I made this apple fennel salad with pomegranate and cabbage for Rosh Hashanah this year with a tahini vinaigrette and everyone went crazy for it! The next day I added some cooked farro to the leftovers and fell further in love with this vegan chopped salad. Oh, this simple salad recipe is definitely a keeper, I’m going to make it for Thanksgiving too! It’s light and satisfying, super colorful and so delicious…plus it gets better as it sits, making it the perfect salad for meal prep or a make ahead dish when you’re entertaining.
The shaved fennel plus chopped green apple and cabbage makes for a crisp and vibrant salad that can hold up for a couple days in the fridge, even when it’s already dressed! I love the way adding whole grains to salads makes them hearty without weighing me down….the perfect combination of vibrant ingredients. If you really like raw fennel salads, you’ll want to try my citrus fennel salad too.
Ingredient Notes
Salad Ingredients:
- Save the fennel fronds to sprinkle onto the salad. If you don’t love the flavor of black licorice, be sure to cut the fennel as thinly as possible. It’s easiest to use a mandolin to “shave” it. You’ll be surprised that this method will turn skeptics into fennel lovers….and the dressing will soften both the texture and the taste of the fennel. Try it!!!
- Apple: I love the tart granny smith…my second choice would be honey crisp because it holds together and doesn’t turn to mush.
- Fresh Herbs: Go all in with 2 cups chopped herbs. Parsley is a palate cleanser just like fennel and I adore the combination. Cilantro is another great choice.
- Farro: If you need a gluten-free whole grain to substitute, make quinoa or wild rice. I like the protein and complex carbohydrates in the farro, plus the nubby texture it adds to the salad.
Pomegranate Tahini Dressing Ingredients:
- If you can’t find pomegranate syrup or pomegranate molasses, substitute with date syrup (silan).
- Tahini: make sure you THOROUGHLY mix your jar when it’s first open to avoid portions that are too oily or too dry. A consistent, runny consistency is what’s desired.
- Garlic: use your microplane to zest the garlic cloves right into the dressing. It will mix in beautifully that way and take some of the “bite” off the garlic.
How to make it
If you haven’t made the farro yet, get that going before you begin chopping the salad veggies. See recipe card for directions in the instant pot or the stovetop.
Make the Tahini Vinaigrette
Measure tahini and pomegranate molasses into a glass measuring cup. Squeeze the lemon and grate the garlic right over the cup. Sprinkle in salt and pepper.
Mix well. You can use a small whisk, or a silicone spatula. Pour in ¼ cup water and mix again. If dressing is still too thick to pour, add 1 tablespoon water at a time, mixing thoroughly after each, until desired consistency.
Chop
Set the dressing aside and chop ingredients for the salad, transferring to a large bowl as you work.
See my Easy Jeweled Rice Recipe for directions on the best way to seed a pomegranate. OR buy about 2 cups pomegranate arils already taken from the whole fruite.
Place half cabbage, cut side down. make horizontal cuts, then vertical and finally cut through to form roughly chopped pieces. Place in salad bowl.
Use same method to make small dice out of the onion, after peeling. You want small pieces, since the onion is raw.
Cut the stem off the jalapeno, then cut the flesh off each side, removing the seeds. Cut into thin strips and then turn to cut into small dice.
Leave the apple for last so it doesn’t turn brown before you’re able to pour on the dressing. Cut into thin strips or small cubes so it mixes in well.
Wash the fennel well and trim off any bruised/brown spots. Cut the tops off and set aside the wispy fronds to sprinkle onto the top of the finished salad.
Start with the top side that the fronds were on, holding onto the root end. Cut slices as THIN as you can.
Then add the pomegranate arils and cooked fennel to the bowl with other chopped ingredients.
Pour half the dressing into the salad. Save the rest to pass around for those who like a bit more.
Mix and Serve
Mix until everything is evenly dispersed, including the dressing. Pour on more dressing if the chopped salad is too dry. Serve the rest on the side.
Debra’s Pro Tips
- FENNEL: If your knife skills aren’t great, consider using a small handheld mandolin to get the fennel slices as thin as possible. Keep the fronds to sprinkle onto the finished salad for decoration.
- SAVE TIME: buy pomegranate seeds already removed from the whole fruit. You can find them in the refrigerated section of most grocery stores.
- MEAL PREP: make the farro up to a couple days before assembling the salad, whenever it’s convenient for you. You can chop all the ingredients, except the apple in advance and store separately from the dressing.
- Pomegranate Dressing will stay good in the fridge up to a week in an airtight container. I use mason jars for convenience.
- I like to use a LARGE bowl to make this in so it’s easy to toss together with the dressing. Then I transfer to a serving platter or decorative bowl.
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📖 Recipe
Apple Fennel Salad with Pomegranate and Farro
Equipment
Ingredients
Tahini Dressing
- ¼ cup tahini
- 2 tablespoon pomegranate syrup
- 1 lemon juiced
- 4 large cloves garlic zested
- ¼ cup water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Salad Ingredients
- ½ head green cabbage roughly chopped
- 1 small red onion small diced
- 1 bult fennel sliced super thin
- 1 jalapeno seeded and diced small
- 1 bunch parsley 2 cups chopped
- 1 granny smith apple sliced into thin strips, or diced
- 1 pomegranate about 1 cup seeds
- 3 cups cooked farro
Instructions
- See directions in "notes" to make farro. Let it cook while you get the dressing and salad made. You can also make the farro in advance and store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to assemble salad.
Tahini Dressing
- Stir tahini and pomegranate syrup together in a glass measuring cup. Squeeze the lemon right over the cup. Mix well.
- Grate the garlic over the cup, sprinkle in the salt and pepper. Mix again. It will be thick and pasty.
- Pour in ¼ cup water and mix vigorously until well incorporated. If dressing is still too thick to pour, add water 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing thoroughly before adding any more. Set aside while chopping the salad.
Chop the Salad
- Roughly chop cabbage. Set aside in large bowl.
- Cut red onion into very small dice. If the onion is large, only use half. Add to bowl.
- Trim top off jalapeno pepper. Cut flesh off each side, discarding the seeds. Cut into strips and then across to form very small diced pieces. Add to bowl.
- Cut the top off the fennel bulb. Take the wispy fronds and set aside to sprinkle onto the finished salad. Use a very sharp knife or a mandolin to shave thin slices of fennel from that cut end, towards the root. Add to the salad bowl.
- No need to peel the apple, but wash well. Cut into chunks off each side, discarding the core. Then cut into thin strips…or cut into small dice. Save this to cut last, so it doesn't turn brown. If you're meal prepping this salad, wait to chop the apple until ready to assemble/serve.
Dress and Mix
- Pour half the dressing onto the salad. Mix. Mix some more. The goal would be to lightly dress the salad. Enough dressing so the apple is barely coated, just enough so it doesn't turn brown. Pour a bit more dressing, if needed, and then serve the rest on the side for those who like more.
Notes
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
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