This roasted vegetable dish includes the best of British potatoes combined with fennel three ways, ripe tomatoes and salty olives. Fantastic in its own right or delicious served with fish or grilled chicken.
Fennel three ways
When a fennel appeared in my veg box I knew immediately that it was going to be chopped up and roasted. After all, is there a vegetable that doesn't taste better for being drizzled with oil, cooked low and slow until it goes soft in the middle and crispy around the edges. Fennel is one of my favourite vegetables which is why I make sure to have some growing in our kitchen garden, all year round if possible!
I set to chopping up the giant fennel bulb I'd received and decided to raid the rest of my veg box for inspiration. Best of British new potatoes and sunshine ripened tomatoes were also in the bag. All I had to add were some olives, a few sprigs of fennel leaves from our garden and seeds we'd harvested earlier in the year.
The fennel bulb in particular takes on a whole new flavour when it is roasted. Raw fennel is crisp and its characteristic aniseed flavour shines bright. But cook it for 45 minutes and it mellows into something much sweeter and more delicate: an aroma that fills the house as it cooks. The seeds become wonderfully perfumed when heated. Though it's the feathery, bright green leaves that are the perfect finishing touch. I like to sprinkle them over the dish just before serving to bring back some of that bright, crisp flavour that you lose through cooking.
Serve as a side or main
As much as the fennel is the star of the show with this one, British new potatoes are the perfect base. Did you ever come across a roast potato you didn't like?! Crisp skins and fluffy insides make this a hearty dish that will certainly fill you up meaning this can easily be served as lunch or dinner by itself or with a protein of your choice.
If you're vegan or veggie (like me!) I love it served hot straight out of the oven when the tomato juices are still hot, sticky and sweet. But, it works pretty well served cold too. If serving cold I quite like to add a dollop of hummus.
Halloumi, grilled fish and chicken all work well, as does pork but if cheese and meat aren't your think I promise you won't feel like you're missing out.
The recipe
Roasted Fennel and Potato with Tomato and Olives
Ingredients
- 12 new potatoes
- 1 bulb fennel
- 500 grams tomatoes See Note 1
- 100 grams green olives pitted
- olive oil
- salt
- pepper
- 3 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 bunch fennel leaves
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.
- In the meantime, bring a pan of water to the boil and add the potatoes, cooking for 5-10 minutes or until just tender.
- Cut the fennel bulb into roughly 8 chunks and place in a roasting tin. Don't worry if the layers start to pull apart from each other.
- Add the new potatoes (cutting any larger potatoes in quarters or halves so none are any bigger than 2 inches squared).
- Next nestle the tomatoes between the potatoes and fennel (again cutting any larger tomatoes in quarters or halves) along with the olives.
- Drizzle over the olive oil and season liberally with salt, pepper and the fennel seeds.
- Roast in the centre of the oven for 45 minutes, shaking the pan half way through.
- Once the vegetables are roasted, remove from the oven and sprinkle with the fennel leaves.
Choclette says
This sounds so good Emma. I could sit down to a big dish of this right now and no need for anything else. Although halloumi never goes amis. Fennel is delicious and particularly good roasted and I love your addition of salty olives.
Emma Walton says
Roasted fennel is definitely my new favourite veg. Just can't get enough of it!
Janice Pattie says
You had me at fennel! It's one of my favourite vegetables and you don't see too many recipes using it. This is a lovely one pan meal and going on my 'to make' list!
Emma Walton says
It's such an underrated vegetable isn't it?!
Sisley White says
This look heavenly! I love simple but good filling food that is roasted. I will be making it at the weekend.