where it has been valued for centuries for both its flavor and digestive benefits.

Native to coastal areas of the Mediterranean, fennel was a staple in Ancient Greece and later embraced by the Roman Empire. The Greeks associated fennel with strength and vitality, while the Romans valued it both as a culinary ingredient and for its digestive benefits. Roman expansion helped spread fennel throughout Europe, where it became deeply rooted in Italian, French, and Spanish cooking.

That long Mediterranean lineage explains why fennel feels so natural alongside citrus, olive oil, vinegar, and fresh herbs. It was literally shaped by cuisines built on brightness and balance.

Raw fennel offers a clean, lightly sweet anise note that feels refreshing rather than overpowering—especially when shaved thin.

Using a mandolin transforms fennel completely. Paper-thin slices turn the bulb tender and crisp at the same time, creating a base that absorbs vinaigrette beautifully without losing its snap. Nutritionally, fennel delivers fiber, vitamin C, potassium, and antioxidants, all of which support digestion and immune health.

Don’t toss the fennel stalks—they still have plenty to offer. Use them as aromatics in stock, lay them under fish when roasting or grilling, or simmer them briefly in broth or wine to infuse a gentle anise note. Even after cooking, the stalks stay quite fibrous and stringy, so they’re best removed before serving—think of them like bay leaves: all about flavor, not texture.

Red Onion: Structure, Contrast, and Backbone

Red onion gives the salad its edge. Cultivated for thousands of years and prized for its color and milder bite, red onion excels in raw preparations when sliced thin.

Here, the onion adds savory depth and contrast. Its sharpness balances the sweetness of apple and candied sunflower seeds, while the vinaigrette softens its bite just enough.

Red onions also bring quercetin, a powerful antioxidant linked to heart health and inflammation reduction, along with prebiotic fibers that support gut health.

Without red onion, this salad would drift sweet. With it, the flavors stay grounded and intentional.

Granny Smith Apple: Tart, Crisp, and Essential

The Granny Smith apple earns its place in this salad because it stays crisp and tart from the first bite to the last.

Discovered by chance in 19th-century Australia, this apple became famous for its firm texture, long storage life, and bright acidity.

That tartness does serious work here. It keeps the salad lively, echoes the citrus notes in the vinaigrette, and adds juiciness without watering anything down. Granny Smith apples hold their shape when shaved thin and resist browning better than softer varieties. But remember, when you slice them, hold them in acidulated water until you’re ready to toss the salad (see the note in the recipe on how to do this).

They’re also high in fiber—especially pectin—and lower in sugar than many apples, making them a smart and flavorful choice for this shaved fennel salad.

Thai Chili: A Flicker of Heat

A little heat goes a long way. Thin slices of Thai chili add just enough fire to keep each bite interesting. The heat cuts through sweetness and sharpens the shaved fennel salad’s overall profile without overpowering it.

Chilies also contain capsaicin, which supports circulation and metabolism.

The heat here is deliberate, not aggressive. A few thin slices of Thai chili bring energy and contrast, but the salad remains balanced, fresh, and composed—bold without being overbearing.

Candied Sunflower Seeds: Sweet Crunch with Purpose

Sunflowers are native to North America and have long been valued for their nutrient-dense seeds. Candied sunflower seeds bring a sweet, nutty crunch that contrasts beautifully with the crisp vegetables.

They also make the salad more accessible by offering crunch without nuts. Sunflower seeds deliver vitamin E, magnesium, selenium, and healthy fats—all while making the salad more crave-worthy.

This garnish adds a hint of sweetness and crunch for a satisfying finish.

The Orange Vinaigrette

This vinaigrette gets its citrus character from orange marmalade and fresh orange zest—and that choice matters.

Marmalade brings concentrated orange flavor along with natural body, creating a dressing that’s slightly thicker and more luxurious than a classic vinaigrette.

The zest amplifies the aroma, while vinegar and olive oil keep everything bright and balanced. The result is a dressing that doesn’t slide off the vegetables—it clings to every shaved slice, coating the fennel, apple, and onion so each bite delivers flavor from start to finish.

