Orange Braised Fennel

image courtesy of leighcourtfarm.org

*Part of the sizzling staffordshire menu series*

I like this as a side dish because its a good accompaniment to alot of game dishes, particularly in the poultry section of the food group such as turkey, duck, pheasant, partridge and guinea fowl etc. The citrus element works very well with  the aniseed element of fennel and provides a nice clean tone to complement game perfectly.

You will need (serves 3):

3 bulbs fennel, halved vetrically, trimmed.
tbsp olive oil
200ml orange juice
200ml chicken or vegetable stock (chicken preferred)
2 cloves of garlic chopped
salt and pepper to season

The doing bit:

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, add the fennel and sear each side of each half bulb until coloured. Turn over and repeat, add the orange juice, stock and garlic. Bring to the boil, then cover the pan and lower to a simmer. Cook until fennel is tender (roughly 20 minutes). Remove from liquor and serve.