Salty, sweet and more refreshing than the fruit
There are people who eat fruit as a snack, and then there’s me. It’s not that I haven’t tried. No, I love fruit best when it’s cooked down into a sweet jam or marmalade, baked under a bubbling biscuit crust or even blended into ice cream or sorbet.
However, the one time I will happily eat fruit in a raw-ish state is citrus season. All those sweet oranges are too wonderful to tarnish by cooking. Instead of eating them out of hand, though, I put in the smallest bit of effort and turn them into a salad. But there are no lettuce leaves or other vegetables in this salad to distract from the star ingredients. It’s just cold citrus slices, seasoned with a simple vinaigrette and garnished with a few salty toppings to balance all that sweetness.
COLD AND SALTY ORANGE SALAD
Time: 20 minutes, plus 1 hour unattended Yields: Serves 2 to 4 Make ahead: The assembled salad, covered in plastic wrap, will hold in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. 1½ pounds mixed orange citrus 1½ tablespoons rice vinegar 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil ⅛ teaspoon crushed red chile flakes Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 inner stalk of celery, thinly sliced 1 ounce feta, preferably in brine 4 green olives, preferably Castelvetrano, pitted and torn into 3 to 4 pieces
Take one of the smaller orange citruses and, using a Microplane, finely grate the zest from half of it into a small bowl. Stir in the vinegar, olive oil and chile flakes, then season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper.
Working on a cutting board, remove the pith and peel from all the citrus. For citrus bigger than a tennis ball, cut between the membranes to free its wedge-like sections. For smaller citrus, simply slice across the sections to make thin rounds, about ¼-inch-thick, removing any seeds as you go. Transfer all the sliced citrus and juices to a serving platter big enough to fit them in a singleish layer and preferably one with a lip to contain their juice. Spoon the vinaigrette over the slices.
Arrange the celery slices evenly over the citrus. If your feta comes with brine, drizzle a couple teaspoons of the brine over the salad. Roughly crumble the feta and arrange it over the salad, followed by the olives. Cover the whole salad with a sheet of plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate until cold, at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.
Uncover the salad and serve chilled. This is great as a side to salmon fillets, roast chicken thighs or sliced duck breast.