Mandolin Magic: Why Technique Matters

This salad comes together almost entirely on a mandolin, and that’s not just a time-saver—it’s part of the magic. Uniform, paper-thin slices ensure that every ingredient plays well together. The salad eats lightly, dresses evenly, and looks beautiful with minimal effort.

If you don’t already own a mandolin, this salad makes a strong case for it—it’s one of those tools that earns its keep by delivering speed, precision, and restaurant-level results with almost no effort.

When to Serve This Salad

This salad shows up beautifully in so many moments:

• Alongside roasted, grilled, or broiled fish or chicken
• As a bright counterpoint to rich winter dishes
• As a starter that wakes up the table
• Or as a stand-alone lunch that doesn’t weigh you down

It’s the kind of salad people don’t expect—and then ask you about.

Simple Doesn’t Mean Boring

This salad proves a powerful point: simple food can still be bold, layered, and exciting. When you choose ingredients thoughtfully and use them with intention, you don’t need much to make something memorable.

Here’s another winter salad to make your tastebuds dance:

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Shaved Fennel Salad

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Crisp fennel salad with apple, red onion, Thai chili, candied sunflower seeds, and orange vinaigrette—bright, crunchy, and full of flavor.

• Author: Chef Sandra Lewis
• Prep Time: 25 minutes
• Cook Time: 5 minutes
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 4–6 servings 1x

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

Fennel Salad

• 2 cups shaved fennel, about 1 large fennel bulb
• 20 pieces of shaved Granny Smith apple
• 1/4 cup shaved red onion
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 Thai chilis, thinly sliced

 

Orange Vinaigrette

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• zest of 1 orange
• kosher salt as needed to taste

 

Candied Sunflower Seeds

• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoons water
• pinch of kosher salt

 

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Instructions

Fennel Salad

1. Shave the fennel.(See the note below for more detail.)
2. Shave the Granny Smith apple. (See the note below for more detail)
3. Shave the red onion.
4. Toss the shaved fennel with the shaved Granny Smith apple, and shaved red onion.
5. Arrange as individual salads or arrange the salad on a platter.
6. Drizzle with the orange vinaigrette using 1 tablespoon of vinaigrette for an individual salad or 4 tablespoons for one large salad.
7. Garnish with the fresh thyme, Thai chili and candied sunflower seeds.

 

Orange Vinaigrette

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, white wine vinegar, orange marmalade, and olive oil until emulsified.
2. Stir in the orange zest.
3. Taste and adjust with kosher salt as needed.

 

Candied Sunflower Seeds

1. Heat the oven to 325˚F.
2. Line a small baking pan with parchment paper.
3. Add the sunflower seeds to a small bowl. Sprinkle with the white and brown sugar.
4. Add the water and a pinch of kosher salt. Stir to combine.
5. Spread the seeds in a single layer on a the parchment paper lined baking sheet.
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes stirring once; bake until the seeds brown.
7. Pull the pan from the oven and give it a stir to separate the seeds while the sugar is still hot.
8. Break the seeds apart and use as a garnish for the salad.

Notes

1. Set your mandolin at 2mm to shave the fennel, apple, and red onion.

How to Shave Fennel

1. Separate the fennel bulb from the stalks. Remove any of the outside layers of the bulb that are brown.
2. Cut the bulb in half and shave each half on the mandolin until you have 2 cups of shaved fennel.
3. Transfer the shaved fennel to an ice bath to crisp up while you prepare the remainder of the salad.
4. Drain the fennel and pat it dry before adding it to the salad.

Tips for Shaving the Granny Smith Apple

1. Prepare a bowl of acidulated water before slicing the apple. This will help keep the apple from browning.
2. Fill a bowl with cold water and 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar.
3. Add the apple slices to the acidulated water as you slice them.
4. Drain and pat dry the slices before adding them to the salad.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 cup
• Calories: 248
• Sugar: 13.9 g
• Sodium: 109.7 mg
• Fat: 19 g
• Saturated Fat: 2.6 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Carbohydrates: 20.4 g
• Fiber: 3.6 g
• Protein: 2.7 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg