There is something special about the combination of fish, fennel, and blood orange. It's such a simple dish, yet everything works so well together with a little kick from green olives. Easy enough for any night of the week and just as perfect for a special occasion or long weekend lunch. Blood oranges have a short season, but you can use a navel orange once the season ends - By Chef Tom Walton.
300 g snapper fillets, skin on, pin bones removed
flaked sea salt, to season
2 tbsp olive oil
1 head fennel, halved, finely shaved (about 1mm thick)
3 blood oranges, peeled and sliced into 5mm rounds
1⁄2 cup dill, leaves picked, half roughly chopped
1⁄2 cup mint, leaves picked, half roughly chopped
1⁄2 cup green olives, pitted, halved
2 tbsp chardonnay vinegar
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
ground black pepper, freshly ground, to season
Turn your recipe chaos into a plan for the week.
Browse 1000+ inspiring creator recipes
Unlimited recipe import from social media, blogs and more
Generate shopping lists and meal plans in seconds with AI
Gently dry the skin of the well with paper towel – this is important for getting a crispy skin. Carefully remove any pin bones using fish tweezers and set the fish aside on a plate, skin side up. If doing this a few hours in advance, keep the fish uncovered, skin side up, in the fridge, which will help further dry the skin.
Cut the in half and shave finely, about 1mm thick, on a mandolin or with a sharp knife. Top and tail the and, using a small, sharp knife, cut around the orange to remove the skin, following the curve of the fruit. Slice the peeled blood oranges into 5mm thick rounds.
Roughly chop half the and , and add to the with the remaining whole dill and mint leaves and the . Do not dress the salad yet.
Preheat a skillet over high heat.
Season the fish with flaked sea salt on both sides. Add the 2 tbsp olive oil to the hot pan, then carefully add the fish skin side down and, keeping over the heat, press down on the fillets with a fish spatula for 15-20 seconds.
Manage the heat, turning down to medium/high if needed so the fish is caramelising evenly. You will start to see the sides of the fish browning and the flesh becoming opaque (you can cover with a lid at this point, which helps speed up the cooking).
Cook the fish on the skin side most of the way, approximately 3 minutes for this size , as they are thinner fillets. Then carefully flip the fish, remove the pan from the heat, and after 20 seconds, remove the fish from the pan to a plate.
Dress the fennel salad with the , , flaked sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper, then gently toss.
To serve, layer the fennel salad and slices onto serving plates and top with the cooked .
Products we used - see our profile bio for more!
- Scanpan TechnIQ 22cm Modern Skillet

