Fennel al Forno Recipe (2024)

This was outstanding after I tweaked it a bit. I peeled the outside of the fennel, but then quartered the bulb and removed the core from each quarter, then sliced, some thicker and some thinner so that the smaller pieces became even softer during cooking. I also blanched the fennel for 7 minutes, not 1 minute as the recipe suggested. I wasn't looking for a crisp fennel gratin. Everyone loved this dish and it was tender.

This was a lovely recipe. I prepared it as part of a large meal of grilled meats and grain/green salads--and many people told me it was their favorite dish of the evening. The only warning I will give is this: We had a little leftover and I tried to serve it the following day. As a leftover it was awful. I can't explain why. The taste was different on Day 2 and it did not reheat nicely. Just in case you are planning to assemble the day before ... it's not advised!

I wish I had read the comments beforehand, but I saw 5 stars and followed the recipe as written. I agree that the fennel definitely needs to be blanched longer, as it was a bit crunchy and in parts tough. I would also remove the cores next time. I would increase the olive oil mixture and be very generous with the seasoning (more garlic, more red pepper, more salt). I found that my guests and I were only eating the very top layer that had the cheese and breadcrumbs.

Y’all are going to yell at me, because I cut a corner.I browned some hot Italian sausage and then crumbled it over the fennel before baking.It came out great.

Depending on size (perhaps it was larger than that specified) simply cut a V-shaped notch in the root end of the bulb and remove that. No more tough fennel. I do that and slice thin (about 2 mm) for raw fennel salad. I'm sure it would be delicious cooked. If something's bland, you likely didn't use enough salt.

The fennel definitely needs to be cooked more before adding to the casserole since it doesn’t really cook that much in the oven. Next time I will sauté the fennel ahead of time to get it to a more caramelized state then add to the casserole. Also I used panko since that’s what I had and it took forever forever to brown (had to run it under the broiler). Next time I would either mix the panko with melted butter or olive oil to promote browning and/or put it under the broiler much sooner.

Delicious! I boiled 1/2 lb of pasta and added the fennel halfway through the cooking time. Removed about 1/2 cup of the starchy water, drained the fennel and pasta, and added the oil/garlic/fennel/rosemary/pepper mix to the hot pot. Sautéed that for 30 seconds or so, then poured the reserved pasta water in to emulsify into a sauce. Reduced for a minute or two, took off the heat, then tossed the fennel and pasta with it and poured the mixture into a casserole dish. Followed the rest as written!

excellent will do it gain. fennel needs to be cooked for 5-7 minutes

I made this to go with the porchetta recipe from Melissa Clark. It was a lovely dish. Another reviewer didn't think it was very good reheated but I thought the leftovers were fine. I do not like the taste of licorice but love fennel. I'd encourage others who aren't licorice lovers to try this.

Remove coreBlanch for 6 minutesAdd some grated garlic

Well, I did the 7 minutes suggested here and that took much of the flavor out of the bulb. Everyone liked it, said the fennel taste was very mild, I agree. I’m going to make it again and blanch for 4 minutes. Def. use homemade bread crumbs. I used Burrata Mozz, delish!

This is a delightful accompaniment to Melissa Clark's porchetta.A wonderful ooey-gooey crispy dish of tasty vegetable. I also might up the garlic and other herbs next time, and some of the fennel was a bit chewy. That wasn't a problem but might be improved by slightly longer blanche time. A definite keeper.

It's the Italian work for the dried red pepper flakes.

If you blanch the fennel for longer than a minute ( I did six) you need to make sure to really patted dry before layering in the baking dish, or else the dish is too watery. I agree that it needed more of the olive oil seasoning mixture and more Parmesan and crunchy breadcrumb topping. Also had better luck cooking for 15 minutes longer in at a higher temperature.

I followed Linda's suggestions and it came out great. Even those that generally don't like fennel loved it.

I loved this recipe!

I fear bland, so I juiced this up a bit -- with fennel sausage, leeks and a spicy pepper. It was good for dinner, but delicious for lunch the next day. Would have blanched fennel for 4 mins, rather than 6.

This was excellent--great make-ahead dish that required about 30 minutes to get perfectly browned and done. I had 5 bulbs of nice young organic fennel, and it took 6 minutes to blanch, from time it went it boiling water to finish. I was generous with all ingredients. The comments in this section were really helpful, and I will make this often.

I followed suggestions in notes to both parboil and bake longer. I used some of the larger fennel stalks successfully. It was delicious and intriguing. Next time I may use a larger, shallower pan. I threw in some leftover chopped ham that I was trying to use up and that worked well. There were 6 inches of snow on the ground in Nashville, TN and the salty, cheesy, intriguing warmth hit the spot.

I made this as part of a NYE dinner, heeding some of the previous comments (i.e. coring the fennel and blanching for 5+ minutes. This dish was excellent and pretty enough to put right on the table. Would make again without hesitation.

A lovely side dish for roasted chicken or fish or grilled steak. I used fresh fennel from my local CSA farm box, which needed no peeling and was delightfully tender after a minute’s boil. I adore pepper but I’d still go lightly on the pepper here. I’m gluten-free (alas), and the corn chips I crushed for crumbs didn’t brown as prettily as breadcrumbs would, but it was delicious nevertheless. I’ll make this for guests, for sure.

Made this for a holiday dinner party. I doubled the recipe, and used gluten-free ciabatta to make the breadcrumbs (worked perfectly). After reading the notes, I cored the fennel before slicing, and blanched for 5 min instead of 1. I will blanch for 3-4 minutes next time. I used a little part-skim, grated mozzarella in addition to sliced fresh. It was delicious and not a crumb left!

I followed this (mostly) as written, but used chopped Calabrian peppers in oil (because that's what I had), blanched the fennel for 4 minutes and cooked for a bit longer in the oven. And added olives - because I had tons, and needed them out of the fridge! Oh, and doubled the spice/oil mixture. It was delicious. We have just a tiny bit left over, cuz we needed seconds!

It takes an hour in the oven

This was good. We found it to be ok...nothing special for the amount of work. I "veganized" it by using vegan cheeses and Field Roast Sausage with Fennel. I doubled the aromatics by following the advice of others, and still, it was just ok. Don't think I'll make it again.

Yummy served along side the porcetta. I’d serve this as a main course, maybe as one commenter suggested adding a topping of Italian fennel sausage. Never too much fennel.

Double garlic, pepper, rosemary Blanch 6 minutes

To ah e perfectly wonderful fennel the water must first be at a rolling boil, then add the fennel pieces and RETURN to a boil. Then start the one minute blanching. I find it’s perfect every time. But yes, the directions needed to be more clear on that.

The 1 minute blanching is, I think sufficient. However, double the sauce. Otherwise, there just won't be enough for that second layer. Although I think the dish is best on its own, it's also very good over a bit of angel hair pasta (did I mention a bit of butter?).

Made with Melissa Clark's Porchetta to use up the fennel. Turned out very good and is a great side dish for the Porchetta.After reading comments, skipped the blanching. Instead sliced fennel 1/4 thick, then sauteed with garlic, red pepper, rosemary, fennel seed, and s&p over med high heat till fennel starting to brown. Transferred to dish, topped with mozza and put in fridge till ready to cook. Topped with browned panko and parm just before putting in oven (cooked while porchetta was resting)