Winter Citrus and Red Chicories Salad

By David Tanis

Winter Citrus and Red Chicories Salad
Karsten Moran for The New York Times
Total Time
20 minutes
Rating
4(187)
Notes
Read community notes

A crisp colorful salad in the dead of winter can make a meal feel luxurious. Radicchio and its crimson cousins in the chicory family, Chioggia, Treviso and Tardivo, make an eye-popping display with red citrus like blood orange and ruby grapefruit. The combination of slightly bitter leaves and sweet juices is utterly refreshing. Here's our video showing how to peel the citrus.

Featured in: In Winter, Take the Bitter With the Sweet

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings
  • 4blood oranges or Cara Cara oranges (red-fleshed navel oranges)
  • 1navel orange
  • 1ruby grapefruit
  • 2small heads radicchio, about ¾ pound, or a mixture of red-leaved chicories such as Treviso and Tardivo
  • 2Belgian endives
  • 2tablespoons finely chopped shallot
  • Salt and pepper
  • 4tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 6kumquats, thinly sliced (optional)
  • ¼cup toasted walnut halves
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

167 calories; 10 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 20 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 13 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 461 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Using a serrated knife and following the curves of the fruit, carefully peel the blood oranges, navel orange and grapefruit. Remove all the peels and the white pith, but keep the fruits as smooth and round as possible.

  2. Step 2

    Cut the blood oranges and navel orange crosswise into ¼-inch slices and place in a low bowl. Use knife to cut between the grapefruit membranes to form segments; add to bowl. Squeeze the grapefruit “carcass” over a strainer into the bowl with the citrus.

  3. Step 3

    Separate radicchio into leaves and tear into large pieces.

  4. Step 4

    Remove and discard a layer of exterior leaves from each endive so that only smooth and unblemished leaves are showing. Trim 1 inch from the bottoms and discard. Separate the leaves.

  5. Step 5

    Place radicchio and endive leaves in a large platter or in a low-sided salad bowl. Arrange citrus slices and segments artfully over leaves, reserving the citrus juices.

  6. Step 6

    In a small bowl, combine shallots and 3 tablespoons reserved citrus juices. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk in olive oil and taste. Adjust the seasonings, whisk again, and pour dressing evenly over salad.

  7. Step 7

    Garnish with kumquat slices, if using, and toasted walnuts.

Ratings

4 out of 5
187 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

dimmerswitch

So simple to make and so good. Be sure to add the kumquats if you're fortunate enough to live in a city where grocers carry them. And if you're a fan of this recipe by David Tanis, you may also want to try his Sicilian Citrus Salad recipe. It is simply splendid. See link here. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018551-sicilian-style-citrus-salad

PeppaD.

The vinaigrette is even better with a good walnut oil.

Olga

Excellent winter salad recipe, but instead of endives which I did not have used some fennel (finocchio) with fronds, some sliced taggiasche olives (in brine from a harvest) to add a little salt (use less in the dressing), and instead of kumquats, chopped up some dates. Different from the original, but having the citrus and the radicchio as centre pieces and walnuts at the end, this revised salad worked well!

Santa Monica Jack

Since the reserved citrus juice used for the dressing doesn't add any new layer of flavor (there's already the same juice in the sliced citrus), I suggest substituting sherry vinegar for the citrus juice in the dressing; it brightens the flavors and makes them come alive.

CSR

The 2nd time I made this, I eliminated the endive, reduced the radicchio by half & replaced the other half with little gems. The salad is no longer quite so red, but it’s not so bitter either. If you can’t find little gems, butter lettuce will do.

Dawn JM

I made this for Chinese New Year dinner at some friends' and it was really a hit (and these are serious cooks - usually salad isn't all that interesting when there are so many good dishes to choose from). The bitter-sweet combo of the chicories and citrus was so lovely.

sophia

I added dill, arugula, one nectarine and one pink plum

Kate

This was enjoyed very much with Thanksgiving dinner! It provided a fresh, bright, pleasant bitterness and acidity to the meal. Thanks!

Marie

We ended up with way too much radicchio by preparing the salad as written. I agree that the kumquats are necessary to add sweetness to this bitter salad! Keep the peels on

Mary Beth Lyles

Fantastic showy salad that is perfect for a holiday gathering. Consider using walnut oil in the dressing but olive oil is great too. Love this recipe!

CTMom

This was well-received at a family gathering of 20 people. I took some shortcuts on the fruit peeling - e.g. I cut the grapefruit in half, used grapefruit spoon to get out the sections, then squeezed the grapefruit “carcass”. Only used radicchio and endive, which worked fine. Used clementines because I had them. Doubled the shallots because I love them. It was great and I made it again the next night. Two ppl have asked for recipe:) It would also be very good with TDay heavy leftovers!

Diane

I've made this several times to rave reviews. Most recently, I spiced the walnuts with cumin, coriander, cayenne, sugar, salt, and olive oil. It was a big hit.

Santa Monica Jack

Since the reserved citrus juice used for the dressing doesn't add any new layer of flavor (there's already the same juice in the sliced citrus), I suggest substituting sherry vinegar for the citrus juice in the dressing; it brightens the flavors and makes them come alive.

Olga

Excellent winter salad recipe, but instead of endives which I did not have used some fennel (finocchio) with fronds, some sliced taggiasche olives (in brine from a harvest) to add a little salt (use less in the dressing), and instead of kumquats, chopped up some dates. Different from the original, but having the citrus and the radicchio as centre pieces and walnuts at the end, this revised salad worked well!

CSR

The 2nd time I made this, I eliminated the endive, reduced the radicchio by half & replaced the other half with little gems. The salad is no longer quite so red, but it’s not so bitter either. If you can’t find little gems, butter lettuce will do.

Susan A.

Produce in winter? I found almost all the ingredients growing in my back yard (San Bernardino, CA). The blood orange and red grapefruit were perfect with the bitter greens.

PeppaD.

The vinaigrette is even better with a good walnut oil.

dimmerswitch

So simple to make and so good. Be sure to add the kumquats if you're fortunate enough to live in a city where grocers carry them. And if you're a fan of this recipe by David Tanis, you may also want to try his Sicilian Citrus Salad recipe. It is simply splendid. See link here. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018551-sicilian-style-citrus-salad

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